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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
NEWMAN: Home Sweet Home
I’m planning on doing a little fishing, some work on the farm, and will definitely relax...
Ryan Newman  |  Posted July 17, 2009   Charlotte, NC
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 U.S. Army/Haas Automation Chevrolet for Stewart-Haas Racing writes Voices of SPEED on SPEEDtv.com. (Photo: Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR)

A good run on Saturday night for the U.S. Army Chevy in Chicago, and now we have a week off. Both of these things couldn’t have come at a better time for me and all the guys at Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR).

Chicago was a great race for the No. 39 team. We had had a string of finishes there that weren’t what we thought we were capable of getting, so it was nice to rebound from those races and put our No. 39 back in the top-10 in the running order.

We were probably a 10th- to 15th-place car, at best, but Tony Gibson kept working on the car and making adjustments to it throughout the race, and those changes really helped put us in a position where we could finish in sixth place. The guys did a great job, especially on pit road. Being able to make the adjustments and getting me out of the pits quickly was key for us. That was important for us, as was the fact we were able to take advantage of a couple of guys beating on each other’s fenders late in the race.

So, like I said, it was a great rebound race for us and it ended up being a good points night. I like where we are sitting in the points right now, but we can’t rest on the fact that we have a place in the Chase today. Yes, we are sitting seventh in points. But we have to continue to push and continue to record solid finishes because there are still seven races to go, and anything can happen.

It sure would be nice if we could put together another string of top-10 finishes. That would definitely secure us a spot in the Chase for the Championship come September, and that has been my goal since the season started.

But now, we can enjoy some much-deserved time off. I don’t think people realize how hard the guys on the team who travel to and from the track each week, and how hard the guys in the race shop work to get our cars ready for the racetrack each and every week. I’m pretty sure my saying they work long hours and they really hustle to get the cars prepared doesn’t even begin to do their job justice.

What I can say is I’m proud to have the guys and girls at SHR behind me. They have done an outstanding job so far this year and, hopefully, we can carry our momentum through the off-week and into Indianapolis Motor Speedway next week.

After all, the No. 39 team really made its surge in the points after the season’s first off-week back in March. Maybe another relaxing weekend will be as beneficial to us next week.

Krissie is out of town this week, enjoying some fun in the sun with some of her family down in the Bahamas. And I’m enjoying my favorite vacation spot – my house. I can’t think of anywhere I would rather be. I’m planning on doing a little fishing, some work on the farm, and I will definitely relax. Because, after this weekend, it’s full speed ahead.

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or Speed Channel

Ryan Newman is in his eighth full season as a driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and he’ll spend it with two-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart. Newman drives the No. 39 U.S. Army/Haas Automation Chevrolet Impala SS for Stewart-Haas Racing, the team co-owned by Stewart and Haas Automation, the world’s largest machine tool manufacturer. Newman is a graduate of Purdue University, where he has a degree in vehicle structural engineering. In his first seven seasons, Newman has collected 43 poles and 13 wins in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, including the 2008 Daytona 500 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. When not racing, Newman enjoys fishing and restoring his classic cars. The avid outdoorsman, along with his wife Krissie, play an active role in the Ryan Newman Foundation 501(c)(3), which they founded in 2005. For more information on Ryan Newman, please visit www.ryannewman.org or www.stewarthaasracing.com. Information on the Ryan Newman Foundation can be found at www.ryannewmanfoundation.org.
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