It’s a Cup off weekend, but don’t forget that the Truck and Nationwide Series are running this weekend at Nashville.  As you work through another week, check out version #122 of ATIW.  If you don’t know what this post is, we answer 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 Patrick:

Any idea what ever happened to Stavola Labonte racing?? Considering Terry is running for Frank Stoddard on a limited basis.

It appears as if they are no more. I unfortunately don’t have any special knowledge of the situation, but there hasn’t been any talk about them this season. – Journo

2. From Chris V:

Guys, as always it’s a pleasure reading the Wednesdays answers and I have a very confusing question (for me, that is). While watching the in car for Jimmie Johnson after the sun had set you could see his dash. Now, the ‘in car’ shot was from the passenger side window area and Jimmie’s dash was lit up like a Christmas tree. When this shot was shown on tv it showed his dash tachometer changing colors as he pressed the gas, got off the gas and braked. I believe the colors were green, blue and red. Do you guys know what this was? Thanks as always!

Those gauges are called Spek gauges, and they are made by a company called ProParts.  They flash different colors to alert the drivers.  It allows the drivers to stay focused on what’s happening out the windshield, and not have to worry about constantly looking at gauges.  For example, the tach is programmable to flash at different RPMs. – T.C.

3. From Chris F:

Who will drive for Team Red Bull in 2012 probably for Both Teams?

Well, Vickers is a likely candidate to return. Other than that, your guess is as good as mine. Carl Edwards and Clint Bowyer are both free agents, but something tells neither has much interest in a less than stellar Red Bull ride – especially given their present situations. Kimi Raikkonen could be a possibility as could Cole Whitt. And it’s entirely possible there is someone I’m not even thinking about. We’ll see. – Journo

4. From Bryan:

What is the relationship between Richard and Kyle Petty like? Is Kyle involved at all in RPM or is he in a position to step into Richard’s role in the organization when Richard is done? Thanks for the great site, guys!

Well, I’m not Richard or Kyle, but it’s my understanding that it’s not all that great.  Kyle is not currently involved in Richard Petty Motorsports, and I don’t know if there is any sort of succession plan in place for him.  I do know that their relationship was strained when Kyle was left out of the mix when Petty Enterprises became Richard Petty Motorsports. – T.C.

5. From Eric:

I know it was a few weeks ago, but I have watched and re-watched Martin Truex’s wreck at Martinsville… in slow motion his tires do not look like they were accelerating before his contact. Im no forensics expert, but has anybody mentioned this, or suggested maybe he used “stuck throttle” as an excuse seeing how it has happened to his car in the past?

I’m not really sure what you’re insinuating, but from what I saw and know there’s no reason to suspect a “stuck throttle” wasn’t the issue. A hit like that isn’t exactly something you want to do on purpose. – Journo

6. From Marc:

As always, great site, guys. From time to time, I hear that a Nationwide car is being serviced by a Cup crew. Typically, it is a one-off race by a Cup regular like Tony Stewart racing in the KHI #4 at Daytona with, I believe, his own Cup over-the-wall crew. Is there practical limit to the number of times a pit crew can pull double duty? Could a pit crew or individual crew members work all the companion races?

They can and and many do.  There is no mandated limit on the number of races a guy can work, and many make a very good living working multiple series.  There were guys this last weekend at Talladega that worked both the ARCA and NNS races on Saturday, and then stayed to work the Cup race on Sunday.  And many teams, like Joe Gibbs Racing, will use the same guys across multiple series.  Usually the only restrictions placed on crew guys are from the teams they work for. – T.C.

7. From Mike:

Why didn’t NASCAR consider the damage on Joey Logano’s car in the NNS race to be a safety concern. I would think it would be an issue if something happened in front of him and debris hit his car.

I’m sorry Mike, but I have no idea what you are referring to.  Logano pushed Kyle to the win on Saturday with what looked to be a perfect race car.  If I’ve missed something, leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you. – T.C.

Updated: Saw some video of Logano’s car, and while it looked bad, I’m not sure it was a huge problem.  The windshield certainly wasn’t going anywhere, and don’t forget there is a rollbar behind that A post.  Thanks erb224. – T.C.

8. From Big Jim:

What pressure do they use on there air impact wrenchs when there changing tires, and is it air?

The teams run Nitrogen through the impacts, and most changers run anywhere between 100-150 PSI. – T.C.

9. From Kelly:

Watching the race at talledega when Kasey Kahne got in the wreck and was on fire the official was right there why not have a fire ext with every one of them?

