Busy offseason offers sustenance to NASCAR fans

Tired of the boring NASCAR off-season already? Can't wait until the start of the 2008 Sprint Cup season with the celebrated and historic 50th running of the Daytona 500 on Feb. 17?

If so, here's just the tonic you need. Watch out for these events to get your fill of NASCAR-related news. Mark the dates on your calendar.

The Race of Champions: Scheduled for Sunday at Wembley Stadium in London, two-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson will once again compete for the Nations Cup title. He'll be part of Team USA, along with motorcyclist Travis Pastrana. Johnson missed this event last year when it was held in Paris with an injury.

NASCAR Preseason Thunder: A few seasons ago, NASCAR officials came up with a good idea. When the teams come for preseason testing at Daytona, make drivers talk to the media and show up for a couple of public appearances, then charge fans to watch the cars go around in circles. The result is NASCAR's Preseason Thunder. There are actually two Cup sessions, though teams can only go to their one assigned event, on Jan. 7-9 and Jan. 14-16. Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Carl Edwards, Clint Bowyer and Kurt Busch will be at the first session, while the second group of drivers will include Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Jeff Burton, Tony Stewart, Martin Truex Jr. and Jamie McMurray. The Craftsman Truck Series (Jan. 11-13) and the Nationwide Series (Jan. 18-22) will have their own Thunder sessions. One-night Fan Fests will be held during the middle of the Thunder testing and will include bands, show cars, pit stop demonstrations, silent auctions of memorabilia and hot laps around the Daytona track.

Testing, testing and more testing: Pick a day and there will likely be a NASCAR team testing somewhere. Teams are limited to official testing sessions at NASCAR tracks, but Goodyear can invite teams for tire testing sessions. Bobby Labonte and Ron Hornaday were at a Goodyear test this week at Atlanta Motor Speedway, while Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, Jeff Burton, Kasey Kahne and Travis Kvapil tested tires at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Teams can rent out non-NASCAR tracks for as many testing sessions as they want. For example, Chip Ganassi Racing and Michael Waltrip Racing have been testing at Nashville Superspeedway this week, while Dave Blaney is testing at Rockingham, N.C. Besides the Preseason Thunder at Daytona, official NASCAR tests are scheduled for Jan. 28-29 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Jan. 31-Feb. 1 at California Speedway.

The Chili Bowl: This event is a hidden jewel. Scheduled for Jan. 12 in Tulsa, Okla., the race will include NASCAR stars Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne and Ryan Newman. The Chili Bowl is one of the most unique races in America as champions from various circuits race 800-horsepower midgets on an indoor, quarter-mile dirt oval. The event sold out last summer and will be televised on HBO Pay-Per-View.

Jerry Titus Award: The American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association will hold its annual banquet on Jan. 12 in Indy. In addition to honoring the 2007 All-America Auto Racing Team, the association will announce the winner of its Driver-of-the-Year Award (Titus). Among the five finalists are NASCAR's Johnson and Hornaday.

Sound and Speed: A Nashville party that combines stock car racing and country singers can be sweet music. Several of the biggest names in country music will show up for the Jan. 11-12 event, along with NASCAR personalities Richard Petty, Darrell Waltrip, Kyle Petty, Newman and McMurray.

Motorsports Race Car Show: Being held at the Atlantic City Convention Center on Jan. 18-20, this annual event features a wide variety of NASCAR drivers. Scheduled to appear this year are Hornaday, Kenny Wallace, Ken Schrader, Casey Mears, Elliott Sadler and Brett Hearn.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Media Tour: Hosted by Lowe's Motor Speedway, the Jan. 21-25 event is for media and not fans. The faithful, however, get to enjoy increased media coverage during the event as drivers, team owners, crew chief and NASCAR officials make themselves available. NASCAR and many teams make announcements during the tour, items ranging from associate sponsorship to a major rule change. The 2008 version will be the 25th edition of the tour and more than 200 media members are expected from more than 20 states and several other countries.

The Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona: The endurance sports car race will be held Jan. 26-27 at Daytona International Speedway. The event is becoming a popular warm-up for Cup drivers, primarily because it is at Daytona and is one of the safest forms of racing. Two Cup champions have already signed up for the '08 version, Johnson and Kurt Busch. This will be Johnson's fourth consecutive year to race in the Rolex 24. Reigning Cup Rookie of the Year, Juan Montoya, is also among the drivers who have committed to compete.

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