Latest news with #ScottGraves
Los Angeles Times
6 days ago
- Climate
- Los Angeles Times
O.C. Fire Watch volunteers are at the ready as the season for ‘devil winds' approaches
To spark more interest from the public as high fire season approaches, bringing with it the promise of Santa Ana or 'devil winds' — and in light of recent devastating California wildfires — officials and volunteers with the Orange County Fire Watch program conducted a mock deployment for the media Wednesday morning at Pacific Ridge Trailhead in Newport Beach. 'We want to get information out before the real windy season and raise awareness ahead of the wildfire season when conditions are really dry,' said Scott Graves, communications manager for the Irvine Ranch Conservancy. 'The demonstration of what a typical Orange County fire would look like is part of the reason for holding the event.' The Fire Watch program is administered by the conservancy along with its partners, OC Parks, the cities of of Irvine and Newport Beach, and the Orange County Fire Authority. The IRC and OCFA work together to facilitate the volunteer program, which currently boasts more than 300 trained volunteers in 36 locations. Their mission is to reduce catastrophic wildfires through education, early reporting and deterrence. The volunteers and staff are deployed to areas that are prone to wildfires and monitor for potential danger such as dense brush growth and trailheads. 'They are activated during red flag warnings and Santa Ana winds,' said Renalynn Funtanilla, Fire Watch program coordinator. 'The truth is, this is a community issue and requires a community response,' Graves said. He added that providing visual and early detection assistance such as reporting potential arson activity goes beyond the Fire Authority and the Fire Watch program. 'It's on all of us to try to prevent wildfire ignitions, especially during high wind events,' he said. Four of the program's volunteers participated Wednesday in the mock deployment question- and-answer event. Yang Fei, a seven-year volunteer, said he keeps his eyes out for fire ignition and reports it 'to protect the nature.' Retiree Phil Sallaway has been a volunteer for two and half years. He explained he mostly works at the operations center where he helps monitor the ham radios. 'I've also been stationed at Santiago Canyon Road, a Fire Watch location where we educate the public about red flag days,'said Sallaway. 'We also observe and report fires and trespassers.' Mary Handfield, a frequent park visitor, received information about the Fire Watch volunteer program as a result of subscribing to the O.C. Parks mailing list. 'I signed up for the four-hour training class and joined the volunteer program six months ago,' Handfield said. 'The only deployment I've been on was on the Fourth of July at Carbon Canyon in Brea.' Her assignment was to watch for fires and to log in what she witnessed, for example, someone going off a trail or suspicious activity. 'I'm looking forward to the first wind event with Santa Anas coming up,' said Handfield. 'I can use what I've learned and hopefully prevent or catch a fire early.'
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Keselowski compares NASCAR rulebook to IRS tax code
FILE - Chris Buescher drives during practice for the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Terry Renna, File) LEBANON, Tenn. (AP) — Brad Keselowski said RFK Racing has made some small changes and talked about the 'complexities' and team burdens under the NASCAR rulebook after an appeal reduced a penalty given to driver Chris Buescher and his team at Kansas Speedway. Keselowski compared the NASCAR rulebook a bit to the IRS tax code during practice and qualifying Saturday at Nashville Superspeedway for Sunday night's Cracker Barrel 400. Advertisement 'You read this paper and then you got to reference this paper to reference this paper to reference this paper, and when your head's down and digging and you're running 38 weeks a year, oversights are going to happen,' Keselowski said. The co-owner of RFK Racing said that's not an excuse. Keselowski said the team changed some roles and responsibilities this week to help the team be "better prepared and more mindful of what it takes to to be in compliance." NASCAR penalized Buescher and his team May 15 for illegal modifications to the bumper of his No. 17 Ford at Kansas. The team was docked 60 driver points, 60 owner points, five driver playoff points and five owner playoff points for the level one violation. It also fined the team $75,000 and suspended crew chief Scott Graves from the next two races: the All-Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600. Those penalties came three days after Buescher finished eighth at Kansas and dropped him from 12th to 24th in the Cup Series point standings. Advertisement RFK Racing appealed and had a partial win Wednesday with the appeals panel ruling the team violated the rule on the front bumper cover but not the exhaust cover panel. Buescher got back 30 points, moving him to 16th in the Cup Series points standing. That's a slot below the playoff cutline and six points behind RFK Racing teammate Ryan Preece. ___ AP auto racing:
Associated Press
31-05-2025
- Automotive
- Associated Press
Keselowski compares NASCAR rulebook to IRS tax code
