2006 Nextel Cup Season Updates
	These are various updates throughout the season on Derrike Cope's racing.

Talladega Next
September 26, 2006 - Derrike informed us today, "I was informed by Ray McGlynn that we will not be going to Kansas this weekend. We will be attempting to qualify for the Talladega race. With the limited number of people we have, we would not be able to get properly prepared for both races. It will take awhile longer to prepare the car for Talladega as well as spending some time at Joey Arrington’s engine shop for a couple of days of chassis dyno work. This will allow us to then prepare the car we would have taken to Kansas for Charlotte. Talladega has new paving and I am excited about going back there. I have not been able to have an opportunity to race there for awhile.

"I will also be driving a Craftsman Truck at Talladega as well. I will be driving a Chevrolet Silverado for Key Motorsports, truck number 40, where I will team up with my old crew chief and friend Barry Dodson. I am really excited about driving a truck again. I have known Curtis Key for some time. When my friend and business partner Leon Fox and I had our Busch team in the Mooresville Motorsports Complex, Curtis was running in the Busch Series from there as well and we got to know each other. I am looking forward to working with Barry Dodson and another former teammate, Tommy Morgan who works on the team, and was with the Bob Whitcomb team with Buddy Parrott.

"So we will take a week off and come back to Talladega!"

Allstate 400 at the Brickyard
August 1, 2006 - Derrike informed us of the following. "I will be driving the number 61 Front Row Motorsports Chevrolet at Indy this weekend. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to participate in qualifying for this year’s Brickyard 400. I have worked with the crew chief before so I feel like we should have good communication for the short amount of practice time that we will be given. The team tested at Indy and felt like they had a good test there with Chad Chaffin driving. Chad tested both cars, the car that I will drive number 61, and the 34 car that Chad will drive. Hopefully we can all work together and have a successful outing at one of the most prestigious races of the year. I am looking forward to it. I will update you after Friday’s practice sessions. The first practice is from 1:30 to 2:30 and from 3:30 to 4:30."

Upcoming Racing
July 3, 2006 - Derrike informed us of his latest plans. He said, "As of right now we (McGlynn Racing) are planning on going to every race excluding the super speedways (Daytona and Talladega) and the road courses. I will also be driving the number 49 Ford Fusion for Jay Robinson at Chicagoland. I will be making two appearances this week. The first one is at Ribfest in Naperville, IL at 4:00pm on Tuesday, July 4th. I will be signing autographs in Milwaukee at Summerfest at 4:00pm on Wednesday. This will be for Sundance Vacations who has been sponsoring the McGlynn Racing team this year."

Neighborhood Excellence 400
June 5, 2006 - Derrike finished the Cup race in 37th position. After the race he told us, "Although our finish did not show it, I felt like we had a pretty successful day. The car was pretty loose all day. It just took some laps for the air pressure to build up and then we were pretty quick. Our lap times were competitive most all day. We lost some laps when on one restart I thought we had a tire going down. It was great to run all day. I drove hard start to finish. The engine ran very well also. I think every one on the team was pleased. Sundance Vacations, Royal Administration, My Guardian 911, Jumpfly, and all the other entities that support Ray McGlynn and this race team should be proud of this effort.

"Next stop Pocono. I love to race there, so hopefully we can continue the qualifying streak and make the race. This is the team's backyard so we really want a great effort there. I also have an appearance in Wilkes Barre on Wed. at Citizens Bank. I will be headed to Ft. Worth for a speaking engagement for the National Auto Finance Association on the 13th. So it is busy busy right now. I will update from Pocono later this week."

Fines and Points Taken
April 11, 2006 - One fine and two penalties have been issued to the No. 74 Dodge team competing in the Nextel Cup Series, as a result of rule violations last week at Texas Motor Speedway. Due to violations of Sections 12-4-A (actions detrimental to stock car racing), 12-4-Q (car, car parts, components and/or equipment that do not conform to NASCAR rules) and 20-5.9G(1) (external modifications to the intake manifold deemed impermissible unless authorized by the Series Director) of the 2006 Nextel Cup Series Rule Book, crew chief Domenick Turse was fined $50,000, driver Derrike Cope was penalized with the loss of 25 driver championship points, and car owner Ray McGlynn was penalized 25 owner championship points. The infraction was discovered during opening day inspection.

