Pre-Race Words of Advice for Kurt Busch

By Matt Crossman
Crossman is in Daytona for a rather important race that’s happening there.
It’s about 11 a.m., and fans across the sprawling Daytona International Speedway grounds have two pieces of advice for Kurt Busch: 1. Be patient. Busch will start today’s race dead last – 43rd. 2. Knock Tony Stewart into the fence. A rivalry between Stewart and Busch has been one of the biggest stories of the preseason.
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I’m tailing Busch as he goes from one commitment to another on the morning of the biggest race of the year. At one point as we drove a golf cart around, Richard Childress drafted us.
I’ve hung out with Busch a lot; in 2005, we went to a Cubs spring training game, before which I watched him take batting practice. In 2006, we played 18 holes then went to an NBA game. I’ve always liked him and always thought he got treated worse in the media and by fans than he deserved.
At the same time, he has brought some of that ill-treatment on himself, either for having a hot temper or for simply trying too hard to fit in. The Busch I hung out with today was almost completely different than the one in 2005. He was much more comfortable in his own skin, much more himself than trying to be himself, if that makes sense. This morning, he was funny and charming as he signed autographs and answered questions from fans.
My favorite part of the few hours we were together came from a guy shouting to get Busch’s attention while Busch signed autographs. This guy told me he had gotten in a fight, and subsequently thrown in jail, defending Busch’s honor. Some Dale Jr. fans were mouthing off, just typical trash-talking. At some point, though, it turned serious. And this guy—who told me his name is Ed Scheuer and said he lives in upstate New York, ripped the sleeves of somebody’s brand new Dale Jr. jacket. “I’d had enough. I’d heard enough,†Scheuer said proudly. And when I say proudly, I mean proudly. He spent the night in jail and didn’t blink when I asked for his name so I could put it in my story. “I got a wicked hot tempter, and it got out of control.â€
Random celebrity news
The morning of the Daytona 500 always features a parade of celebrities. My favorite came in 2004, when Ben Affleck addressed the media. He pointed out that he saw Kid Rock in Tony Stewart’s pit box, and that Bobby Labonte had Jesus on his hood (in the form of the movie The Passion of the Christ.) “I’m betting on Labonte,†Affleck said. (Or something very close to that.) My second favorite pre-500 celebrity moment involves Hulk Hogan. He was there because his daughter sang the national anthem before a trucks race. Nobody could think of a good question to ask the Hulkster. He was on his way out the door when a radio guy asked him to do one of those, “this is Hulk Hogan, you’re listening to …†things. And the Hulk did it in full Hulkamania mode.
It remains the only time I’ve heard an ovation in the press box.
Nothing that weird yet. But I have learned this: Trisha Yearwood will sing the national anthem, and she plans to “keep it real†because she knows 200,000 people will be singing along, and if she gussied the song all up, those people would not be able to sing along. I think there’s a NASCAR writer or two who hate when people sing the national anthem weird, because that question comes up a lot.
John Salley is enormous. He was in front of me in line at lunch (What’s he doing eating lunch in the media center before the Daytona 500? He wants to be a team owner.) The point is, looking straight ahead, I was not even eye-ball to shoulder with him. More like, eyeball to middle of back.↵