From The Inside
by Todd Bodine-Staff Writer and Winston Cup Driver
08/07/2003

Hi Race Fans -

The NASCAR Winston Cup series headed to Indianapolis Motor Speedway last weekend for one of our biggest events of the year. The BELCAR Racing team went to the track with momentum on our side after collecting our first top ten finish of the season at Pocono.

The No. 54 National Guard Ford was not what we had hoped for. The handling on our Ford Taurus was loose into and off the corners. Handling is a major key to success at Indy and we knew that if we were going to have any shot at another top ten, we had to get better.

Heading into Qualifying, we wanted to tighten up the car, so we made those necessary changes with the hopes of picking up some speed and to get a grasp on the field. In qualifying, we went out when the track temperature was at it's hottest. We were just glad to get the No. 54 in on the show and have some more time to work on the car and prepare for the Brickyard 400.

In the remainder of the practice sessions throughout the weekend, we were once again loose. We have been fighting a tight condition on our cars all year long. We made some adjustments for that after our test last weekend at Kentucky and went a little to far. We now need to split the difference and see where that fine line is. After final practices, we slid some weight forward and a few other adjustments to tighten the car up for the race.

Guess what? I was tight the whole race. The adjustments we made helped in the short runs but in the long runs, we went back to being too tight. We got a lucky break during the race, as we were trapped on the tail end of the field and we needed a caution to get caught back up and it happened. For a change, we had some luck our side. It was another chance for the National Guard crew to work on the handling of the car, as once again, handling is crucial. If you do not get off the corners good, you lose all your straightway speed.

In the end, considering how we ran, we were thrilled with a 23rd place finish. We learned a lot this weekend that should help us the rest of the year. We are zeroing in our chassis problems and now are more educated on how to fix them. All in all, it was a positive weekend for the BELCAR Racing crew. We didn't run as well as we would have liked but we learned some valuable things and you can't replace practical experience.

The series heads to our final road course race of the season this weekend from Watkins Glen, which is also in my home state of New York. It's always exciting to go home and I love road racing, especially at the Glen. We tested at Kershaw on Tuesday and really got the car turning well so I am excited.

Do we have a shot at the pole? With all the "ringers" and guys like Robby and Jeff you really have to get a great lap but I am going to give it 110% just as my team will and we will look to qualify fairly well at the Glen. I actually got my first Winston Cup pole at the Glen, so it's a definite possibility.

The NASCAR Winston Cup Series is ready to attack Watkins Glen International Raceway this weekend. The green flag for the Sirius At The Glen drops shortly after 1:00 PM EST, with live coverage on NBC beginning at 12:30 PM EST, with MRN radio joining at 1:00pm EST.

I am hoping for a great race on Sunday and hope that you will be keeping an eye on the National Guard Ford along with your favorite driver(s).

I'll talk to you next week and thanks for reading!
Todd Bodine

You can reach Todd Bodine at: tbodine@catchfence.com