Andy Moves Up, Greg Moves In
HARRISBURG, N.C. (July 23)- - Andy Papathanassiou, who had been the pit crew coach for Jeff Gordon's Rainbow Warriors since the team's inception in 1992, was recently promoted to Human Resources Manager at Hendrick Motorsports. Papathanassiou has a master's degree in organizational behavior from Stanford and is uniquely qualified for his new position. He revolutionzed the role of pit crews after being hired by Ray Evernham for the neophyte operation in 1992. Papathanassiou, the first pit crew coach in NASCAR, searched for athletes rather than mechanics to perform lightning quick pit stops. He implemented strength and conditioning programs that nearly all pit crews now emulate. Greg Miller has taken over as pit crew coach for the Rainbow Warriors. Miller is responsible for running the weekly pit crew practice sessions and organizing the strength and conditioning program.

Short Night Of Work
RADFORD, VA. (July 19)- - With an off weekend on the Winston Cup circuit, Jeff Gordon's pit crew headed to New River Valley Speedway in Radford, Virginia for a little extra work. Driver Jamie Rolewicz, who works for Goodyear, had the services of the Rainbow Warriors in the Kroger/Pepsi 250 event on Saturday, July 15. However, they ended up with a light work load after Rolewicz got caught in a front straightaway wreck on the second lap and was done for the evening. (Roanoke Times)

Familiar Sight In Victory Lane
WILMINGTON, DE. (July 19)- - The DuPont Mini Grand Prix car beat 15 other corporate-sponsored cars to win the Eighth Annual Mini Grand Prix in Wilmington, Delaware. The event benefitted the Arthritis Foundation. The DuPont car, painted like Jeff Gordon's Winston Cup car, has participated in the event since its inception and the current team has been in place for two years. Team members are: Jim Wheeler, left; Kim Clark, in the car; Al Woerner, standing; and team manager Wayne Hopkins. All team members drove in the series of races and accumulated the most number of points, including winning the championship race, driven by Hopkins.

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