Jeff Gordon got his first set of Texas six-shooters Sunday, ending the 47 race winless streak that plagued him throughout last season. The Cup Series has this weekend off, but never fear we’re still here. This is the 18th edition of Ask The Insiders Wednesday.  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 David:

What has happened to make MWR so competitive. A year ago they were struggling in the 28-43 range to stay in the top 35. Now the best of their cars run in the 10 and all 3 in the top 20. Is it the new guy from McLaren?

It is hard to say what exactly it is. Likely it has many factors, potentially including some of those big personnel moves. We noticed some marked improvement in the team last season (David Reutimann was certainly stronger), over 2007. There were definitely expectations the team would be stronger this year. Personally I think Michael Waltrip has been the biggest surprise. There is a lot of the season still left, but I didn’t expect him to be doing so well. We always stress the importance of chemistry and sometimes it takes time to get it right. I think they’re on a good roll though. – Journo

2. From Savannah:

I have a question regarding teams that purchase engines and other equipment from another team. In the case of Stewart-Haas racing, they purchase their engines from Hendrick Racing. Now, are the engines already assembled when they are purchased or does each team put them together? do the engine tuners make the necessary adjustments to correspond with the other equipment already on the car? Also, do you know of any cases where the seller keeps the best equipment for his race cars and sell sub-par equipment to the other teams.

The engines come assembled from Hendrick (or any of the various suppliers).  And usually if a team is getting engines from somebody like Hendrick and has a contract, the engine builder will supply an engine tuner to the team.  The racecars themselves are set up to accommodate the engines, not the other way around.  And yes, Hendrick probably keeps the better stuff for his teams, but saying he supplies other teams with sub-par equipment isn’t fair.  Everything is built side-by-side and if a team is willing to pay the money, they will get good stuff. -  T.C.

3. From Randy:

What is the blue flag they are waving at cars in Texas the announcers don’t say? Also who is the sponser of Gordons car this week?

The blue flag tells a slower car that a faster car is approaching them. Most commonly you see this used to tell lap cars to move out of the way, which is probably what you saw. Drivers are not required to abide by this flag though. NASCAR.com has a great guide on what each flag means.

As for Gordon, he was sponsored by Dupont and National Guard this past weekend. What you saw on the hood was for the National Guard’s GED Plus program. – Journo

4. From Savannah:

Since the drivers and crew are often featured in several commercials each year for the various sponsors, what is your favorite commercial featuring a NASCAR driver(s)? It can be from this year or years past.

I always liked the Dale Jarrett, UPS commercials. Toyota has put out some good, funny commercials in the last couple of years. My favorite of all time though was from maybe 10 or 15 years ago. It was a Dale Earnhardt Coca Cola commercial. I unfortunately couldn’t find it on the internet. – Journo

5. From Savannah:

Do any of the drivers use sports psychologists or life coaches to improve/ enhance their performance?

Drivers are no different then other athletes, and if they can do something to improve their performance, they will.  There is a company here in the Charlotte area that has helped some drivers with some of the mental aspects.  Their website is http://www.performanceprime.com/.  This is just one example, I’m sure there are others. -  T.C.

6. From Amy:

This is something my dad and I were discussing last weekend- that I know you will be able to answer: is there a special “burn out” gear that winners like Kyle and Jimmie use to do those spectacular burn outs when they win?

There is no “burnout” gear.  What they do is turn the brake bias dial on the dash towards the front so all the braking power is on the front wheels.  Then they push down on the brakes and mash the throttle.  That way the front tires won’t move, and the rear tires are free to spin so they will do a nice smoky burnout. – T.C.

7. From Sandra:

Do the NASCAR race cars have traditional clutch pedals? I’ve been told they are on the steering wheel…

NASCAR race cars do have traditional clutch pedals, they are not on the steering wheel.  Some other forms of motorsports have shift paddles on the steering wheel for changing gears, but not NASCAR. – T.C.

8. From Kallie:

This question was a lot more punctual back when Jason Ratcliff and Dave Rogers were on suspension, but I’ll ask it anyway. When Ratcliff was away from Kyle Busch’s Nationwide pit box, I heard Steve Addington on the radio as his crew chief for those races. I’d also seen him come down and try to help science out a problem with the Nationwide car with the reasoning that he was just sitting in the motorhome watching it, might as well come out and try to help. Anyway, my question is do crew chiefs like Steve get compensated for pulling double duty with their double duty drivers? Are they contractually obligated to step in for their team? Or do they just enjoy doing it, like Kyle does with the truck series?

I don’t know the details of specific crew chiefs’ contracts, but I would say they probably don’t get extra compensation and they aren’t necessarily obligated to do it.  Most times they are just jumping in trying to help their teammates.  You will see crew chiefs helping other teams a lot, especially at places like Roush and Gibbs.  Another example is Todd Berrier and Kevin Harvick.  Berrier will often be seen helping Harvick’s Nationwide and Truck Series teams. – T.C.

9. From Brad:

I’m a Portland, Or. dweller. I was a total Biffle fan. Here’s the catch’ Im a life long fan of Harry Gant. Doesn’t NASCAR teach people how to have class? They should. I see kids coming in now to a sport that was born from grown men. Don’t you think there should be a course in “how to deal with yourself”. I still like Biffle and he came in at a later age than all the new. He still made an ass of himself as a grown man! Now i’m swaying to kyle shrub. Please tell me that NASCAR has a program to teach these kids how to be gentleman.

Portland is a beautiful part of the country. I’m not sure I know exactly what you mean, but NASCAR doesn’t have any media training or etiquette classes for their drivers. Individual teams sometimes provide their drivers media training though. I think in this day and age many fans would like to see drivers who are less reserved and more colorful. Much in the style of Kyle Busch. I suppose it all comes down to personal taste. – Journo

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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