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J.D. Byrider – A Winning Team
Auto Racing is one of the most popular sports around – both in terms of spectators at the events and TV ratings. Every week, thousands of race teams show up at tracks that range in size from the ¼ mile dirt track in Lawrenceburg, Indiana to the asphalt superspeedways in Daytona and Talladega. And, every week, millions of fans pack their coolers, stock their campers or settle in to their favorite TV chairs to watch.
The sport is so popular that the TV ratings for NASCAR are second only to those for the NFL. Add to that the audiences that follow Formula I, the Indy Racing League, NHRA and a myriad of other stock car, sports car, sprint car, midget, go kart and on and on...and you begin to understand that this popularity is no myth.
And, one can also quickly see that racing is a team sport. While the primary focus is on the cars and drivers who compete on the track, those drivers will tell you that they can’t be successful without a good team.
It’s this team focus that drew J.D. Byrider to the sport. We sponsor a race team that reflects the company’s passion to run at the head of the pack.
Tony Stewart
Like J.D. Byrider, Tony Stewart is from Indiana. And, like J.D. Byrider, Tony Stewart knows how to put together a winning team. He’s been a champion at every level in which he’s competed: three national go kart championships; three national championships with the United States Auto Club; the Indy Racing League Championship; Two NASCAR Sprint Cup Championships. He’s one of the premier drivers on the NASCAR circuit today.
J. D. Byrider and Tony Stewart have been a team since 1997 when we began sponsoring a late model dirt-track car that Tony still drives a couple of times a year. Since then, the team has grown to three drivers: Tony in the dirt late model; Steve Barnett in another dirt late model; and Kraig Kinser in a winged, open-wheel sprint car.
Tony’s primary job these days is driving the #20 Home Depot Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. But he still finds time to be part of the J.D. Byrider Team. And we’re proud to be associated with a proven winner.
Kraig Kinser
Kraig is one of the newest additions to the team, driving a Tony Stewart-owned sprint car in the wild World of Outlaws Sprint Cars series. These cars are an offshoot of the old open-wheel cars driven by such legends as A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser and Johnny Rutherford, all Indy 500 winners. The series races on short dirt ovals across the country and is one of the most exciting forms of racing anywhere.
Speaking of legends, Kraig’s the son of all-time World of Outlaws Sprint champ, Steve Kinser. But Kraig’s accomplished a lot on his own. He was the 2004 World of Outlaws Sprint Series “Rookie of the Year.” He won the 2005 Knoxville Nationals, making him and his father the only father-son duo to have won the prestigious event. Kraig made 18 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series starts in 2006, and 13 in 2007.
2008 promises to be an exciting season, with Kraig in the cockpit of one of winged sprint car racing’s best cars. The team boasts veteran Jimmy Carr as Team Manager/Crew Chief along with mechanics Steve Swenson, Michael Kuemper and Evan Funk. J.D. Byrider supports this team as an associate sponsor, with Bass Pro Shops as the primary.
Steve Barnett
The J.D. Byrider team centers around good people. Tony Stewart picked Steve Barnett to be part of his dirt late model team because Steve is a proven winner – five consecutive Northern All Stars Series championships. But he also picked him because Steve’s a good guy.
We’re proud to have Steve on our team – and to have him carry the J.D. Byrider colors on his car, uniform and hauler as he travels throughout the Midwest, racing from March to October. At the venues when both Tony and Steve are racing the dirt late-models, there is a true air of excitement and an appreciation by the fans for J.D. Byrider’s commitment to racing.
We approach each business day with the same commitment as we attempt to form a “winning team” with our customers.
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