Stout's mom to join pit crew as rear-tire carrier

Mothers are known for the sacrifices they make for their children, but Patricia "Tree" Stout is about to take that concept to the extreme Saturday night at Nashville Superspeedway.

Stout's normal position on the team roster is "Mom and Refreshment Coordinator" but because of an unusual series of circumstances, she'll be in the thick of the action as her son, J.C. Stout, competes in the Craftsman Truck Series Toyota Tundra 200.

With the regular rear tire carrier -- her brother, Joe Szwaczkowski -- recuperating from emergency surgery, the 53-year-old resident of Castile, N.Y., has volunteered to take his place as a member of the over-the-wall gang for J.C.'s No. 91 Chevrolet.

"We're hoping this will work out," Stout said after returning from the grocery store where she was stocking up on supplies for the race weekend. "I'm a little nervous about it. But if I put my mind to it, I can do it."

It's believed to be the first time that a driver's mother has been an active member of the pit crew in any of NASCAR's three major series.

Because each member of the pit crew must have a NASCAR license, the small family-owned team was faced with either hiring someone to help or purchasing another license, neither of which was within their limited budget. Then Stout -- who has a NASCAR license and a personal rooting interest in the team -- suggested that she could act as a fill-in.

"What really went through my mind was, 'Am I crazy?' " said Stout when she first thought seriously about her decision. "But then I thought, 'Well, it sounds really neat, really fun. I know other women have done it.' Of course, I don't know for their sons.

"So I just thought it would be a neat thing to do, to try to do anyway. Hopefully, I won't get too nervous, especially when he's coming in and I've got to run around."

Tree -- a nickname given to her as a teenager when a little girl she was babysitting couldn't pronounce "Patricia" -- said working on the crew will give her something to focus on instead of worrying about what her son's doing on the track.

"I watch the TV because we have a TV on our pit cart, so I watch the little TV that we have," Stout said. "Once in a great while, I'll look out but I have a hard time watching so I think this might help me a little bit get over the nervousness.

"If I know that I have to do this -- carry the tire out -- and am able to get J.C. out there again, I think I'll be OK. I might not be as nervous. I might be when he comes in, because they come in quite fast."

Stout said she's been doing what she can to get a feel for what things will be like Saturday night. One good thing: The race shop is right next to the family home, so it's easy to go grab and tire and haul it around.

"Yes, I've been lifting tires -- trying to lift tires -- and the guys are really kind of cool about it," Stout said. "They're joking around with me about it, saying, 'Oh, you're going to break a nail.' I don't care. It'll be fun."

Stout said she's watched pit stops from her vantage point behind the wall, but getting out and doing it may be a different story.

"I've watched the guys do their pit stops before and stuff like that, and thought, 'Holy cow, that's really fast.' " she said. "The trucks are fast coming in and the guys have got to be pretty fast getting the truck jacked up and the tires on. It's kind of scary." (Continued)