LEBANON, Tenn. (AP) — Brad Keselowski said RFK Racing has made some small changes and talked about the 'complexities' and team burdens under the NASCAR rulebook after an appeal reduced a penalty given to driver Chris Buescher and his team at Kansas Speedway. Keselowski compared the NASCAR rulebook a bit to the IRS tax code during practice and qualifying Saturday at Nashville Superspeedway for Sunday night's Cracker Barrel 400. 'You read this paper and then you got to reference this paper to reference this paper to reference this paper, and when your head's down and digging and you're running 38 weeks a year, oversights are going to happen,' Keselowski said. The co-owner of RFK Racing said that's not an excuse. Keselowski said the team changed some roles and responsibilities this week to help the team be 'better prepared and more mindful of what it takes to to be in compliance.' NASCAR penalized Buescher and his team May 15 for illegal modifications to the bumper of his No. 17 Ford at Kansas. The team was docked 60 driver points, 60 owner points, five driver playoff points and five owner playoff points for the level one violation. It also fined the team $75,000 and suspended crew chief Scott Graves from the next two races: the All-Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600. Those penalties came three days after Buescher finished eighth at Kansas and dropped him from 12th to 24th in the Cup Series point standings. RFK Racing appealed and had a partial win Wednesday with the appeals panel ruling the team violated the rule on the front bumper cover but not the exhaust cover panel. Buescher got back 30 points, moving him to 16th in the Cup Series points standing. That's a slot below the playoff cutline and six points behind RFK Racing teammate Ryan Preece. ___ AP auto racing:
Newsweek
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Newsweek
RFK Racing Reveals Penalty Appeal Decision After Severe Buescher Punishment
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. RFK Racing has revealed that it will appeal the penalties levied against Chris Buescher and the No. 17 Ford team ahead of the race weekend in North Wilkesboro. The 32-year-old driver was docked 60 championship points and 5 playoff points for a front bumper violation in Kansas. On top of this, the No. 17 Ford team also lost 60 championship points, five playoff points, and were fined $75,000. Bueschers's crew chief Scott Graves was also handed a two-race suspension. The team has now confirmed that it will appeal the penalties. It revealed it in a statement: "After a thorough review of the penalties issued to the No. 17 Ford Mustang, RFK Racing has decided to appeal NASCAR's decision. Chris Buescher, driver of the #17 Kroger/Kleenex Ford, wiats backstage during pre-race ceremonies prior to the NASCAR Cup Series AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway on May 11, 2025 in Kansas City, Kansas. Chris Buescher, driver of the #17 Kroger/Kleenex Ford, wiats backstage during pre-race ceremonies prior to the NASCAR Cup Series AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway on May 11, 2025 in Kansas City, Kansas."We respect NASCAR's commitment to fair competition and appreciate the opportunity to engage in the appeals process." NASCAR confirmed that the time of the penalties, as previously reported by Newsweek Sports: "During inspection this week at the R&D Center in Concord, North Carolina, series officials discovered that the No. 17 Ford was in violation of Sections 14.1.C (overall assembled vehicle rules) and 14.5.4.G (front bumper cover) of the NASCAR Rule Book. The team went over the maximum reinforcement allowed for its front bumper covers. "As a result, the team and driver Chris Buescher were each assessed with the loss of 60 championship points and five playoff points, and the team was fined $75,000. Additionally, crew chief Scott Graves has been suspended for the next two races through Charlotte." Buescher stated to the media after receiving the penalty, ahead of the All-Star Race weekend at North Wilkesboro Speedway: "Yeah, it's already behind me right now. "You know, we're here at the race track, we've been prepping for this race for a really long time already. Nothing's changing on our weekend. For us, we'll deal with that during the work week, but it's race weekend now. "So yeah, with the speed we've had this year and what we've been able to do at a lot of different styles of race tracks, it's the same opportunity we felt like we had before Thursday. So yeah, I'm ready to go for this one." He added: "You've got to rough people up for a million dollars, I guarantee it, and that's the way it should be. "It's supposed to be good, hard racing here. We've had some great racing through the years here, well before we came back, and we're trying to be a part of more coming back to this historic raceway here."
San Francisco Chronicle
15-05-2025
- Automotive
- San Francisco Chronicle
NASCAR hammers Ford driver Chris Buescher and his team for illegal modifications at Kansas
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR penalized driver Chris Buescher and his Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing team for illegal modifications to the bumper of his No. 17 Ford at Kansas Speedway. The sanctioning body docked the team 60 driver points, 60 owner points, five driver playoff points and five owner playoff points for the level one violation. It also fined the team $75,000 and suspended crew chief Scott Graves from the next two races: the All-Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600. The hefty penalties came three days after Buescher finished eighth at Kansas and dropped him from 12th in the Cup Series point standings to 24th, well out of playoff contention. The violations were discovered when the car was inspected at the NASCAR R&D Center after the race. Cup Series managing director Brad Moran said on the 'Hauler Talk' podcast that the car exceeded the maximum 2 inches of reinforcement behind the front bumper foam. There was no immediate word on whether RFK Racing would appeal the penalty.
