z28
Nitro Member
I don't see Klober going back to Clay's team but I can see him with Shoe.
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Shoe to RWR! (8 Viewers)
- Thread starter Jer
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mick
Nitro Member
JMHO - i think jim o, nicki, clay, and rick would have a conversation about where their tuneup is presently, if they feel it is solid and fairly safe on parts attrition;
then talk about who is available to tune (mk for example), and make sure the new CC is compatible with their group and setup, so they can essentially tune two cars the same.
i'm guessing tony and clay's weight and height are similar? ....... i wonder if tony's part time '25 schedule was already in place at jcm?, but was trumped by alexis' full time
commitment and budget? wonder who talked who into bringing tony in. did rick know right away it was a yes? or did clay/jim-o-/nicki do a sales job to rick about potential?
will arby's be involved with 2nd car? ....... nice to see Keen's Buildings sponsor on clay's TF'r this weekend. those barndominiums are getting more and more popular.
IMO i bet we see more 1 or 2 race assoc. sponsors from these regional builders? pole bldgs., barns, sheds, etc., they're everywhere.
RWR/NHRA is going to be a good story to follow.
then talk about who is available to tune (mk for example), and make sure the new CC is compatible with their group and setup, so they can essentially tune two cars the same.
i'm guessing tony and clay's weight and height are similar? ....... i wonder if tony's part time '25 schedule was already in place at jcm?, but was trumped by alexis' full time
commitment and budget? wonder who talked who into bringing tony in. did rick know right away it was a yes? or did clay/jim-o-/nicki do a sales job to rick about potential?
will arby's be involved with 2nd car? ....... nice to see Keen's Buildings sponsor on clay's TF'r this weekend. those barndominiums are getting more and more popular.
IMO i bet we see more 1 or 2 race assoc. sponsors from these regional builders? pole bldgs., barns, sheds, etc., they're everywhere.
RWR/NHRA is going to be a good story to follow.
HoodooVoodooAngus
Nitro Member
I don't believe that you would separate Jim O and Clay. They are pretty tight. Mike K is a good tuner but I'm not sure how he works in a multi-team environment. A lot of hints at the time suggested that he can be a bit hard on crew members. Jim O, Nicky, Jesse and Clay have a dynamic that I'm not sure you want to upset.
Just hire another team. If it's Kloeber, that's cool too.
65 Goatboy
Nitro Member
Klober was let go by Doug Stringer. As mentioned he is known for being hard on crew members. Would he want to be a crew chief now? I think bringing him into RWR's two car team would be like mixing oil and water.
you
Nitro Member
I, too, remember hearing that Klober was difficult to work with…which led to his dismissal. I doubt he’ll be back at RWR.
Jer
Nitro Member
Is that why he was let go? I know stringer didnt have much of a budget and kloeber did very well with that
Just Paul
Nitro Member
Remember, at one point RWR was going to have Mike Klober and Jordan Vandergriff as a teammate to Clay if money came through. Rick has hired him before, and it never came to fruition.
Just Paul
Nitro Member
More FUN - How about this scenario.
Shoe went after Zippy for 2026. They said the Shoe/ RWR deal has been in the works for months……
It gives them a year for RWR to get the team put together, Zippy can run his deal with JCM for 1 year, XYZ crew chief can run the partial deal this year for Shoe, and then the band gets put back together at RWR in 26.
OK I’m done. I had planned to have a nice relaxing day watching qualifying and the TF Call Out but with the rain I’ve just been causing trouble here.
Shoe went after Zippy for 2026. They said the Shoe/ RWR deal has been in the works for months……
It gives them a year for RWR to get the team put together, Zippy can run his deal with JCM for 1 year, XYZ crew chief can run the partial deal this year for Shoe, and then the band gets put back together at RWR in 26.
OK I’m done. I had planned to have a nice relaxing day watching qualifying and the TF Call Out but with the rain I’ve just been causing trouble here.
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LoPony
Nitro Member
I really do like this idea. It almost happened this year.
LoPony
Nitro Member
Yes. That is why he was let go. Or at least that’s where all the evidence points. It happened just before Rick bought the team. Someone might actually think that would’ve been a precondition for Rick buying the team was that he was gone. I don’t know this for sure. Just bench racing here.
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LoPony
Nitro Member
I forgot about that. OK, then we will wait and see.
65 Goatboy
Nitro Member
You'll have to go way back in Clay's youtube videos, he did a lot more filming in the trailer then. I don't know what year but Doug was always at the races and he would gather the crew and say a prayer at every race. The video I'm remembering was Jim O's first race and it was an emotional time for everyone, Doug introduced him as the new crew chief and said a prayer. My guess is Doug and Mike's pesonalities did not mesh and he lured Jim O out of retirement. Clay also did some videos at the Stringer shop in McCleansboro, IL and Mike was in some of them. Google Doug Stringer he is a interesting person. It was also an emotional time when he announced at the track that he was selling the team to Rick Ware. Thanks to Clay it's all on youtube if you want to take the time to find it, I had just discovered Clay's channel and his candid videos were fascinating to watch.
LoPony
Nitro Member
Oh yeah Brian, that’s a great channel. Go all the way back to the beginning to where he started doing videos longer than about five minutes, and watch them all consecutively when you have time. It will give you a ton of insight. It certainly did me, it was very entertaining. I think I’ve watched all the old videos a few times.
mick
Nitro Member
sorry, but it surprises me that schumacher is out there shopping a ride after all the success he's had,
on and off the track, and son of schumacher electric owner, which for whatever reasons, he seemingly was never associated with?
i know he still has a lot of fans. guess we'll see if funding for '26 comes to fruition.
rick, clay, and tony are shown in recent utube clay video talking about it. rick seems into it, wanting to become a more dominant team in nhra.
on and off the track, and son of schumacher electric owner, which for whatever reasons, he seemingly was never associated with?
i know he still has a lot of fans. guess we'll see if funding for '26 comes to fruition.
rick, clay, and tony are shown in recent utube clay video talking about it. rick seems into it, wanting to become a more dominant team in nhra.
If you take A. Johnson & Mike Green out as crew chiefs How great would Sarge be? I'd have to say The CC's won more races than Sarge's driving.
ch streetcars
Nitro Member
Don't forget Dan Olson at the beginning .
I don't disagree, but you can say that about just about every driver out there. But Tony was like a machine in the car. Almost always very good R/T's, and the guy never folded under pressure. And just because he has such a great record in the T/F class, it doesn't mean someone is going to pay him to drive today. I am surprised he wouldn't bring some of his own $$ to the table in order to drive. Or, pound the pavement to find some sponsor money to bring to a team so he can drive. He certainly is well-known in the sport, and has a good enough track record that a sponsor wouldn't be taking a chance with him like they would a new driver.
