The day after a NASCAR Sprint Cup race might find a driver or crew chief in any number of places.
Monday found Kasey Kahne and Cup car owner Tommy Baldwin, Jr. testing a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour car at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Kahne was one of 19 drivers turning laps on the world-famous high banks in preparation for the Aug. 19 UNOH Perfect Storm 150 modified event, the first NASCAR tour modified race at Bristol in 40 years and the first race in a Wednesday night doubleheader also featuring the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
"I expect to have fun," Kahne said Monday during a break in testing. "It's a great car, nice and fast, with good people working on it. I love Bristol. So, I expect to have fun."
One of the good people working on the car is Tommy Baldwin, Jr., a long-time crew chief who started his own Sprint Cup team this year. Baldwin's first bite at the racing apple came when he was still in knickers working for his dad, Tom Baldwin, a six-time winner on the tour.
"Billy Colton from Troyer Engineering, this is their 'house car,' and some of us were talking at Charlotte (in May) about me being the crew chief for this car if we could get Kasey to drive it," said Baldwin, who has won five races as a Cup crew chief. "We got it worked out and here we are."
"Working it out" to drive the Troyer house car is akin to being told Tiger Woods is in your foursome for a best-ball tournament at the local golf club.
"We want to have fun with this and bring some awareness, some exposure, to this series. These guys put on a great show."
How good?
"Let me put it this way," Baldwin said. "At tracks where we (Cup) run with other series, we don't always see it because we have work to do. When we are racing with these guys, owners, drivers, crew chiefs, crew members, everyone is up on top of a truck in the garage or somewhere watching. Everything stops. These guys put on a great show."
That is what Kahne anticipates.
"I think it will just be a swarm of cars," said the winner of the 2007 Food City 250 at BMS. "You know, 150 laps around here is a long time. The corner speeds are way up, so it's kind of like the double-file restart they (NASCAR) just started. You don't know what, but you know something's going to happen."
The UNOH Perfect Storm 150 and the O'Reilly 200 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event kick off the Sharpie 500 weekend. The August ticket package includes tickets for both the Sharpie 500 and the Food City 250. Package prices begin at $145.
Anyone purchasing a package will be eligible for the buy one, get one free Wednesday night ticket, which includes both the O'Reilly 200 truck event and the Whelen Modified 150. Wednesday tickets are $30.
Tickets may be purchased by calling (423) 989-6900 or going to www.bristoltix.com.
