| Business travel can be a grind, But for | | | | While cars have vanity license plates, NASCAR |
| NASCAR drivers and race teams who are on the | | | | teams have vanity aircraft registration |
| road for 36 races per year travel is | | | | numbers. Dale Jr's Learjet is N8JR, and Jeff |
| unavoidable. | | | | Gordon's Hawker is N24JG. The corporate |
| | | | Embraer at Dale Earnhardt, Inc. is N500DE. |
| If these teams had to rely on commercial | | | | |
| airline schedules travel would be a | | | | NASCAR has come to rely on private jet travel |
| nightmare, if not a logistical impossibility. | | | | so much that many tracks are located right |
| That's why most of the top tier drivers own | | | | next to airports. Daytona International |
| private jets, and race teams operate fleets | | | | Speedway is located right next to Daytona |
| of small aircraft to transport pit crew | | | | Beach International Airport where private |
| members and team executives to the racetrack | | | | jets and commercial flights arrive daily. |
| each week. | | | | |
| | | | While most tracks are not located so close to |
| Dale Earnhardt, Jr. owns a LearJet 60, which | | | | a major international airport, some tracks |
| is the top of the LearJet line, and their | | | | have built their own airports. Right next to |
| largest jet. It's a business jet that can | | | | Atlanta Motor Speedway sits Tara Field, a |
| seat up to 10 passengers. | | | | small general aviation airstrip that sees |
| | | | little traffic until race week, when more |
| Thanks to the jet Earnhardt can leave his | | | | than 600 planes descend on this tiny |
| home in North Carolina and be at the | | | | airfield. |
| racetrack in Daytona or Texas a couple of | | | | |
| hours later -- about the time it would take | | | | However, some tracks are not as convenient, |
| to drive to a major airport and clear | | | | but when that happens expect the NASCAR |
| security. | | | | drivers to come up with a solution. When |
| | | | NASCAR descends on a track like Dover |
| NASCAR rookie and former Formula One driver | | | | Delaware some drivers like Dale Earnhardt |
| Juan Pablo Montoya also owns a LearJet 60. | | | | bypass race traffic by flying from the |
| 2006 champion Jimmie Johnson owns a Learjet | | | | airport to the racetrack in a chartered |
| 31A, and Jeff Gordon owns a British Aerospace | | | | helicopter, landing directly in he infield. |
| Hawker 800. | | | | |
| | | | Some people consider private air travel a |
| Most of the drivers leave the flying to | | | | luxury, but with the hectic schedule of |
| professional pilots, but Mark Martin is a | | | | today's drivers it is a necessity. Following |
| licensed pilot who often pilots his own | | | | a Sunday afternoon race a driver can hop on |
| Cessna Citation. Martin lives in a unique | | | | his jet and be home by Sunday night. This |
| community near Daytona Beach called Spruce | | | | means they can meet with the crew chiefs and |
| Creek. It's a fly in community with it's own | | | | team owners Monday morning to review the |
| airport. Residents have aircraft hangars in | | | | previous race, and develop a strategy for the |
| the yard where most of us have garages. | | | | following race. During the week drivers are |
| Martin can literally park his jet in the | | | | often on the jet again, meeting with |
| garage. | | | | sponsors, shooting TV commercials, making |
| | | | public appearances, and testing. Without a |
| The race teams operate larger planes to ferry | | | | jet this schedule would be impossible. Most |
| the pit crews and team executives to the | | | | drivers agree that having a private jet gives |
| track. Roush Racing operates a fleet of | | | | them one to two days per week of productive |
| planes, including a Boeing 737 and several | | | | time, or just allows an occasional day off. |
| smaller business jets. Dale Earnhardt,, Inc. | | | | |
| flies it's pit crew on an Embraer 120, a | | | | You can see pictures of these jets at and get |
| mid-size turbo-prop that seats 30 passengers. | | | | more detailed information on each airplane. |
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