Team 49 loses another crew guy

[Hoosier_Dirt]

Saw on X twitter whatever they are calling it these days Vinny Guliani leaving team to focus on his business.

[Henry Every]

What did he do on the team?

[Buford.Justice]

Did he take any "devices" with him. hahahhaahaa

[KTMLew]

Did he take any "devices" with him. hahahhaahaa

From what I understand, they would have been HIS devices. That's what he's gonna be doing. Working on products with Longhorn & Bilstein, etc.

[Hoosier_Dirt]

From what I understand, they would have been HIS devices. That's what he's gonna be doing. Working on products with Longhorn & Bilstein, etc.

Correct. He was the team engineer.

[bleedblue55]

Did he take any "devices" with him. hahahhaahaa

Only the ones that eat dollar bills and the waitress brings you free drinks.

[Highside Hustler25]

Only the ones that eat dollar bills and the waitress brings you free drinks.

Sounds like Bloomquist syndrome.

[zyoung25]

I don't think he has been around them as much lately to begin with. He was at Florence, not with the Landers team though.

[Tireguy17]

Is Randall still with Garrett Smith…?

[dirtcrazy4u]

Hiring team engineers is not good for dirt track racing period. Lance Landers out spends everyone.

[grt74]

Hiring team engineers is not good for dirt track racing period. Lance Landers out spends everyone.

I'm sure there is frustration in the 49 camp, but when you win as big as he did last year, everyone went to work because they knew they were off
i would say money isn't an issue over there on that team, and people will come and go, if i had to guess I'm sure vinny is just tired of the road, the road will wear you out

[Flathead]

I can see where Superman might be a little more difficult to get along with nowadays, he used to seem like a real humble guy in the sport but it just seems like nowadays he’s really (not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)y and arrogant and probably difficult to get along with. Plus the 32 and the 20rt has stole his spotlight in the longhorn camp this year. If Lander’s has all of this money like all of you claim why can’t he keep all of these top notch crew members?

[Pennsboro32]

^

Because life isn’t all about money. Who wants to be on the road away from family 3/4 of the year? It would take a toll on anyone.

[weatherman85]

^

Agreed. Also more difficult to spend and actually get to enjoy the money you make when all you do is travel for most of the year.

[foxfire2dirtracing]

With the team located in Batesville, Arkansas- that doesn’t help any. A lot of highway miles, brutal heat/humidity if you’re not a local from the area. Batesville doesn’t have a lot going on other than the White River and Colton’s Steakhouse.
Moyer, Wendell Wallace, Bill Frye lived in the area and spent much time on the highway racing.
When Frye basically quit racing - he said he loved to race but hated getting into the hauler.

[zyoung25]

Tireguy17 I never seen Randall all weekend. I didn't spend as much time in the pit area as I normally do at this race though.

[MasterSbilt_Racer]

Hiring team engineers is not good for dirt track racing period. Lance Landers out spends everyone.

I think he's just a guy that studied engineering a little bit. There's plenty of them in the sport.

The best "race engineer" I know has never spent a day in college.

[Josh Bayko]

Being on the road isn’t all it’s cracked up to be and doesn’t typically pay all that well.

[MRM]

Burnout is real and this is only going to get worse as the season is basically year round now. The people that run the sport need to realize this.

[KTMLew]

I think he's just a guy that studied engineering a little bit. There's plenty of them in the sport.

The best "race engineer" I know has never spent a day in college.

I'm gonna hijack this zhit...back in the day when SLM were trying every kind of rear suspension you could imagine, and Tim Hitt was the Rocket undercover house car driver, somehow Tim ended up driving a "show car" from the local mall. Had brackets all over the rear clip. 4-link, swingarm, leaf spring, etc. They were transitioning to pretty much building 4-link & some mono-leaf stuff. So...car has 4-link. He was struggling badly at Interstate Raceway (was across from Rocket's driveway) and couldn't get car to have any sidebite. Horribly loose in and huge push off.

