Scott Wimmer doesn't like snakes, dead or alive. Credit: Autostock

10 Questions: Scott Wimmer

Wisconsinite Scott Wimmer's NASCAR career is in a temporary flux.

The five-time Busch Series winner this offseason is contemplating where he'll be after he was released as the driver of Bill Davis Racing's No. 22 Dodge.

During a break in preparation for the Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Wimmer sat down to answer 10 questions not necessarily related to his racing career.

	SCOTT WIMMER •   Driver Page •   2005 Statistics •   Superstore: Wimmer's gear

1. What's your dream vehicle that you don't already own?

Scott Wimmer: Probably my dream vehicle would be an International Scout. My grandfather always had 'em, and I can remember when I was real young always riding in his International Scouts.

So that would probably be my dream vehicle, right now.

Q: I'm not going to say they're antiques, but getting one of those would probably be something of a restoration job, as well. Is that something you're into?

Scott Wimmer: No , not really. I like working on vehicles, but I don't know. It's just a real neat truck to have, and I think it would be fun to have to go hunting and fishing -- and probably tinkering around with, because I'm sure you'd have to do a lot of that with it, too.

2. If time on the road weren't an issue, what would be your ideal pet?

Scott Wimmer: My ideal pet would probably be the one that I already have that I don't get to take on the road with me -- my dog, Riley.

I've actually had him for a long time -- I think he's about 11 years old, now. And because we're on the road so much and traveling so much he doesn't get to go with us.

But my yellow Lab, Riley -- that's my ideal pet.

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3. What's your biggest pet peeve while driving on the road?

Scott Wimmer: Driving on the road, my pet peeve is probably when somebody is going to merge onto the highway into traffic -- but instead of just speeding up or slowing down -- they just stop and don't merge.

I see it happen a lot, and it's probably the thing that drives me the most crazy.

Q: As a race car driver, you're a big fan of maintaining momentum, right?

Scott Wimmer: Yeah, you never want to break it, and they definitely break your momentum when they stop.

4. You've had a long career racing a number of different divisions, so what's your worst hotel experience?

Scott Wimmer: Oh, my worst hotel experience probably has to be when we were down in Florida, some place towards Lakeland, and I think there was probably eight of us staying in the hotel room.

It was just a terrible hotel room, where the lights didn't work, and I don't think the hot water worked. And eight guys in a hotel room for a couple days wasn't exactly the greatest hotel experience ever.

Hotels haven't been kind to Scott Wimmer, but he just laughs it off. Credit: Autostock

Then, I had one a few years ago up in Michigan. It was actually when all the power went out on the Eastern side of the United States.

We went to the hotel and we went to our room, and there was no air conditioning and it was hot. Me and my wife, Jody, were sleeping on top of the covers because it was just way hot.

In the middle of the night she wakes up screaming and there was somebody at the end of our bed .

It ended up being one of the guys on the team, so I woke up, looked at him and asked him what he was doing in there -- and then went back to sleep.

But that was probably one of the worst nights that we've had.

Q: What WAS he doing there?

Scott Wimmer: I think they gave him the key to our room. I think he went down to the front desk and asked for a room key -- he asked for our room and they gave it to him.

So it was funny because I just popped up and asked him what he was doing, then went right back to bed, and my wife was still concerned about why he was standing there.

Q: It's funny you mention that, because I remember getting charged the special event rate by the hotel -- about four times what it normally was -- even though they gave me candles when I checked in and I had no power, telephone service or hot water. Did they do the same to you?

Scott Wimmer: I never saw the hotel bill, but we probably did.

It was bad, but I think we went down to the (county) fair because they had generators, and that was the only place that had any power, so we went down to the fair and ate dinner there and walked around and had some fun.

Scott Wimmer says merge or get out of the way. Credit: Autostock

5. What's your favorite food?

Scott Wimmer: Being on the road, I eat a lot of Mexican food. It seems like there's always a ton of Mexican restaurants you can go to, so I'd have to say Mexican is probably my all-time favorite.

Q: Do you have a favorite Mexican chain or do you seek out those off-the-beaten-path local joints?

