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Harvick’s seen it all
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NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick signs autographs for Brooke Cascio, 4, left, and her brother Hunter, 8, at Sharon Speedway Tuesday. They were attending the event with their grandmother Nadine Atkinson of Greenville, Pa.
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Dave Blaney signs an autograph as his son Ryan, 14, looks on at Sharon Speedway
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Dave Blaney at Sharon Speedway.
NASCAR’s 11th-ranked driver visits Hartford
Celebrity appearances and non-Series races at Sharon Speedway are also a chance to escape the grind of more pressure-packed weekend events.
HARTFORD — The array of items a celebrity is requested to autograph may range from the sublime to the ridiculous — not to mention a few unmentionables.
One of those unusual items was put before NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick at Sharon Speedway Tuesday evening.
“A guy took his [artificial] leg off and I signed it,” Harvick said. “That was definitely the most unique thing.”
What did he say to the guy?
“I just laughed. I remember [Dave] Blaney telling me that he signed a leg like that before.”
Harvick and Craftsman Truck Series driver Ken Schrader were guests of Blaney at the track for an E-Mod event entitled, “Duel in the Dirt II.”
Harvick, as the 11th-ranked driver in the Sprint Cup Series, is in the running for the circuit’s “Chase for the Cup.”
The driver of the Richard Childress Racing No. 29 Pennzoil car wouldn’t address any Sprint Cup questions, but he didn’t mind commenting about the outcome of his first visit to Sharon Speedway last year.
“I don’t do too many of these races, but, last year, it worked out that we won the race.”
He complimented the dirt track as one of the nicest he’s seen in the country.
“I’ve been to a few of them now and it’s evident that they put in the time and effort to keep the place clean and the track is very wide to race on.
“It’s fun and we enjoy doing these races a handful of times a year just to come out and relax and get away from the grind of the Cup weekends.”
Harvick said he hasn’t had much experience in dirt racing, but he enjoys the challenge of doing something different.
“Our sport is very unique in that all the guys seem to spend time at each other’s race track and we all try to support each others’ charities and functions. Dave didn’t have to ask me twice.
“No matter how good or bad you do, it’s just a matter of having a good time. The consequences aren’t as great as they are on the weekends.”
Harvick, whose last two races in the Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono and the Centurion Boats at Watkins Glen resulted in 4th- and 6th-place finishes, respectively, has 11 career victories.
He seemed sincere when talking about Blaney, a former RCR teammate.
“Dave is obviously a very accomplished racer in all forms. The thing about Dave is that he’s a really nice guy and you couldn’t ask for a nicer family to be around. Dave is a quiet, fun, low-key guy.”
Harvick was also invited to sit in a Sharon Speedway fan’s refurbished truck.
“Yeah, we signed a truck,” he said of himself and Schrader. “A gentleman had a pretty nice truck over there that we signed. You always find unique items that pop up to be signed.”
One fan who passed through Harvick’s trailer for an autograph was Robbie Lewis of Magnolia, Ohio, a town south of Canton.
Lewis, who said he is originally from Bristol, Tenn., had Harvick sign a diecast of the No. 29 Pennzoil Platinum Chevy that Harvick will drive in the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Aug. 23.
“This has the particular paint scheme that he’ll be showing in a couple weeks,” the 40-year-old Lewis said while holding the model. “He signed the roof.”
Lewis said he didn’t travel to Hartford in June when Kasey Kahne and Tony Stewart joined Blaney for a night of racing, but he does appreciate the effort of the Speedway’s co-owner.
“The Blaney family is good to NASCAR fans in northeastern Ohio. It’s nice that they get these celebrities up here …”
Blaney, who is ranked 31st in drivers’ points and 32nd in owners’ points, which are the key for race-to-race qualifying, had the misfortune of getting caught up in a nine-car accident at Watkins Glen Sunday.
“That stuff happens,” the Hartford native said of his #22 Caterpillar Toyota. “You don’t wreck like that on a road course very often, but I feel bad we were caught up in it. We don’t need to lose anymore points than we have to. That’s all right. We’ve got a stretch of tracks coming up that we usually run pretty good at, so we’re looking forward to that.”
Next up for Harvick and Blaney is the 3M Performance 400 at Michigan Speedway, a track at which Blaney has three top-10 finishes.
bassetti@vindy.com