At the age of 21, Danny may seem like any other college student, but he is so much more.  Danny has been racing since he was 5-years-old.  According to his website, he won 11 championships from 1999-2002, in South Carolina State Championship and the World Karting Championship.  Through the years he worked his way up the ranks until he reached the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2007.  He ran in three races but failed to finish a race.  In 2008 he came back with a vengeance and made a little over half the races’ and obtained his best career finish of 23^rd place at Lowe’s Motor Speedway [Now Charlotte Motor Speedway].  In total, Efland has run 21 Nationwide Series races and 2 Camping World Truck Series races.  Efland ran the two truck races in 2009, with a best finish of 31^st.  Efland’s career has started out slow to this point but is set to come out of the box and impress a lot of people this upcoming season.  Here is the Q&A with Danny Efland.

Can you describe yourself to someone who has never met you before? What are your interests outside of the racetrack?

Answer: Well you know I am just a regular college student. I go to the University of South Carolina where I have many friends that don’t know much about my racing at all. I have always felt like I had two different lives, my racing life and my normal life. When I do find time spare time I try to hang out with all my old friends, [I’m] not much of a partier though.

What would you be doing if you were not in racing? Is racing the only interest you have had?

Answer: I would be lost without racing to be honest. The sport has helped me keep motivated. Everyday I wake up I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel and see what’s around the next corner. I am also a strong believer in education though. Not all dreams come true, so my back up plan is engineering. I don’t call that plan B though; it’s more like plan Z.

What is something people might not know about you?

Answer: My sister is an Aerospace Engineer Grad from Georgia Tech and will be graduating from Law school this spring. I like to brag about her

What is your greatest racing memory?
Answer: Too many to choose from, but my first great achievement was my entire 1999 racing season in WKA. I won most of the kart races I entered that year. Everything clicked that year, I couldn’t be beaten. 4 WKA national championships and 4 WKA SC championships….in one year! I felt what it was like to be on top and it’s always in the back of my mind that if I can make things click like that again then it is possible to win at any level.

What are the chances for young guys like you entering the sport? Is it harder than people realize?

Answers: It’s been harder than I first realized so far. As a driver I would love just to get behind the wheel and go race but it’s not that simple. We have a lot of things to take care of before our new team can hit the track. I predict many bumps in the road, but I am prepared to get over them. I decided to do this deal because I had the opportunity to start with good stuff. RCR has helped me every inch of the way as far as the car goes. My equipment will be competitive.

What are your goals for the upcoming season? What will you qualify as a successful season?

Answer: Things are tough right now, I consider myself very fortunate to be back behind the wheel. My goal is simply to go make races and prove that I deserve to be in the series. A successful season would be five to ten solid races. Right now I am looking at just trying to qualify for California and Vegas.

Can you talk about your team a little? Are they new, who is in charge? What make will it be? [I noticed you have only driven Chevrolet so far]

Answer: My team will be entering a 2010 Chevrolet Impala in all its races this season. We are still trying to get established as a team right now. My dad and I are in charge of all of the operations. I can only afford to bring a few people to the track right now, and even fewer at the shop. If we can make a few races then things will start to improve drastically. I’m looking to move out of my home shop into a bigger shop if things go well out West.

You ran a few races in the truck series last year, do you plan on running more Truck races this season, or are you sticking to the Nationwide Series only?

Answers: I have no plans outside of my team’s plans right now. I am still for hire however. Our goal is not only to build a team, but to use it to help advance my career.

Who is sponsoring you this season? Can you talk about your sponsors a little?

Answers: We will have M&W Towing on the car all season. Shred 360 will be back with me for these first two races and hopefully more during the season. Both of these are local companies in Columbia, SC.

You have been running at the end of 9 of your last 12 Nationwide races. How great of an accomplishment is that for you? How hard is it driving for a smaller team while competing against Cup drivers and other well funded teams?

Answer: It is very difficult to compete against teams of that caliber. My team will be smaller than those I have driven for in the past, but it will hold a lot of potential. Finishing races is a huge accomplishment. It proves to other teams, Sponsors, and NASCAR that we came to race and we did. It’s very tough to run an entire race for a team our size.

What are your views on Starting and Parking? Is it a necessary evil?

Answer: S&P is a touchy topic. I personally don’t like it, but it is necessary. Small teams simply can’t afford to race every race in full. Sometimes they must S&P to help them ramp up to a race that they will put all their effort and winnings into. We are all racers out there doing what we can to be there, I respect that.

Kevin Grubb

Kevin Grubb passed away from an alleged self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to the coroner, on May 6th at the Alpine Motel, near his hometown of Mechanicsville, Va.

Kevin Grubb was a talented driver making his way through the NASCAR ranks. He started a few races in the Camping World Truck Series back in 1996 and eventually moved up to the Nationwide Series, where he would spend a majority of his career. Kevin even made an attempt to get into a cup race, but did not qualify.

For all the good things Kevin had, it seemed as though he may have had some problems after NASCAR suspended him in 2004. He was suspended for drug use and was out of NASCAR for two years. He was given a second chance in 2006 and tried to make the most of it.

He signed on to drive the #15 truck for Billy Ballew. He raced in four consecutive starts for the team with a best finish of 14th at Memphis. He qualified 8th in the race and stayed on the lead lap the whole race, his only lead lap finish for Ballew. After a two-year lay off, not much should have been expected, but all things considered, he performed well. His other finished were 21st, 24th, and 33rd. After the Truck race at Nashville, Kevin got another ride in the Nationwide series and went on to drive for John McNelly.

