NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

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SOCIAL NETWORKING CONNECTS TOYOTA RACERS, FANS

Brian Vickers (pictured) uses it to let folks share in his action-packed world away from the track.

Denny Hamlin uses it to give away race tickets, weigh in on important issues in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series or just talk a little basketball.

Scott and Amanda Speed use it to keep fans up-to-date on their zany lives.

Samantha Sarcinella uses it to provide in-race updates of how fiancée Kyle Busch is doing, along with info about the couple's wedding plans.

And Michael Waltrip, well, you never quite know what he'll use it for…

What we're talking about, of course, is Twitter (www.twitter.com), the hottest social-networking site in the NASCAR universe. The premise is simple – sign up and you can post a limitless number of free messages, with just one catch: No message can be longer than 140 characters, which means things like grammar and sentence structure are sketchy at best.

NASCAR’s three national series are taking a weekend off before heading to Bristol, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that your favorite Toyota drivers will be lying low. Thanks to the power of Twitter, fans can follow them pretty much 24/7, and the results can be informative, funny, outrageous and downright bizarre at times. There's no question, it's become huge in NASCAR circles.

“I just started doing it and it’s fun so I do it,” says Martin Truex Jr., driver of the No. 56 NAPA Toyota. “It’s neat to be able to interact with the fans. I don’t think most sports figures would be saying hello to them or talking to their fans. For the most part, NASCAR drivers are down to earth, normal, every day guys who came up racing on short tracks and working on their racecars. We’re really no different than anyone else. I worked on clam boats, and I started racing cars because I love it.”

And you never know what anyone might say on Twitter. Some recent offerings (with original grammar and spelling, in case you blame us for it….):

  • “I won another 50 bux, I'm on fire playin online poker last days ha” – Scott Speed and one of several Tweets showing he’s hitting a rich seam of form in online poker, as well as on the race track.

  • “@AllWaltrip..goof ball huh? yea youre right. got nothing for u on that one. i keep assuming i'll grow up one day. but then again u havent :)” – Michael Waltrip to big brother Darrell, who he has converted to a Twitter user.

  • “Was a good day for KBM, 2nd and 13th. Really proud of all the guys and how we ran. Feel good about things to come! Watching MX on speed” – Kyle Busch after March 6 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he finished second and teammate Tayler Malsam was 13th.

  • “On that note.. My mom just got her new Lexus.. Its a baaaad machine. She loves it” – Denny Hamlin.

  • “Not a good start to the day I was backing down my driveway and ran over my mail box opps now I know its there I guess hahah” – Steve Wallace.

  • “Good morning getting ready for a street fight here in Atl that is best way I can describe a cup race” – Max Papis on race morning at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

  • “Great time with the Weather Channel people. Thats harder than it looks but the forecast for the weekend is not bad at all! Blame me if not?” – Brian Vickers, after spending an hour hosting The Weather Channel in Atlanta.

  • “Congrats!!! Found a cool wedding website, stylemepretty.com might help you with ideas!” – Sam Sarcinella.

If you haven't already done so, check out Twitter.com for a wealth of information, gossip and who-knows-what else.

A list of some of the Toyota Twitter names follows, but if your favorite driver isn’t listed, search the web and see if they’re Tweeting, too. You might be surprised who’s doing it.

To check out a driver’s Tweets, go to www.twitter.com and add / and their Twitter name. For example, to read Martin Truex Jr.’s Tweets, go to www.twitter.com/martintruexjr56

BrianLVickers – Brian Vickers
dennyhamlin – Denny Hamlin
HomeDepotRacing – Joey Logano
Kylebusch – Kyle Busch
SamSarcinella – Kyle Busch's fiancée
martintruexjr56 – Martin Truex Jr.
maxpapis – Max Papis
mw55 – Michael Waltrip
MWRteam – Michael Waltrip Racing team page
RobbyGordon – Robby Gordon
scottspeed – Scott Speed
Amanda_Speed – Scott Speed's wife
stevewallace66 – Steve Wallace

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