Associated Press
The NASCAR notebook …
LOUDON, N.H. ó Dale Earnhardt Jr.ís summer swoon hasnít dented his confidence.
At least not yet.
Earnhardt was having his best season at Hendrick Motorsports and was in the hunt for several wins until this four-race slump sent him from third to eighth in the standings.
He finished 21st at Michigan, 41st at Sonoma, 19th at Daytona and 30th last week at Kentucky, a rough stretch that not only extended his losing streak to 111 races, it again stirred doubts that he can be a serious contender for the title.
Earnhardt is frustrated, for sure. But NASCARís most popular driver hasnít let the dip in production affect his morale. He was one of the hottest drivers in the sport six weeks ago and he believes he can hit that level again.
ěWeíve got good cars. Weíve got a really, really good team,î he said. ěWe should be running better than we have been the last couple of weeks and we know it. We are just going to try and work really hard to get back where we were earlier in the season. It shouldnít be that difficult.î
His eighth-place standing would earn him a guaranteed spot in the Chase for the championship field at the cutoff. The Hendrick Motorsports driver is only 21 points ahead of 11th-place driver Tony Stewart, leaving little wiggle room for more poor finishes. A top 10 at New Hampshire could go a long way toward easing some doubts about Earnhardt.
ěWe wanted to come in here with a lot of confidence that we belong in the Chase,î Earnhardt said. ěThat we belong up front in the top five and the top 10 and try to make that happen this weekend and try to race up there well.î

DO-GOODER GORDON: Jeff Gordon is spending his off weekend far, far from the track: All the way in the Congo.
Gordon leaves right after Sundayís race at New Hampshire as part of the Clinton Global Initiative. Gordon, part of a group that he said included actress Ashley Judd, will visit a refugee camp in the Congo. Gordon said heís been planning the trip since last year.

BOWYER MOVES ON: Clint Bowyer put the trophy from last yearís victory at New Hampshire in his house.
The rest of his memories from that weekend, well, theyíre not so good.
Bowyerís winning car in the Chase opener flunked inspection and NASCAR levied crippling penalties that ended his Sprint Cup championship hopes days after he had positioned himself as a top contender.
The 150-point penalty from his September infraction was so devastating that not even another Chase race victory at Talladega could budge him out of last place in the 12-driver field.
But that trying episode is far from Bowyerís focus in his New Hampshire return this weekend ó even as heís pestered with reminders of his fantastic-to-flop tale.
Bowyer is stuck in 12th place again, a spot that, thanks to NASCARís revamped points system, puts him outside the Chase field.
ěThis is a crucial time for us,î Bowyer said. ěWeíre still within reaching distance of the cars in front of us, so this is a good time to get things pointed back in the right direction points-wise.î
There are eight races remaining until the Chase.

HELTON RULE: Kyle Busch has a court date on Wednesday because he was cited for careless and reckless driving. Busch was busted driving 128 mph in a 45 mph zone in a borrowed Lexus.
While some sports, most notably the NFL, get involved in discipline even after verdicts have been issued, NASCAR president Mike Helton said he would like to steer away from those types of punishments.
ěI think what we try to do is be very respectful of the fact that our realm is regulating, our realm of responsibility, (is) NASCAR as a sport and letting the proper jurisdictions regulate everything outside the sport,î he said.

TRAFFIC REPORT: The inaugural Quaker State 400 brought mixed results for businesses near the Kentucky Speedway.
Jane Searcy, owner of Hog Wild Pig Crazy Bar-BQ in Sparta, told The Kentucky Enquirer that many people were not taking the time to shop or eat because traffic was so bad they were just trying to get to the speedway.
At the IGA in Warsaw, supermarket manager Keith Jones said bumper to bumper traffic in front of the store on Saturday meant no one could get into the parking lot.
The race attracted more than 107,000 visitors to the area and state officials estimated it would have an economic impact of $150 million.
Gallatin County Chamber of Commerce officials say they will work to improve traffic and parking problems before next year.