John McNelly has been known to give the lesser know drivers a chance. Since NcNelly started his team in 2002, he has had 15 different drivers in his car, including Grubb. His team has run 72 races in that time period, with Tim Sauter running the most races at 27. In those 72 races, his team had only one top ten, and the driver who got it was, none other than Kevin Grubb. Also, Grubb did something only one other driver had previously done for McNelly Motorsports, and that was leading a lap. Sauter led four laps back in 2003. Grubb did five times better than that and led 20 laps at Martinsville. Not bad for a driver in only his third race back in the series after a few years off.

Grubb drove five races for McNelly in 2006, and it would have been more had drugs not sneaked back into the picture. Grubb was making the most of the opportunity and it seemed things might have finally been going his way.

On September 5th, 1996, Kevin Grubb made his truck series debut for his family team at Richmond International Raceway in the Truck series. He finished 18th in the race after starting 8th, both of which were higher than his brother Wayne, who was also in the race. On September 8th, 2006, Grubb made his last start in NASCAR in the Nationwide series at Richmond International Raceway. He started 28th and finished last after crashing out on lap one. No one knew at the time, but that would be his last lap on a NASCAR track. It came full circle for him; he started his career at his home track and ended it there. It would have been a fairy tale ending had his circumstances for leaving the track had been different. After the lap one accident, Grubb was asked to take a drug test, which was part of the agreement NASCAR had with him when they allowed him back, but he refused to take the test. NASCAR came back to him a few minutes later and asked again for a test and he refused again, and NASCAR had no other choice but to suspend him again. Later he said he would take the test, according to reports, but it was too late. Grubb would never be seen in a NASCAR garage again.

For a star that once glared so bright with possibilities and future success to a ghost of the unknown. He came into NASCAR at the age of 18 and left at 28.

His best finish in the Nationwide points was 13th in 2000. He also had three other seasons where he finished in the top 20 in points. He ran 174 races in the Busch/Nationwide series from 1997-2006 and posted 10 top-fives and 32 top-10 tens. He drove for six teams in that time. His best finish was 2nd in the 52 Link-Belt Construction Grubb Motorsports car at Dover in 1998. Grubb won the pole (his only of his career) for the race, but lost the race to future NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Matt Kenseth. These stats show what could have been, unfortunately we will never get to see how bright his star could have truly burned.

Jeff Fuller is one of the most accomplished drivers in NASCAR today. Jeff used to dominate the modified series before moving to Busch and Cup. He has 31 career wins, which is 3rd on the all time win list, and won the championship in 1992.

Most people do not know he is the ONLY NASCAR driver to win two events in one day on two different continents. (Martinsville (USA) and Australia). He was the 1995 NASCAR Busch series Rookie of the year. He finished in 10th place in the points that year making him only the fourth driver to finish in the top 10 in points his rookie season. He won his only Busch Series race at Bristol, after starting on the pole. As of June 29, 2005 he has 13 career cup starts with a best finish of 22nd at Atlanta in 2000. This season he is running the #7 car in the Busch Series and the #34 in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup series. Here is the Q&A with Jeff Fuller.

What was it like winning Bristol?

Cool, Liz had Tiffany the same weekend. It was a very busy and exciting weekend followed by a busy week at the shop. People were calling , faxing, and sending flowers to congratulate us on the Bristol Pole, Win, and the arrival of the latest addition to the Fuller family.

Why did you start and park for most of 2003 and 2004?

Bills had to be paid. We had to keep our game face on. Nemco Motorsports has good equipment but without sponsorship Joe said he wasn’t going to support my habit. The 88 didn’t have provisionals so the team had to make each race on speed. Each race we all hoped we would land sponsorship so we could be competitive every week.

How did you get into Busch?

Sunoco sponsored me in the modified series. Sunoco decided they wanted to go Busch racing in 1995 and take me with them. We went to ST Motorsports and finished in the top ten in points the first year. The next year we won Bristol from the Pole. Most people don’t realize that Sunoco and I had over a 14 year relationship.

Are you close to getting sponsor this season?

We are very hopeful. We are talking to a few people but nothing is done at this point.

What is the most difficult part of racing in the Busch series?

The financial part is the hardest. With everything you need to go racing it takes a top notch sponspor to fund the engine building, tires, crew, fleet of cars, and travel. It is impossible to stay in the series without a good sponsor.

Who was your favorite driver growing up?

I always followed Richie Evans

Are you going to run the rest of the races in the 7 car or part time in the 24 also?

The plan is to continue running the number 7 for the remainder of the season.

Is the 7 car with Joe Nemechek racing or the old 24 team?

Nemco Motorsports and GIC Motorsports have an agreement that allows me to run the #7.

Who got you started in racing?

I did. When I was about 12 I visited a local track and was hooked right away.

What is your favorite race track?

Bristol

Can you evaluate your season up to this point?

I recently agreed to drive the #7 car so we have really just gotten started. We have had some bumps along the way but are improving as a team. Our qualifying is getting alot better and we are working on our race setups. The key is to secure sponsorship

What is next for Jeff Fuller after he retires from racing?

I honestly haven’t thought that far ahead.

What is the greatest part about running in Busch?

Having the great talent of the Busch Series regulars on the track with the Cup guys. This series is full of talent. It’s very competitive.

How many more races are you going to run in cup?

The plan is for me to continue in the #34 car for the remainder of the season. The #7 deal came together first so we will not run Cup races that aren’t companion events with the Busch Series.

What is it like for you to run Cup again after the 27 team?

It isn’t really different after the #27 team. I really enjoy racing the Busch and Cup cars.

What exactly happened with the 27 Viagra team, why did you guys split?

Viagra was happy with the progress we were making but the team thought the #27 should win right away. The crew chief decided a change was needed early in the season and Mike Bliss was put in the car. The rest is history.