It’s Bristol race week for the Nationwide and Cup Series!  Teams will head into the Tennessee mountains this weekend to tackle the “World’s Fastest Half Mile.”  But before they do, we’ve got the 15th edition of Ask The Insiders.  If you don’t know what this post is, until further notice, we will be answering any and all reader questions every Wednesday, right here.  So if you’ve got one, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send one to us.  On to the questions…

1. From Chris:

Why does NASCAR still use carburetors?

This is kind of one of those “we’ve always done it this way” things.  Teams have millions, upon millions of dollars invested in these engines, and changes would cost a lot more.  Also, carburetors are much easier to control from NASCAR’s standpoint versus fuel injection. – T.C.

2. From Dany:

Hi there, NASCAR is giving the lucky dog to the first car a lap down. Are they looking at giving the lucky dog to the first car two laps down (which would put him one lap down) and so on for three/four/five and so on. That would give a chance for a car that goes two lap down early to get back into the race.

If you are the first car any number of laps down right now you get your lap back. For instance if you are two laps down, but there are no other cars a lap down in front of you you get a lap back. As far as them giving out multiple “Lucky Dogs” I wouldn’t expect to see that any time soon. – Journo

3. From Amy:

I notice that a lot of drivers will mark 12:00 on their steering wheels at each race. Why does it need to be done per track instead of just a couple times a season. You would think 12:00 would would 12:00 no matter what the track.

The steering wheels are marked at 12:00 when the front tires are straight.  So really, each time the steering wheel comes off, the wheel should probably be checked.  That mark helps a driver also determine if the car is toed in or out if he makes contact with something and bends the front end.  If he needs to turn the wheel one way or the other to make it go straight, you know something is wrong. - T.C.

4. From Dawg:

As difficult as this new car is to get right. With the limited number of adjustments crews are allowed to make. With tire pressures being as critical as they are. In the interest of better racing. Something NA$CAR could use a lot more of these days. Why would they not allow bleeder valves?

I’m not sure why NASCAR doesn’t allow bleeder valves.  It could be a safety issue, it could be a cost issue, or it might be that NASCAR would have a tough time policing the valves themselves.  So instead, they just force teams to use standard valves.  And I’m not necessarily sure that bleeder valves would allow better racing.  Haves and have-nots don’t equalize because of them. – T.C.

5. From Kyle:

What is the purpose of placing crew chiefs and drivers on probation.  It seems like there is really no purpose for it.

Believe it or not it does keep these guys in check. It makes it less tempting to play with things because NASCAR is probably not going to be happy if you break another rule. It is just like criminal probation. It is an incentive not to re-offend. – Journo

6. From Amy:

At Las Vegas (and I assume some other tracks have something similar) the garage stalls have huge windows where fans can watch the team work  fairly close up. As a fan personally I LOVE this because I get to see things I don’t usually see!  How distracting is this for the team members and drivers though?

I don’t necessarily know if I can speak for everyone, but it’s definitely a little weird at first.  You sort of understand what it feels like to be a monkey at the zoo.  But eventually you kind of forget about it.  There is too much stuff to do to be worried about people watching.  You’ve just got to make sure you don’t pick your nose, because somebody is always watching! – T.C.

7. From Ben:

So you guys had an off weekend this weekend, do you guys get any extra days off of work? Like do you get a four or three day weekend? Or is it work as normal? Also how much time do you guys spend with your driver? Sorry if these have been asked before, and thanks.

To the first part of your question, it really just depends on the team. Some give their guys a little extra time off, others make them keep going full steam. I know hauler drivers who spend three days driving back from a race and go to work the next day. It just depends on the expectations of a team. – Journo

The amount of time crew guys spend with drivers really depends.  Just like any other relationship, some guys get along and some guys don’t.  Some crew guys are really good friends with their drivers, and others are just acquaintences they see at the track. – T.C.

And that brings yet another “Ask The Insiders Wednesday” to a close.  Thanks to everyone who sent in questions.  And remember, if you’d like to be a part of next week, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send your question in!

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