NASCAR fan Ben True breaks down Daytona 500

By Chris Lotsbom, @ChrisLotsbom for Dyestat

Track fans are accustomed to watching Ben True battle for the win in every race he enters, be it a mile on the track or 5 kilometers on the roads. So far this year, he’s set a pair of indoor personal bests in the mile (3:57.31) and two mile (8:11.33), the latter coming earlier this month at the 110th NYRR Millrose Games.

True will race again this weekend at the Boston University Last Chance meet, facing members of the Nike Bowerman Track Club in a highly anticipated time trial. There’s only one downside to lacing up the spikes Sunday: True won’t be able to watch the Daytona 500.

“Jerry Schumacher and his guys are racing well. I think it’s going to be great,” said True, speaking by phone from New Hampshire. “But, depending on what time the race is, I think I’m going to miss Daytona!”

What many track fans don’t know is that True is a big NASCAR fan, and an avid supporter of drivers Kasey Kahne and Landon Cassill. Ironically, both Kahne and Cassill are runners themselves, and the latter has made it a habit to run with True whenever possible.

Before the green flag is waved in Daytona and the starter’s pistol is fired in Boston, here are six quick takes from True, touching on both the indoor and speedway ovals.

1) True jumped out of his comfort zone this winter and tested himself indoors. At Millrose, he used the phrase “diving into the corner” to describe gaining position and trying to find his stride while moving up in the pack. That very phrase is often heard at NASCAR speedways each week. Indoor track and race car driving have more in common than meets the eye, he said.

“I think indoor track, just because of how tight the turns are, tends to be more of the roller derby style of racing and not so much like the super speedway tracks that typical NASCAR races are week to week, or like Daytona coming up,” True said. “You’re basically running your position and you have two corners to make moves to put yourself in a better position. When there’s an opportunity, you really have to capitalize right at that minute because there aren’t too many chances for that... I think there’s a similarity. We’re running a whole lot slower, though!”

With two strong indoor races under his belt, True has gained added confidence looking toward the outdoor season.

“The biggest thing leading into the spring and summer season is that it helps my tactics, helps (me) running in a pack and running with people and being able to relax. That’s the biggest positive of running indoors,” he said.

2) In NASCAR, drivers are allowed to wear as many sponsor logos as they want on their fire suits. In track, stringent rules put forth by the IAAF allow only a single shoe company’s logo on the front of a uniform. True wishes track’s governing body would transition more toward the NASCAR way, or at least move closer to the rules followed internationally in triathlon.

“I understand the desire of the shoe companies to only want one, because it’s great marketing for them,” he said. “But as an example, my better half Sarah is a (Olympic) triathlete, and they have it very differently. They are allowed to have unlimited sponsors, but have five on their uniform in different sizes, and there are restrictions for size for each of their logos. It allows athletes to better market themselves and better market their support, and be able to hopefully provide a better living for themselves.

“I think the way the ITU, International Triathlon Union, how they do it is reasonable where there is a limit but they do allow for multiple sponsors so the athlete can do better in getting support and earning a living.”

3) True – and former training partner Sam Chelanga – have experience behind the wheel of a NASCAR racecar.

“A few years ago Sam Chelanga and I went to Loudon (New Hampshire) and drove a NASCAR car, and it’s definitely hair raising. You think you’re going really fast, but I’m sure we weren’t going nearly as fast as those guys do.”

There is video evidence of True behind the wheel, albeit racing a go-kart, on Twitter. The tweet was even liked by professional driver Cassill.

If he had to choose, True would want to race at Bristol Motor Speedway, a track known as “The World’s Fastest Half-Mile” and for its concrete, full-throttle, Coliseum layout.

“I think racing at Bristol would be a lot of fun. I’d be terrified with the tight corners, but I think it’d be a lot of fun.”

4) True is good friends with Cassill, driver of the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports car, and the pair have done workouts together.

“At the spring race in Loudon two years ago, I did a workout with Landon Cassill a day before the race,” True recalled. “I hopped in and paced him in a workout, and he’s one of the more speedier ones in NASCAR. But I’m pretty sure I could take them all down (laughs)!”

Cassill is just one of many NASCAR drivers who are runners, including Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Trevor Bayne and the aforementioned Kahne.

5) When asked what track is most like Daytona International Speedway – the crown jewel of the racing circuit and one of the fastest in the world – True had to really stop and think.

“I would have to say, internationally, the Monaco track because it has a reputation of being extremely fast and produces very fast times there,” he said. “Also it has the pomp and circumstance just because it’s in Monaco and everything has the fanciness of Monaco to it. Comparing it to a superspeedway track like Daytona, I’d have to say Monaco. In the U.S. it’s Hayward Field just because it’s the most popular track in the U.S. But I would say a real connection to the Daytona track would be Monaco.”

6) Finally, True’s take on who will take home the Daytona 500 title next week: It’s a toss-up.

“Hendrick Motorsport has shown to be in great position again to have two in the front row (Chase Elliott and Dale Earnhardt Jr.). I’d say Dale Jr. has the best chance. He has a point to prove; he didn't win the pole but is coming off a concussion that had him out since the spring or early summer... He’s got something to prove, so I’m going to go with Dale, Jr.”

But, thinking about the race more, True’s heart pulled him toward his two favorite drivers: Kahne and Cassill.

“I don’t think you can really bet against the Hendrick motors right now just because they’ve always done so well on the restrictor plate tracks. I think I have to give the nod to Kasey,” he said.

Kahne is part of Hendrick Motorsports, driving the No. 5 car.

“Landon thinks he has a top-10 running car. Whether or not he can finish in the top 10, he knows he has a car that can run consistently up near the top 10, so we’ll see. I’d love, love to root for him, but I still think Kasey will edge him out here.”