“Dale is one of the first crew chiefs I worked for and remains a true trailblazer for that position,” said NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton. “He’s a major reason and inspiration behind many of the current talented people working in the NASCAR Sprint Cup garage.”

Inman, Richard Petty’s first cousin, won eight NASCAR Sprint Cup championships, seven with Petty and one with Terry Labonte. Petty himself was ailing and remained home in North Carolina this week.

Michigan International Speedway’s Tim Booth was awarded the 2009 Home Depot NMPA Humanitarian Award and will receive $100,000 that will be donated on his behalf to the Spirit of America Blood Drive. (Photo: MIS)

BLOODY GOOD EFFORT — Michigan International Speedway’s Director of Guest Services Tim Booth bested Tony Stewart and Greg Biffle to win the 2009 Home Depot NMPA Humanitarian Award. For receiving the honor from The Home Depot and National Motorsports Press Association, Booth will receive $100,000 that will be donated on his behalf to the Spirit of America Blood Drive.

Booth, Stewart and Biffle were recognized during the NASCAR NMPA Myers Brothers Awards program in Las Vegas on Thursday. Stewart and Biffle will be awarded $25,000 for their respective charities for being named as finalists.

Booth was nominated for the Humanitarian Award for his efforts in making the Spirit of America Blood Drive at MIS the nation’s largest 9-11 blood drive event. The Spirit of America has collected a grand total of 6,213 units of blood, potentially benefiting 18,639 people since its inception in 2002. Booth is also a regular blood donor who has personally given blood 146 times, which amounts to more than 18 gallons in his lifetime.

THINGS GO BETTER WITH COKE — Long-time NASCAR partner Coca-Cola received the 2009 NASCAR Marketing Achievement Award today at the NASCAR NMPA Myers Brothers Awards. In addition to its position as the official non-alcoholic beverage of NASCAR, Coca-Cola has relationships with 15 race tracks and 12 drivers through the Coca-Cola Racing Family. Coke is also title sponsor to two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway and the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.

Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief for SPEEDtv.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. He is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED,” and has appeared on television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association. Jensen is the 1997 National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year and has won numerous national and state awards for news reporting, columns and feature writing. The Answer Man is back at SPEEDtv.com. Tom Jensen answers your questions during every race week and looks forward to hearing from you - please e-mail it to