| You can read stories about many things | | | | team. Linda does the organizational |
| that encompass a complicated racing | | | | stuff such as gathering parts or |
| world. This story is not a feel-sorry | | | | administrative duties. As she says, "I |
| story. It's not a put-down story. It's | | | | do whatever it takes at the time, what |
| definitely not anything of a negative | | | | we need. I spot, I run the pit, I work |
| vein. Actually, it is two stories in | | | | on a car if I have to. I go over the |
| one: the story of Norm Benning and how | | | | wall if I have to--whatever it takes. I |
| he has gotten the most out of his racing | | | | do it all." |
| dollars. | | | | With that small number of full-time team |
| Benning is more than qualified to speak | | | | members comes a car inventory that is |
| on the subject of squeezing racing | | | | just as small. Unlike the upper end |
| dollars. It hasn't always been that way | | | | teams in ARCA, Norm doesn't have the |
| for him. As Norm likes to say, "I've | | | | $500,000 to $1 million-plus sponsorship |
| been to the mountain." Quite obviously, | | | | pool of funds to work with. His |
| he'd like to go back there. In the | | | | sponsorship money works more on a |
| meantime, he's in the savings mode that | | | | race-to-race basis, picking up local and |
| got him the shot at that mountain--and | | | | regional corporate partners. Again, |
| that keeps him racing. | | | | there's no pity party going on here. |
| Norm does his racing in the ARCA RE/MAX | | | | Norm wouldn't allow that. It's the story |
| Series, arguably the most versatile oval | | | | of Norm and Linda, running essentially |
| track series in the world. They race big | | | | two cars where other teams have four, |
| tracks such as Daytona and Talladega, | | | | six, or more. Two cars may not sound too |
| intermediates such as Michigan, Chicago, | | | | awfully bad to a Saturday night racer |
| Kansas City, and short tracks. They also | | | | who only has one. Keep in mind that in |
| race their NASCAR-clone, 3,400-pound | | | | any given ARCA race, there are a number |
| cars on dirt. The biggest difference | | | | of specialists with purpose-built cars |
| between NASCAR and ARCA is that the | | | | just for that track. |
| teams that run ARCA on a regular basis | | | | Running a national series--even if it's |
| are, for the most part, much smaller | | | | only working on as little as two |
| operations. | | | | cars--has to require some help, and Norm |
| It's always been tough in ARCA, with one | | | | has got that covered. Ask Norm about |
| of the most grueling weekends happening | | | | keeping a crew on the road and he |
| a number of years ago. Picture this | | | | laughs, "I know people all over the |
| scenario: Teams would race at Michigan | | | | country. We have four or five people |
| International's 2-mile superspeedway on | | | | that are pretty much at every race. The |
| a Saturday and race the next day in | | | | rest of them we pick up. Out at DuQuoin, |
| Illinois on a 1-mile dirt track. That | | | | I have Jack Greenwood and family and |
| meant teams like Norm's (that had only | | | | friends that just can't wait for me to |
| one race car) had to turn a | | | | get there. They know how to work on the |
| superspeedway car into a dirt car while | | | | race car, and they're there. When we go |
| inside the transporters on the road from | | | | to Daytona, we have people who work for |
| Michigan to Illinois. The dirt events | | | | Caterpillar down there that can't wait |
| that ARCA runs are not your average dirt | | | | for us to get there and race. I have |
| races, either. They race at what former | | | | people all over the country, and they |
| ARCA champ Bob Keselowski called "The | | | | just call me and make sure I'm coming |
| Superspeedways of Dirt." They are 1-mile | | | | because they're going to be there. When |
| flat dirt horse tracks that are in | | | | I had SoBe, which was a major |
| Springfield and DuQuoin, both in | | | | sponsorship, we had half a dozen |
| Illinois. How's that for versatility? | | | | full-time people. Now we have full-time |
| That brings us to Norm. Essentially, he | | | | people, but they're volunteers." |
| and his crewchief Linda Nicholas are the | | | | |