Nadeau hopes to return to racing
11 Comments Quote selected text Published March 15th, 2009 in NASCAR News
No doubt about it, former NASCAR driver Jerry Nadeau would jump at the opportunity to return to stock-car racing. “I’m still trying to figure out what’s next for me,” Nadeau said. “I’m just a racer, I love to race and if I can come back in some capacity, I’ll do that.”
Sidelined since 2003 due to injuries suffered in a horrific crash in practice at Richmond International Raceway, the 38-year-old Danbury, Conn., native attended a fundraiser for former NASCAR crew chief Jake “Suitcase” Elder at Memory Lane Motorsports and Automotive Museum on Saturday. Nadeau, who made a 177 starts during his seven year Cup career, still experiences numbness on the left side of his body resulting from the crash, but said he is cleared medically to race. “I’ve kind of come accustomed to it. It’s just something that I have to life with,” Nadeau said. “But I’m fine. I can race and I still do my simulator all the time.”
I smell a replacement in Kvapils place…
Maybe Rick will take him back and put him in the #88. lol
What’s going on with the posts Ken, they aren’t working?
GM Goodwrench Service Plus wrote:
Did you get some old news in your email, or are you referring to delay in the comment posting here?
Kenneth – ARS Editor wrote:
The delay, I see they are appearing now.
I think if Jerry comes back he is going to have the same problems that Steve Park has.
Jerry may be physically ready, and he may think he is mentally ready, but he’s not. Every racer has that subconscious fear in the back of their head that if they wreck “this may happen”, but Jerry, Steve, and others who have had wrecks and been permanently damaged because of it no longer have that fear. They have the reality of not “it may happen”, but “it will happen” and the second they feel the car get a little bit free, they panic and end up over-compensating and wrecking.
Dont forget Ernie Irvin as good as he was when he came back he just wasnt the same. I feel bad for these guys who get hurt like that, because no matter how good they were before, it seems like it is never the same. I would love to see Jerry come back and competitive.
Another guy I think of is Gonzo Greg Sacks. One of the nicest guys around. He, too, was seriously injured driving for Cale in 1998. He had to learn to walk, eat, etc. He runs an ARCA race or two every once in a while. He is known for his upset win in the Pepsi/Firecracker 400 at Daytona with a Hendricks research engine. He was a half way decent, pedal to the metal nut. I think he only raced a full Cup season once in his entire career. Greg and the late Bobby Hamilton did a lot of the driving scenes in “Days Of Thunder”. He was one of the guys that originally sat down with NASCAR and the military that brought all branches of the military to Cup in 1991 during Desert Storm. Remember when Kulwicki had the Army car? Greg was the last guy to use the #18 prior to JGR with his Navy sponsored car in 1991. And he was the Cup driver under contract to Harry Ranier in the #20 car ( also did the driving for a lame NASCAR T.V. series at the time) in 1997 trying to tutor a kid named Stewart in a Busch car. JGR bought Stewart’s contract And the rest is history.
Tony also ran a few race for Ranier in, I think, 1996 too. So his plate was full. i think JGR bought Tony’s contract sometime in late 1997.
“I’ve kind of come accustomed to it. It’s just something that I have to life with,” Nadeau said” lol someone needs to pre read their article, it should be live with.
nonya, if you’re going to criticize someone, then you yourself should pay attention to what you are writing. It’s not “pre read”, it’s proof read. Anyway, no hard feelings, just wanted to point out your flaw since you’re pointing out someone else’s and not paying attention to yours. Now, you are right about their error, they should have proof read before publishing.
And now, about the article, I do hope Jerry Nadeu gets to do what makes him happy, however, I wouldn’t want to come back if I were him. It’s not the same NASCAR it used to be. I mean, I’m all about change, change for the better that is. But there haven’t been too many changes for the better, it’s been more change for the worse. But that’s just my opinion. Hell, I would love to make a butt load of cash also, but let’s face it, there aren’t too many drivers in it anymore that are doing it for the love of racing, it’s just all about the money. In my opinion, there are only a few real racers left in the sport, including Mark Martin, Jeff Burton, Bobby Labonte (and I’m sorry, I may have incorrectly spelled his name), and Tony Stewart. Honestly, I can’t think of anymore right now, but if any of you have somebody else to throw in there, by all means, let me know. I used to be a Jr. fan, but hell, he’s not a race car driver anymore, he quit that profession a long time ago.