NASCAR notebook: Sonoma weather a big winner on race day

SONOMA - A week before the Toyota/Save Mart 350 NASCAR race at Sonoma Raceway, the weather forecast looked like it might be a toasty day at the racetrack.

In years past, tens of thousands of race fans have roasted in the summer heat.

As late as Thursday it was in the mid-90s at the Sears Point track and set-up crews baked bringing in their food stands.

This year, raceway officials even installed a new shady area for fans to have a cold beverage and find some shade. Nearly 200 feet of Humboldt redwood stand-up bars were put in under the main grandstand and at the new RevZone at Turn 7 viewing area.

But the forecast turned cooler and a gray overcast hung over the track Sunday morning, even bringing a little mist to the windshields.

NASCAR spokesman Matt Ciesluk said there were massive track dryers on hand if there was enough moisture to affect the blacktop, although as the morning wore on, it was clear they wouldn’t be necessary.

But the cloud cover was troublesome for a planned pre-race air show, which was postponed briefly before the sun came out and it was allowed to go forward.

HIGHS AND LOWS

The Sonoma Raceway road course includes more than 160 feet of elevation change from its high point in Turn 3a (174 feet) and its lowest point in Turn 10 (14 feet.)

The course - one of only two road courses in the Monster Energy Cup Series - has 10 turns, both right and left, giving drivers extra elements to consider as compared to the typical oval courses.

At Sonoma, drivers who completed the race made 1,100 turns in the 110-lap race.

The color scheme of the track may have seemed familiar to Bay Area fans.

The berms on the turns were painted blue and gold, at the suggestion of raceway president Steve Page, who went to Cal.

THE LAST OF JUNIOR

Sunday’s race was the last Sonoma County competition for popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Junior announced in April that he would retire at the end of this season.

He has suffered several concussions in the past few years, including two that kept him out of 18 races last season and left him with lingering balance and dizziness issues.

He was hoping his recent performances in Sonoma - two top 10 finishes in the past three years - might be good harbingers for this year.

In 17 starts going into Sunday, his best finish at Sonoma Raceway was third in 2014.

WINE, NOT MILK

At the Indianpolis 500, winners chug a bottle of milk in victory lane. At NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600, it’s gulps of the sponsoring beverage.

But of course, this is Wine Country. While we love our dairy products here, it’s vino - and bubbly - we choose to mark our occasions.

Ten years ago, local favorite Jeff Gordon became the first driver to hoist the Champion’s Goblet, full of red wine, at Sonoma Raceway.

Since then, 10 other drivers, with only one repeat, have sipped from the custom-made, Bay Area-blown glass goblet in the Wine Country-themed Victory Lane.

PIXAR’S BIG DAY

The executive director of “Cars 3” and the voice of one of its stars played prominent parts in initiating Sunday’s race.

John Lasseter, a Sonoma resident and chief creative officer of Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios drove the pace car to start Sunday’s race. Lasseter got behind the wheel early in the morning with regular NASCAR pace car driver Brett Bodine.

“I wasn’t nervous until I got the lessons, and then I realized, ‘Oh wow, I have to do 40 miles per hour exactly through all the turns,’” he said. “And the cruise control is not working in that Toyota because they modified, so it’s old school … it’s going to be really fun. It’s a thrill of a lifetime.”

Race grand marshal Cristela Alonzo, the actress who plays the voice of “Cruz Ramirez” in “Cars 3,” visited the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte last month and learned a lot about the sport. She left the museum with an appreciation of the sport despite not knowing much about it going in.

‘BYRNSIE AWARD’

Kurt Busch’s crew chief, Tony Gibson, was honored by Fox Sports with the “Byrnsie Award” prior to the race Sunday. The honor, named after late Fox Sports NASCAR broadcaster Steve Byrnes, was announced on-air by Byrnes’ son Bryson. It honors a crew member who goes above and beyond to help the Fox Sports broadcast team during its broadcasting run. Fox Sports ends its annual NASCAR Cup broadcasting after the Toyota/Save Mart 350. NBC Sports will broadcast NASCAR events for the rest of the season.

RAIDER AT SONOMA

Newly signed Raiders offensive lineman Marshall Newhouse was at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday, taking in the sights and sounds of the race weekend at the track.

“Sonoma is a beautiful place. The racetrack is nice. It’s a world of sports I haven’t gotten to experience,” Newhouse said.

Although it was his first official NASCAR race, Newhouse said he has been a car aficionado since he was child. His father restores cars back home in Texas. Newhouse himself says he’s more of a modern-day car guy, but would like to restore a truck with his father someday.

A 6-foot-4, eight-year NFL veteran, Newhouse played for the New York Giants last year, and looks to give the Raiders support at right tackle this season.