NASCAR teams sharpen competitive edge

Bailey Walker, who provides pit support for the Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 team, looks at a perceived exertion chart during a VO2 max test at the N.C. Research Campus. Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports

Kip Wolfmeier, a rear tire changer for the Hendricks Motorsports No. 88 team, takes a test to determine his pulmonary efficiency at the N.C. Research Campus. Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports

Kip Wolfmeier, a rear tire changer for the Hendricks Motorsports No. 88 team, nears the end of his VO2 max test at the ASU Human Performance Lab in Kannapolis. Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports

Dion Williams, a rear tire changer for the Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 team, reviews his fitness test results at the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis. Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports

Dion Williams, a rear tire changer for the Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 team, has his mask adjusted by an intern at the ASU Human Performance Lab in Kannapolis. Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports

Kip Wolfmeier, the rear tire changer for Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 team, sits in the Bod Pod while his body composition is tested. Photo courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports

By Emily Ford

eford@salisburypost.com

KANNAPOLIS — Two NASCAR teams have turned to the N.C. Research Campus to improve pit crew performance through exercise science and nutrition.

Hendrick Motorsports is sending pit crews for the No. 5 and No. 88 teams to the Research Campus in Kannapolis, a $1.5 billion life sciences complex where eight universities study health, nutrition and agriculture.

Hendrick has entered what the company calls a "long-term relationship" with Appalachian State University's Human Performance Lab, directed by Dr. David Nieman.

"We are always looking for an edge of opportunity to improve the performance of our pit crews," said Mark Mauldin, pit crew coordinator for Hendrick Motorsports who lives in Salisbury. "Dr. Nieman has expertise in overall fitness and cardiovascular health, and that's an area we don't pursue heavily in our sport."

It's possible that drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin also will undergo testing at the Research Campus, where athletes run on a treadmill until they can't take another step to measure their pulmonary efficiency and sit in a space-age Bod Pod wearing nothing but a swimsuit to determine their body composition, among other tests.

"There is some talk of the drivers coming in," Nieman said.

For now, Nieman's lab will focus not on the men behind the wheel but on the seven who go over the wall, where tiny fractions of a second can mean the difference between victory and defeat.

Back when pit crews were doing 20-second pit stops, it wasn't as crucial for them to be in excellent physical condition.

Today, crews are expected to change four tires, add 22 gallons of gasoline and make adjustments to a 3,400-pound race car in 13.5 seconds. That requires speed, strength, agility and hand-eye coordination.

"Finding tenths and hundredths of seconds was not really that important five or six years ago," said Mauldin, who operates Twin Creek cattle farm near Spencer with his wife Corinne, a teacher at North Rowan High School, when he's not working at Hendrick in Charlotte.

Now, with the Cars of Tomorrow racing side-by-side, teams rely on their pit crews to find the advantage. Every second lost on pit road can equate to 100 feet on the track.

"A premium is put on gaining a spot in the pits," Mauldin said. "It's sometimes easier to gain a spot on pit road than on the track."

All Hendrick pit crewmen are former standout high school or Division I college athletes, and some have played in the NFL.

They train year-round and put in 14 to 16 hours on race day. At Hendrick Motorsports, they have coaches, certified strength trainers, a dietician and even a sports psychologist.

Experts spend hours studying film of pit stops and even pit stop practices to find mistakes and develop ways to keep them from happening again.

"Along with building engines and shocks and suspension parts, pit crew building has become a specialty part of racing," Mauldin said.

While Hendrick has a state-of-the-art training facility, the company lacked the specialized equipment at the Research Campus, which provides data that Mauldin can't generate on his own.

And Hendrick lacked the expertise of Nieman, a renowned scientist and researcher.

When pit crew members were undergoing testing last week in Kannapolis, Rick Hendrick's personal trainer Matt Skeen thought Nieman's name sounded familiar.

Skeen later realized that Nieman wrote one of his college textbooks, "Exercise Testing and Prescription: A Health Related Approach."

So, one cutting-edge industry turns to another as Hendrick looks to the Research Campus to get the edge on the competition. And Nieman said he relishes the chance to work with pit crews, a little-studied segment of the athletic population.

The arrangement is free.

In Kannapolis, the men are undergoing fitness testing, analysis and nutrition counseling. They will return every three to four months to determine if they've met benchmarks that Mauldin and Nieman will set based on test results.

Nieman has developed cardiovascular training regimens to improve the crews' overall health and endurance, which should result in better performance in the pits and reduce fatigue, he said.

"A leaner guy will be able to hang in there longer," he said.

In general, Nieman wants to improve the men's aerobic capacity and body composition.

That's important not only to improve performance in any athletic endeavor but also to improve an athlete's health he said.

The testing and consultation sessions have already made a difference, Mauldin said.

"It was a real eye-opener for me," said Mark Jacobs, the jack man for the No. 88 car. "It definitely made me realize that for what I do and the age that I am, I need to be in a lot better shape."

To reach his full potential, Jacobs learned that he needs to lose 20 pounds and decrease his body fat by 15 percent.

"I was shocked," he said.

While the average age in the pit is 26, Jacobs is 33 years old. Normally, he would have about two more years on the jack.

But with Nieman's help, Jacobs said Mauldin believes he could work until he's 38.

Using Nieman's test results, coaches at Hendrick Motorsports have tailored workouts for Jacobs that feature more high-intensity cardiovascular sessions and less time devoted to strength training, he said.

And he's changed his diet.

"Those trips to Cookout? That's been put to a halt," he said. "I am much more aware of what I'm putting in my mouth."

He has a smaller, protein-based breakfast, eats his largest meal at midday and tries not to consume anything after 6 p.m.

Jacobs is committed to improving his health and fitness for his employer as well as for his two children.

Unless he loses weight and body fat, his risk for cancer, diabetes and other chronic health conditions is doubled, he said.

"I want to be around for them," he said.

Mauldin first learned about the Research Campus last year when he attended a meeting at the biotechnology complex in downtown Kannapolis.

As a cattle farmer, Mauldin serves on the N.C. Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services Board. When state Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler gave a tour of the campus, Mauldin started asking about a human performance lab.

Clyde Higgs, campus vice president for business development, put him in touch with Nieman.

As NASCAR prepares to open its season on Valentine's Day at the Daytona 500, two pit crews from Hendrick Motorsports are meeting with scientists in Kannapolis to improve their performance by even a tenth of a second.

"The premium is now put on human performance that was always put on car performance," Mauldin said. "You need to build great pit crews, as well as great cars, to win races."