Robby Gordon Mailbag: Little time for biking

I have heard through the grapevine that you enjoy mountain bike riding and have invested some serious cash in your bikes. What kind of bike do you ride and when do you get to ride?

	Robby Gordon

-- Chris, Charlotte, N.C.

When I raced Indy cars, we had almost every other weekend off and I had the chance to race my mountain bike a lot. In Winston Cup, there's not much time to do this. In fact, there's not much time to do anything besides just drive the race car. When I'm not at the track, I'm either making sponsor appearances, giving interviews or having meetings with the guys at Richard Childress Racing for the upcoming races. I still have two different bikes, though. One is more of a "ride-around" bike and the other is more of a downhill bike. I still enjoy riding and also love motorcycles but just wish I had more time to take advantage of them.

What are some of the things you do to keep yourself occupied during a rain delay before or during a race?

-- Andrea Hunter, Orangeville, Ontario, Canada

Anything that keeps us from being bored. Actually, if it looks like it will clear up and we can go racing within an hour and a half or so, I usually hang out in the pits with the guys and talk about how the car was doing before the rain delay. Then, if it keeps raining, we go back to the Cingular hauler and watch TV or just relax. Finally, if the rain delay goes for hours, I'll go out to my motor home and probably get a bite to eat and take a nap.

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At our local track the drivers have to pay to race. Do NASCAR drivers or teams have to pay to race at the Winston Cup level?

-- Robbie Cross, Cordele, Ga.

The NASCAR Winston Cup owners have to pay each time they enter their car in a race. For instance, Richard Childress pays an entry fee for each race in which he enters the No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet. But the drivers don't pay directly.

How often do you go to the shop at Richard Childress Racing? I know how important it is for a driver to let the guys at the shop know what they do is appreciated.

-- Robert Isaacs, Lowgap, N.C.

I try to make it up to Richard Childress Racing at least once a week. It's important to me and the Cingular guys that I get up there and spend some time with them. We look at the cars they're working on and I answer any questions they might have and vice-versa. Sometimes it's nice to just have some downtime with the guys.

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How are the pit road speeds determined at the different tracks?

-- Nonaliles, Chico, Calif.

Pit road speeds are determined based upon the size of the track and how fast we go at that track. For instance, pit road speed at Daytona is higher than at Bristol.

Robby Gordon drives the No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. Before arriving in NASCAR's top division, Gordon enjoyed success in the CART Series and off-road racing.

Throughout the 2003 Winston Cup season, Gordon will answer questions from SI.com users in a weekly Mailbag.