Scott Wimmer: No -- I'm all over the local joints. I like chains, too, but I'm really into the local joints where you probably have a good chance at getting sick at one of those because the chain ones are usually pretty good.

But I always try to find the local ones.

Q: But until you do get sick, it's darn good eating, right?

Scott Wimmer: Yeah, it's great. Down in Florida they've got some great ones and everywhere I've been. I just love Mexican food and I love those off-the beaten-path ones.

6. If you had to choose, would it be being honest or being nice?

Scott Wimmer: I'd have to say honest. Honesty, I think, is probably the biggest trait that one could have. Being nice is fine, but honesty is definitely at the top in my book.

7. What's your fondest childhood memory?

Scott Wimmer: My favorite childhood memory would probably have to be spending time with my father. He was in the construction industry for many years, and I'd remember going to work with him in the morning.

We'd leave real early, and I would sleep in the semi until 9 o'clock or whenever I'd wake up -- and I'd get up and go run a front-end loader or the backhoe or just play in the dirt.

I've got a lot of memories of that, and that was a lot of fun.

Q: When did it segue over from wanting to be a heavy equipment operator to being a racecar driver?

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Scott Wimmer: Pretty early. I'd say right when I got out of high school when I went to work for my father, I realized how much hard work it was.

You couldn't just stop and go home -- you had to put in the whole day. You know, we were doing projects that we had to get done, and the winter was coming so we were working long hours.

It wasn't too long after high school that I figured that working construction was a lot of hard work.

8. What would your dream date be? Where and with whom?

Scott Wimmer: My dream date? I would have to say my dream date would have to be on an island or on a beach -- somewhere like that.

We always like going to the beach, and we went on our honeymoon down to Nieves and that was unbelievable. That would probably be one of my top picks -- a place like Nieves or Jamaica or someplace like that.

Politically correct, it would have to be with my wife. I've always had a crush on Sarah Michelle Gellar, from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," but it would probably have to be with my wife.

9. Racing and pranks seem to go hand in hand, so what's your worst prank, either perpetrated by you or done to you?

Scott Wimmer: The worst prank I've had played on me?

Q: You could almost say it was the one your teammate did to you at that hotel in Michigan?

Scott Wimmer: Well, he did that on accident, so the worst prank I ever had played on me was when they put a snake in my locker in the trailer.

I was getting ready for practice or whatever, and I opened my locker up, and I never saw it until I went back in to grab my shoes and I had my head down.

And then I saw it -- and fortunately it wasn't a live one, though I wouldn't have put it past my guys to do that. But they had a rubber snake in there, and it scared me so bad.

That's probably the worst prank I've ever had done to me.

Q: You didn't end up straightening up too quick and getting a welt on your head from bangin' it, did you?

Scott Wimmer: No -- I just jumped way back and whooped. And everybody started laughing and I caught on. But it was a fun prank, and it went all the way around the trailer to almost everybody, and we had a lot of fun with it.

10. Finally, what would you consider your "Welcome to NASCAR" moment?

Scott Wimmer: I ran the Atlanta race in 2000. We came down to run the ARCA show, and everything got rained out there, and we didn't get to qualify.

So we came over and ran the Cup race and made the Cup show -- and in the race, by pit stops and everything, we ended up leading the race, and I had the late Dale Earnhardt in my mirror.

That was probably my welcome to NASCAR moment, because I remember being so nervous, because I didn't want to spin out in front of the field and especially with Dale EarnhardtSr. behind me -- so that was probably the moment I remember the most.

Q: Making your Cup debut just like that, in an event you didn't even plan to run -- did it make you think that maybe this whole Cup thing was easier than you ever thought it was?

Scott Wimmer: Yeah, you know I had always got into series -- I got into the Hooters Pro Cup and won in there right away, I got into ASA and won there right away.

It took a little longer in Busch -- but then I get to Cup and I go to my first race and I make the race, which was real hard to do; and then I was leading the race with Dale Earnhardt Sr. behind me.

So yeah, it definitely was a shock, and I'm finding out it's not that easy any more.