On, Wisconsin! - NASCAR

Call it "Triumph of the Cheeseheads."

Eleven years after Wisconsin native Alan Kulwicki won the Winston Cup title, Matt Kenseth, crew chief Robbie Reiser and their team will take another trophy north.

Wisconsin is an excellent breeding ground for racers. Hardly a night goes by without a short-track race in some corner of the state. Fathers and sons build cars and race together. If necessary, families rebuild the cars and race again. It's a grassroots education in motorsports.

Reiser raced against Kenseth before hiring him to drive his family-owned Reiser Enterprises Chevrolet in the Busch Series in 1997. Dave Marcis, Travis Kvapil, Dick Trickle, Rich Bickle and the Sauters also hail from Wisconsin, but it was Kulwicki--the first driver from north of the Mason-Dixon Line to win the title since Bill Rexford in 1950--who put Wisconsin racing squarely on the map. Kenseth is adding to the legacy.

Those who knew Kulwicki, who died in a plane crash in 1993, say there are similarities between the drivers. Both knew how to build cars before they could drive them. Both started their careers on short tracks around Wisconsin before joining the American Speed Association's touring series. Both grew into low-key personalities on and off the track.

"Alan was pretty good at getting some poles, but for the most part he would start in the top 15," says Paul Andrews, who was Kulwicki's crew chief during the championship season and currently oversees Jeff Burton's Roush Racing team. "That's where Matt is a lot. Throughout most of the race you really don't even see him. When it gets toward the end of the race, whether it's 100 laps to go or 100 miles to go, the next thing you know there he is in the top five and going stronger."

The biggest difference between the teams is that Kenseth's budget is substantially higher than Kulwicki's was. What Kulwicki lacked in money, he made up tbr with engineering knowledge. He had a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin.

Although Kenseth, 31, doesn't have a formal degree, he has gathered knowledge over the past 20 years from working on his own cars. The rest is innate. He's continually suggesting adjustments from the cockpit during races. Kenseth and Reiser form one of the strongest combinations on pit road.

With Wisconsin natives making up the nucleus, the team shows a Midwestern sensibility. There's also a sense of independence from the Roush organization. Reiser and Kenseth use all the resources Jack Roush can offer, but ultimately they make the calls.

"Robbie has his own ideas, and I respect him for that," Roush says. "He knows the way he wants to run his team, the risks he wants to take and the calls he makes. He doesn't look over his shoulder and say, 'Hey, Jack, what do you think about stopping and taking two tires or four tires?' He does what he thinks is right, and that is his job."

No one can deny that the independent thinkers from Wisconsin got the job done in 2003.

For the latest news from the Winston Cup circuit and analysis from FOX commentators Darrell Waltrip, Jeff Hammond and Larry McReynolds--plus Lee Spencer--go to www.foxsports.com, keyword: NASCAR.

SPEED READ

* With one Craftsman Truck race remaining, Ted Musgrave trails Brendan Gaughan by just 26 points for the title. But Musgrave, a NASCAR journeyman who turns 48 next month, deserves a medal no matter where he finishes. He has won three races and has been in the top 10 in points since the second week of the season while battling cancer.

INSIDE DISH

Bill Elliott kept everyone guessing last Sunday after winning at Rockingham. "I'm eventually going to retire," he said. "But I don't know when." Elliott says his initial plans were clouded by his team's performance this season and that there still are lots of decisions to be made by team owner Ray Evernham and him before he draws any conclusions.... NASCAR released 14 pages of amendments to the 2004 Cup rulebook to teams at Rockingham. Teams will now use 12-gallon fuel cans, which will deter teams from compromising the bottom of the current 11-gallon cans. (Cars' fuel cells hold 22 gallons.) The F3, or dinosaur, template will now extend from the cowl to the rear spoiler, tightening areas where teams can find an advantage. Engines must be located 14.25 inches, plus or minus 1 inch, from the center carburetor air cleaning mounting stud to the base of the windshield. Many teams will need to change driveshafts and motor mounts in order to comply with that rule. NASCAR also is separating primary and secondary ignition systems so that it will be easier to check the wiring and eliminate any opportunities for traction control.... Give the Hendrick boys the advantage at Homestead. Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson finished first and third, respectively, at Atlanta, which like Homestead is a 1 1/2-mile track, and Hendrick engineer Rex Stump gathered valuable data from the recent Goodyear tire test at Homestead. He was there with the MBV team. Gordon is taking the winning Atlanta car to Florida; he feels that with a strong engine and information gained from telemetry during this week's open test, he'll be in good shape to win again.--L.S.

LEE SPENCER

lspencer@sportingnews.com

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