Appeal Denied
May 4, 2006 - Derrike let us know about the NASCAR appeal for their fine. He said, "On Tuesday, Ray and Ryan McGlynn, Joey Arrington, and I went to NASCAR for the appeal on our fine. They listened and their decision was to uphold our fine for $50,000 dollars. I am still not pleased with the boards decision, but that’s politics."

Golden Corral 500
March 19, 2006 - After the weekend, Derrike said, "I was hoping that our Atlanta effort would produce our first start of the year, but we were just shy of making the event. We ran a 29.89 and it took a 29.59. We were 3 tenths of a second off qualifying. We made a lot of changes before qualifying and just did not have the car tight enough. We got very loose in both corners and there is just no margin for error. I could not attack the race track and that proved to be the difference. In my opinion we are gaining on it. We are not far off and with a little time and some more funding we should be able to get on track.

"We plan on going to Bristol with another car that we purchased from Penske. One of the newest cars that we possess. I am excited about Bristol. I typically get around that track well. It is a place that you can drive exceptionally hard and have that pay dividends.

"The team continues to stay upbeat. We all know how difficult this level of competition is. We just have to continue to fight the battle, keep learning, and make better decisions with the car and we will make something happen. Talk to you later in the week."

UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400
March 9, 2006 - The team cannot make it to Las Vegas. Derrike updated us in saying, "My update for Las Vegas is a disappointing one. I am here in Las Vegas, but I just got word that the Transporter has broken down and will not make it here for this weekend. It is unfortunate for all of us, but they got out of town late and with this happening it is impossible for them to get here in time. I just spoke to Ray McGlynn and the sponsor and they said that we will just have to rebound and get ready to go to Atlanta next week. I will give you an update next week prior to leaving for Atlanta."

Derrike's Daytona Update
February 21, 2006 - Derrike gave us an update on Daytona and the upcoming California trip. He said, "Things did not go as planned in Daytona. I obviously was disappointed with the outcome, but not with the productivity of the race team and the way they conducted themselves and the way they prepared the car before and during our time in Daytona. We were always first on the track, we had minimal problems, and for no pre-season testing I could not have expected much more for the outcome. We gave ourselves a chance to make the race. We certainly were a factor, and in my opinion we represented our sponsors well and in a class fashion.

"We ran well in the first segment of the race working our way into the transfer spot for most of the time if not in a position to be. We had the right front tire wear pretty badly going to the cords which made the car not want to turn in the corners so I would have to lift off the throttle periodically which allowed cars to get by us. On the caution we pitted, but could not make it on fuel so had to come back in and thus lost the draft with no fast cars behind us. We needed someone to push this car all the time or we could not hold on. We need some testing to find some things to help with that. But with the caution we had a chance but fell short. I am pleased with the effort and the exposure we acquired while in Daytona. We are obviously behind with no testing and with all the things needed to be really ready for a long season, but we will work hard and see if we can get back on track in California this weekend.

"Yes we are going to California for the Cup race. I will not be driving any Busch series races for Jay Robinson at this time but we will look for other opportunities to run in the Busch series as the year continues. I will be doing some consulting for a rookie driver that Jay Robinson will be working with as well as still working with my nieces to get some races in for them.

"I am excited about our sponsors and their commitments to our team and feel we can get this program on solid ground in a short period of time. I am looking forward to California and Las Vegas in two weeks. I will keep you abreast of how things are going in California as the weekend approaches."

Daytona 500
February 10, 2006 - Derrike let us know the following today. "The team is in Daytona. The car number is 74 and there are co-primary sponsors at Daytona, both Dover races, both Pocono races, and Chicagoland. The sponsors are Sundance Vacations and My Guardian 911."

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