Safety first: Bowyer rewards N.H. drivers

LOUDON, N.H. - L.J. Place of Concord, N.H., wondered what she had done wrong when she looked in the rearview mirror of her sports utility vehicle and saw the flashing blue lights of a New Hampshire State Police cruiser tracking her down.

Actually, Place was pulled over near Exit 15 on Interstate 93 not for what she did wrong, but for what she did right: specifically, observe the state's recently amended "Move Over Law," which calls for oncoming motorists to give a wide berth to stationary law enforcement or emergency vehicles displaying red, blue, or amber warning lights.

As part of an effort to promote the new safety initiative, New Hampshire Motor Speedway officials enlisted the aid of NASCAR driver Clint Bowyer, winner of last year's Sylvania 300, who made his Winner's Circle appearance in Loudon yesterday by riding with State Police trooper Abbott Presby and surprising lucky motorists on I-93 with tickets to the Sept. 14 Sprint Cup event at NHMS, which will serve as the first race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship.

"It was fun," said Bowyer, who arrived in the Granite State on the heels of a solid seventh-place finish in the Sharpie 500 Saturday night at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

Bowyer's effort at Bristol vaulted the Richard Childress Racing driver into sole possession of 12th place after he entered the race in a two-way tie for 13th with Roush Fenway Racing driver David Ragan, who now trails Bowyer by 12 points.

"On our first one, we pulled up on a guy who was a rock hauler and had a Peterbilt with an Earnhardt decal on the back window, so you can't beat that," Bowyer said. "I think they're excited.

"Obviously, the biggest thing when they get pulled over and get a ticket, it's a ticket to a big race and it's not attached to a big fine that puts a frown on their face. So they're left with a smile on their face."

"Oh, this is fantastic," Place said. "I thought I was in trouble. I thought I couldn't have been going too fast, because I pulled over like I'm supposed to."

Place, who works for New Hampshire's Department of Transportation along with her husband, Terry, was thrilled.

"My husband turns 40 this weekend and this is his present," she said.

Happy return for Bowyer

The reason Bowyer was in New Hampshire was that it was where he got the first Sprint Cup win of his career last year.

"Oh, it was huge," said Bowyer, who qualified for his inaugural Chase by landing the 12th and final spot in the field and wound up third in the final standings. "I knew we had gotten close so many times before then and everybody had been saying, 'It's your turn, it's your turn.' But to finally see all that play out and to win it in dominant fashion that day, meant a lot to me as a racecar driver."

Bowyer, who leads the Nationwide Series by 122 points over Brad Keselowski, won last year's race from the pole position after leading 222 laps to capture a $259,175 payday.

"To get my first win, and to do it in the first race of the Chase in my first time being in the Chase, it just got us started off on the right foot, so it meant a lot," he said.

Logano has big shoes to fill

Joey Logano, the 18-year-old wunderkind from Middletown, Conn., was introduced as Tony Stewart's heir apparent next season in the No. 20 Toyota during a press conference at Joe Gibbs Racing's shops in Huntersville, N.C. Logano, who was the 2007 Busch East Series champion as a developmental driver for JGR, made his Nationwide Series debut for Gibbs Racing May 31 at Dover, Del., and won his first Nationwide race at Kentucky in just his third series start. Logano will be paired with Stewart's old crew chief, Greg Zipadelli. "I couldn't be more excited to be here today and jump into this No. 20 car - it's been a dream come true," said Logano, who will make his Cup debut in the No. 02 car Sept. 6 at Richmond International Raceway. "I've always been watching this car and watching Greg Zip and all the guys working [on it], and Tony working on the thing, I couldn't be more excited to get in a car like this." . . . Fenway Sports Group, which last February purchased a 50-percent stake in Roush Racing and rebranded it as Roush Fenway Racing, announced the appointment of Brian Corcoran, who for the last six years has been NASCAR's managing director/corporate marketing, as executive vice president/business development and motorsports. Corcoran will oversee day-to-day operations for FSG's NASCAR division, which includes Roush Fenway Racing and Yates Racing. "FSG is committed to growing Roush Fenway Racing and making it the top team on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit," said FSG president Mike Dee. "Brian's proven track record of success in building relationships with corporate partners in auto racing makes him the perfect person to help us recruit new sponsors and maintain our competitive edge."

Michael Vega can be reached at vega@globe.com.