I had started my own auto repair business and had stepped back from racing but went to track and looked under his car. This was back when that wouldn't get you stomped. Plus we we friends and i'd helped him lots over the years. First thing I notice is, left lower link has a significant gouge in the aluminum tube where it was contacting the frame bracket when chassis rolled. Back when they had spring-bar J-bars. When it rolled to right was picking LR off the ground. I mentioned it to guy that had assumed "crew chief" duty, local GM dealer SM (we had a difficult relationship before), and suggested this was a problem. He immediately got all pissy and said, "so you know more than Rocket Chassis does about setting up their cars"? Yep. If they can't see that, yep. Finally went over to the parts truck, which Steve Baker was manning, told him what I'd seen. He said, hang on a minute, walked over an looked. Eyes got kinda big. Went to the truck and came back with some different spacers, we moved the bar OUTSIDE of chassis bracket (was built for leaf spring) so it could move freely, Tim finished second.

Started next to last and nearly won.

Fixed.

SM guy met eyes with me and just gave me a thumbs up. Far as I can remember we never spoke again. He was a douche. But so am I, probably.

My point is, being an "engineer" isn't just for those with a piece of paper. Some people can just SEE things. I always could SEE things. I SEE geometry even though can't do the math. But I HAVE read a book or three. Lot of dyslexic guys out there that won't ask for help.

Now back to your regularly scheduled discussion...

[Snake X3]

My point is, being an "engineer" isn't just for those with a piece of paper. Some people can just SEE things. I always could SEE things. I SEE geometry even though can't do the math. But I HAVE read a book or three. Lot of dyslexic guys out there that won't ask for help.

My father was one of those guys. Never went to college but was a research engineer and eventually given an honorary doctorate. He was also a racer and he amazed me. Just a naturally gifted guy.


Now back to your regularly scheduled discussion...

I don't know how guys that are in their 40s or older can go up and down the road like that. Billy Moyer is just amazing that he's still doing it and even though he's not racing the way he used to, that's a lot for a guy in his 60s.

[Buford.Justice]

From what I understand, they would have been HIS devices. That's what he's gonna be doing. Working on products with Longhorn & Bilstein, etc.

True that is.

[Barbecueboy]

Arrogant? I’m not really seeing or hearing that at all…….if anybody out there has ever been on a team( football,racing,whatever) and won a championship or has a ridiculously good breakout year has to know following that up is very difficult because of the expectations you set for yourself that following year.

I can see JD as being a little frustrated and hard on himself this year but can’t ever see him as arrogant……ever.

[kidrock]

As they all say at some point this sport will humble you. One year you can be on top and then the next year your just trying to get in the top 5 on a consistent basis. Look at Overton everyone thought he would do what RTJ is doing but, he's not. I'm not sure of all the changes but, didn't they change the tire rule for this year?

[MasterSbilt_Racer]

Burnout is real and this is only going to get worse as the season is basically year round now. The people that run the sport need to realize this.

Sometimes employers burn out on employees too.

[dirtcrazy4u]

MB. I couldn't stand some of my employees by weeks end. I'm sure at times they probably didn't like me either by the end of the week. I had 70 people and you can never make all of them happy with a decision that has to be made by guess who ? Me. Weekly my crews of 3 to 5 people, someone would come in saying I don't want to work with this person anymore. They where home every night.

[kidrock]

One time my boss called all of us in and said Guys I know you all don't get along but, I expect you to get along the 8 hours plus you are working here and to be civil to one another but, you don't have to go out to dinner or a ball game or even have drinks with that person once you leave here.

[Barbecueboy]

So I know your boss made y’all get along the 8+ hours you worked together each day…..did he make you get along the 8 + hours you guys were on break or lunches each day too?

That must have been hard, lol……..sorry kidrock, that was right across the plate, I had to take a swing there.

[Josh Bayko]

I try to like all my coworkers, just makes life easier.

[MILLER7FAN]

KTMLewThanks for the post. It was a great read

[riddle28]

money isnt the issue with landers. having the word engineer after your name doesnt make you automatically smarter than someone w/o, i work with a ton of them daily and only about 25% if that are really good at what they do. Scott, shane mcdowell, jason durham are all really really smart common sense guys. Rumley is obviously super smart as well but his family has been fielding high level entries since like the 70s so its not just that hes an engineer that helps him

[rocket1*]

Who else has left the team? I’m obviously behind on this.

[MasterSbilt_Racer]

Jason Durham, at the end of last season.