I’m not sure why the officials don’t have extinguishers with them.  The fire fighter teams usually respond fairly quickly though.  Maybe NASCAR wants to leave things like this to the experts. – T.C.

10. From Heather:

What’s the deal this week with not touching the brake?

Well, seeing as how it’s Talladega, the drivers shouldn’t be on the brakes much.  The only time the drivers use brakes at Talladega is to get on pit road, and maybe in the draft to avoid hitting other cars.  It’s better to use a little bit of brake, as opposed to lifting off the throttle, because the cars don’t lose momentum and valuable RPMs that way. – T.C.

11. From Tamatha:

Hey what do the NASCAR drivers do when they have use the restroom while racing?

They have two options: (1) they can either hold it in and wait until the end of the race; or (2) wet themselves. There are drivers who do both. Generally though, especially during the summer, dehydration is such issue, having to use the facilities during a race isn’t much of an issue. – Journo

12. From Andrew:

Is there a rule limiting fuel pickups to just one? While watching the Arca race one driver was having fuel pick up problems under caution because of the location of the pick up. Does Nascar allow teams to use a second electronic fuel pump that a driver can turn on and off from the cockpit?

The rules only allow for one fuel pickup, and the teams put it in the right side of the fuel cell for obvious reasons.  Under caution, when the cars are on the banking, the fuel will run away from the pickup.  That’s why you’ll often see cars running on the apron under caution when fuel is low. – T.C.

13. From Curious:

Thanks for having a great site!! Here’s my question…. Watching the race this afternoon, it looked like Johnson went below the yellow line briefly when he passed Mark Martin. There were several views as they showed the finish – from Jr’s car, from overhead, from other cameras, etc. Why wasn’t this at least mentioned or questioned? (When Burton went below the yellow line and saved it, there was a lot of commentary about how he didn’t advance his position so it was ok to come back on the track in the same position.)

From what I saw, he briefly (and let me stress briefly) had his left side tires on the line. That in and of itself is not a violation of the rule. The car has to be substantially below the line. As painful as I know it was for many, Jimmie won that race fair and square. – Journo

14. From Michael in SoCal:

Hi Guys. As always, thanks for the great insight! My question is about Ryan Newman’s spin at Dega – he was stopped on the runoff area and just before he got his car running the yellow came out. I thought Nascar penalized cars for stopping and bringing out a caution. Why was Newman not penalized?

Looking back at the video, it would appear that Newman maybe should have been penalized.  After he saves it, it’s pretty clear from the video replays that he stopped the car.  In many cases, the engine will die during or after a spin, and it can be difficult to get the cars restarted.  That didn’t necessarily appear to be the case here though.  Newman’s race was certainly saved by the caution flying, and the only explanation I can give is that NASCAR didn’t see it. – T.C.

15. From Sal:

I seem to remember that Nascar has/had a rule that the winner of a race had to cross the finish line without ‘assistance’. Having a car plastered to your bumper at Dega or Daytona seems like assistance to me. Whatever happened to that rule?

They do have that rule, but it only applies when the car being pushed isn’t under power (i.e. when a car has run out of gas and is being pushed). Drafting at Daytona, Talladega, or anywhere else for that matter doesn’t apply. Again, Jimmie won that race fair and square. – Journo

16. From Don:

Am I mistaken or maybe not kept up with rule changes. (Us fans do not have access to rule books). I thought that you were not allowed to have any assistance on the last lap of a race. In the past this came up as cars ran out of fuel, as a teammate could not come up and push you across the line. I would think that these “two car tandems” we have witnessed are just that, “assistance”, therefore should not be allowable on the last lap, unless of course that rule has been changed. Thanks for your clarification.

See previous answer – Journo

17. From Chris:

With Kasey Kahne driving for Rick Hendrick in the #5 Chevrolet, will we see Scott Speed back racing for Team Red Bull in the Sprint Cup Series?

Given the pending litigation (and general ill will) between the two, I would say there is a better chance of me driving for Red Bull next season than Scott Speed. – Journo

18. From Dave:

In the Saturday Nationwide race at Talladega, it appeared on TV that the #6 Stenhouse crew was working on the car during the red flag. Was this a TV mixup where coverage wasn’t synced? If the team actually was working on the car during a red flag, why?

I believe the footage you saw on TV was live.  In Stenhouse’s case, I believe the team was working on the car because they were pretty much out of the race.  The damage from the wreck on the backstretch was very significant, enough so that the car leaked oil all the way back to the garage.  It appeared the team was working on the car so they could get it back in the hauler. – 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!