Blaney will be back in 2009

Dave Blaney will be driving a race car next year.

Where he races and what circuit he's involved with are questions he can't answer at this time.

Blaney, who drove the Caterpillar No. 22 car of Bill Davis Racing on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series last season, is facing the economic crunch. The flow of money that once poured into the world's most popular racing circuit has slowed to the point that NASCAR has placed a one-year moratorium on testing at tracks where events are staged to save costs.

Caterpillar recently ended its association with BDR. Blaney, a graduate of Badger High School, is hoping to land another Cup ride but is realistic in knowing he might have to look elsewhere.

"It's up in the air at the moment," he said. "There aren't many Cup rides at all. The 22 team is shut down. Other teams are in the same ball park. Some are trying to round up enough money to race. It's pretty tough."

The most logical landing point for Blaney is NASCAR's Truck Series. He's raced trucks twice and is intrigued by the idea of switching to that style of racing.

"It's good racing," he said. "If you can land with a competitive team with a chance to win races and run for the championship, heck yeah, it would be very interesting."

Blaney has reached a crossroads in a career that dates back to 1981 when he began racing sprint cars at Sharon Speedway, which he now co-owns. In a sport that's geared toward a youth movement, Blaney is considered old at age 46.

Most drivers who compete on the NASCAR Cup Series rarely remain competitive at that level well into their 40s. Blaney knows that and is willing to accept what the future holds.

"If you're my age and you're wanting to run Cup , you better have won a lot of races, and I haven't," he said. "Mark Martin is older than I am, but he's been very successful and still is. It's not an issue for him. But it is somewhat (for me)."

Don't think that Blaney will fade away from the racing scene. He's active in the budding career of his son Ryan, who's beginning to get noticed at race tracks at the age of 14. Ryan moved up a level last season and began driving ASA pavement late models. Most of the drivers he competed with are older and more experienced than him.

Dave wasn't looking for checkered flags for Ryan, but he was pleased that Ryan was able to run in the top 10 at times. It was a big step from driving quarter midgets and Bandoleros.

"I don't know what will happen with Ryan," Dave said. "He might continue to race and continue to climb the ladder, or he may not. You never know with youngsters which way they're going to go. Right now he has the desire and the talent to do it."

The further Ryan moves up the ranks with success, the more Dave will ease out of the scene. The word "retirement" is dirty to all athletes because it happens at a young age, but Dave will know when the time arrives to move on.

"You have to quit sometimes and go do something else," he said. "If I'm not racing at the Cup level, then maybe trucks or short tracks or sprint cars. Who knows. I've raced a lot of different things and wouldn't rule anything out at this point.

"The other side of it is that my boy is starting to race a lot. If it comes down to that, I'd rather let him get going than me spending as much time doing it."

The 2008 Sprint Cup season had a few ups but more downs for Dave. He finished 30th in points with 2,851 and had two top-10 finishes.

"I really thought before the year started that we had gained ground and really figured it out," he said. "It was a disappointment. We didn't run nearly as well as we thought we would. We started off badly the first two months. We were really bad as far as being competitive with the speed of the car. We had a few good runs in the middle of the season and then it was hit and miss. It wasn't what we had hoped. It's getting tougher to have a one-car team that can compete with all the big teams."

Maybe a ride in a truck will help matters.

mmclain@tribtoday.com.