Driver injuries managed closely in new NASCAR

Driver injuries managed closely in new NASCAR
The first person Tony Stewart met with after driving a handful of practice laps around Dover International Speedway on Saturday was crew chief Greg Zipadelli.
Al Shuford was the second.
Certified athletic trainers typically don't hang out in the Nextel Cup garage. According to Shuford, there are only two -- Phil Horton of Chip Ganassi Racing and Lance Munksgard of MB2 Motorsports -- besides him in the series.

But as the sport continues to grow so does the importance of keeping the marquee players healthy. That was driven home again when Stewart broke his right shoulder blade a week ago at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

"What we've done is taken the old-fashioned concept of what we do as certified athletic trainers in other sports and taken it to a different venue,'' said Shuford, a former trainer for the NFL's Carolina Panthers.

Washington Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs, the owner of Joe Gibbs Racing, introduced Shuford to NASCAR in 1999 when Bobby Labonte suffered an injury similar to the one that will keep Stewart from going past the first couple of cautions in Sunday's 400-mile race.

He hired Shuford full time in 2000 and set up a complete rehabilitation center that has continued to expand.

Shuford has done everything from rehabilitate the torn ligaments of pit crew members to nursing the hand of driver Denny Hamlin, who recently needed 19 stitches from an injury suffered while frolicking around the hauler.

"When the boss comes and thanks me for taking care of Denny, it means something,'' Shuford said. "He's got experience in this with the [NFL]. He understands and appreciates a lot more than most everything it takes to keep everything going.''

Shuford has spent the past week making sure Stewart is comfortable enough to start the race and collect all the points necessary to remain in contention for a second consecutive title. He's fitted him with a new state-of-the-art brace and put him through hourly treatments.

He also has worked with helping Stewart exit the car most effectively and comfortably after the first caution or two so that relief driver Ricky Rudd can finish.

Stewart doesn't downplay Shuford's importance.

"I couldn't do this by myself,'' he said as he watched a fishing show in the back of his hauler.

Years ago, drivers did this by themselves. Many hid the fact that they were injured in order to compete.

In 1984, Rudd taped his eyes open with duct tape so he could run the Daytona 500 with a concussion.

"I didn't know there was but one way at the time,'' the 49-year-old Rudd said. "I just had a golden opportunity in front of me to drive for Bud Moore in a legendary operation. And here I was hurt.

"I guess I was too stubborn to turn that steering wheel to somebody else.''

Shuford said drivers with Stewart's injury used to tape themselves to the seat to cut back on movement and subsequent pain.

Stewart wasn't given the luxury of deciding what to do this weekend. The decision was made by a committee that consisted of JGR president J.D. Gibbs, vice president Jimmy Makar, Zipadelli and Shuford in consultation with other medical staff.

The decision was made to speed up the healing process enough that Stewart will be ready to run next week at Pocono without much discomfort.

"Deciding what's going to be best for him long term, what's going to be best for our group long term?'' Shuford said. "And taking the sport out of it, what's going to be best for Tony the next 50 years of his life? That's how we make our decisions, not on the short term and now.''

Shuford fitted Stewart with a brace made by AlignMed. The device was brought to his attention by a member of the company who saw Stewart's crash on television.

Shuford said the brace is more advanced than the one he used on Labonte in 1999 in that it optimizes scapular motion, increases rotator cuff strength and equally distributes the forces that go through the spine during normal driving.

"He likes it,'' Shuford said of Stewart, still wearing the brace that isn't visible underneath the driver's suit. "It took the pressure off significantly. And I added a little something extra under it to add a little more feeling of comfort and security to it.''

Shuford said the brace and initial adrenalin rush could make Stewart feel so comfortable he might want to stay in the car longer than planned.

"We are leaving it up to him based on his comfort and his [pain] level,'' he said.

But the plan remains for Stewart to exit early. If recent history holds true, the first caution will come out between Laps 3 and 15.

"Jimmy Makar and I were laughing about this last night,'' Shuford said. "When Bobby did his and the first caution came out [on Lap 10] he kept driving. We had this agreement, 'Dude, when the first caution comes out, get out of the car and Matt Kenseth is going to drive.'

"So when the first caution came out he said on the radio, 'This feels pretty good. I think I'm going to drive some more.' I remember looking at Jimmy like, 'What's up?' ''

Zipadelli said taking such decisions out of the driver's hand is smart business, particularly with the new Chase format that doesn't allow for as many slipups with the season divided into segments of 26 and 10 races.

"You could basically throw out a couple of races when it was just a 36-race schedule,'' he said. "Before, you could just work on consistency. Now you've got to be ready every week.

"The more and more competitive it gets, the closer they make cars, you've got to do everything you can to get an advantage.''

Getting Stewart ready has kept Shuford hopping. He's spent the weekend giving Stewart ice treatments, electrical muscle and bone stimulation, and limited exercise that simulates turning a steering wheel.

"Basically, we started the process of getting him comfortable and getting more functional outside the car at first,'' he said. "And then everything will transfer inside the car.''

Shuford expects the driver transfer to run smoothly. He's worked on getting Stewart to rotate his body and use his left arm for leverage as he positions for a crew member to pull him out.

"He can use his right arm,'' said Shuford, who is constantly telling Stewart not to hold his right arm across his chest like Napoleon Bonaparte. "He's able to resist and protect himself. He's just a little apprehensive using it getting in and out.''

Shuford's goal is to have Stewart, fourth in the points, running at full strength in four to five weeks so he'll be ready for the final 10 races.

His goal is to have the entire organization at full strength for the Chase.

"I told them y'all might as well get your injuries in now,'' Shuford said with a laugh. "When it gets toward the Chase I'm going to be out of the body part business.''