NASCAR fans are known for their passion and dedication.

This past weekend, a team sponsor put that idea to the test - and a brave few decided not only to accept the challenge but also take it to another level.

Jeremiah Weed, sponsors of Sprint Cup driver Matt Kenseth, challenged the most passionate No. 17 supporters to show their true colors -- permanently -- for a good cause.

The malt beverage brand offered fans free tattoos and for each person that got inked, they would make a financial contribution to The Air Force Village, which provides “a safe, secure and dignified place for indigent surviving spouses of retired Air Force personnel.”

"It’s always interesting (to do unique promotions like this)," Kenseth said last week. "I think (Talladega) is a great place to do it. You get a lot of fans at Talladega that are very enthused and colorful and are really into their racing."

He was right.

A total of 17 fans picked from a variety of different options (Matt Kenseth’s signature, a number 17, Jeremiah Weed logos and a Jeremiah Weed Lightning Lemonade can) and got permanently inked.

For their part, Jeremiah Weed, part of the Diageo company, not only kept their financial pledge per person that got tattooed ($100), but they increased it to a total donation of $5,000 to The Air Force Village.

CONCORD, N.C. – I have a confession to make. I am on the Kevin Harvick bandwagon.

I must also admit that I was on it before his win in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600.

Now before you call my journalistic integrity and credentials into question, hear me out. I wasn’t rooting for him to edge out Dale Earnhardt Jr. and win what became NASCAR’s longest race in history Sunday night – as impressive as that finish was, that would be unethical.

But I am openly cheering for him to reach another goal.

Harvick and his No. 29 Richard Childress Racing team have joined forces with sponsor Budweiser to “Grow one. Save a million” – a campaign to help conserve 1 million gallons of water.

The groups are asking those wishing to participate to log on to Facebook.com/Budweiser to take the pledge not to shave until June 5 – World Environment Day.

The average shave uses anywhere from 3-10 gallons of water. By joining forces, they hope to pledge to save 1 million gallons of water.

"Every gallon of water that we save makes a difference to our communities, so when thousands of people get together for one common cause, great things can happen," Chad Pregracke, founder of Living Lands & Waters and the face of the program on Budweiser's Facebook page, said in a press release touting the movement. "By pledging to skip shaving and 'grow one,' guys can literally wear their commitment to conserving our most valuable natural resource."

According to the release, more than 1,200 employees from Budweiser brewer Anheuser-Busch skipped shaving for one week prior to World Environment Day in 2010, helping to save about 42,000 gallons of water.

Along with pushing for guys to “Grow one,” the company will also donate $150,000 to River Network, which helps support organization watershed conservation projects.

Harvick stopped shaving before his victory, and will not shave again until June 6. Members of his crew are taking part. I’ve jumped on board. I hope you can join me on this bandwagon.

Actress Molly Ringwald will serve as the honorary starter for Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series Royal Purple 300 at Auto Club Speedway.

Ringwald will wave the green flag for the start of the race.

The actress currently stars in "The Secret Life of the American Teenager."

She began her acting career at the age of 13 when she starred in “The Tempest” and received a Golden Globe nomination for her role. Ringwald is best known for starring roles in the films “Sixteen Candles,” “The Breakfast Club” and “Pretty in Pink.”

She is also the author of "Getting The Pretty Back: Friendship, Family, and Finding the Perfect Lipstick."

In addition to being an actress and author, Ringwald recently finished recording her first album with her jazz band, which she hopes to release in 2011. 

Jennifer Jo Cobb has already landed another NASCAR Nationwide Series ride, at least for the upcoming race at Aauto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.

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Cobb will drive the No. 41 entry of Rick Ware Racing. She parted ways with her previous team Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway after refusing to start and park the 2nd Chance Motorsports entry owned by Rick Russell.

“I don’t really want to get into the middle of all that happened at Bristol,” owner Rick Ware said. “What I will comment on is that I have known Jennifer for years and she has worked hard to get where she is today. Nothing has been handed to her. She has shown she can race with the best this series can offer and I am glad that we can reach out and help her during this situation.”

Cobb will be a teammate to one of her Nationwide Series rookie of the year competitors, Timmy Hill, for the race.

“Most people would look at having two rookies in the same race as a conflict, but not us. Timmy and Jennifer are fierce competitors both on and off the track,” Ware said.

Tony Stewart appears to have recovered from his initial disappointment about finishing second at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the last NASCAR Sprint Cup Series outing.

Crew chief Darian Grubb, not so much.

Stewart famously stated that “second sucks” after he finished in that position at Las Vegas Motor Speedway despite having, arguably, the strongest car in the race and suffering a setback on pit road. He now says that with time to think about it, he has found the silver lining. After all, he is now the series points leader and is off to one of the hottest starts in his Cup career.

He hasn't raced since Vegas, as that came just before the off week.

“It was pretty hard to appreciate after Las Vegas,” Stewart said of finishing second. “That’s a race we should’ve won. Winning in Sprint Cup is hard enough as it is, and when you have a race like that and you’re not able to close the deal, especially at a track where you haven’t won yet, that’s hard.

"I wasn’t really in any mood to appreciate it right after the race, or even when I was in the media center talking about it. But on the flight home, and then Tuesday at the shop when I saw all the guys and we had our competition meeting, the anger went away and I was able to see what we’ve been able to do so far this year.

“We haven’t won any battles yet, but we’re winning the war, so far, anyway. To be mad about a second-place finish — that’s a good problem to have. Everybody is working really hard. To have a legitimate shot to win each race so far this season is proof of that. No one on our team wanted to see this off weekend. We’ve been so good and so close — we didn’t want a break. But we got one, anyway, and now Bristol is our next opportunity to get that win.”

Grubb, though, offered a different perspective. He is not pleased to have worked through an off weekend with that as his most recent race.

In a team release, he was asked if he had gotten over Vegas.

“Not really,” Grubb said. “It’s bad that we had a week off to sit here and keep thinking about it for a full two weeks instead of just getting back into the swing. That one hurt pretty badly because that’s a track Tony hadn’t won on. We wanted to do everything we could to get that win. I think we had the car to do it. We ended up just costing ourselves that win. That’s why it hurt so bad, we didn’t get outrun, we outdid ourselves.”

The Stewart-Haas Racing team, though, has enjoyed a shot at winning each of the three races this season. And, it does hold that edge in the standings.

Can Stewart’s team find solace in that?

“We try to, but we all still feel that second sucks,” Grubb said. “It’s in everybody’s mind that races where you don’t win that you are the first loser. You never get rid of that mindset because, if you do, then that means you don’t have the passion to keep on doing this.

"We go to win every single week. We want to win practice, we want to sit on the pole, we want to lead every lap and we want to win the race. Anything less than that is not satisfactory. If we give up that attitude, we’re going to be falling behind. I applaud him and pat him on the back for that. In the heat of the moment when you get out of the race car, you’re going to be mad, and I was, too.

“But, when you get back and think about it this week and look at how good we ran and look at how we’re up there tied for the lead in points and all those things, it makes us feel good about what we’re doing and we just need to make sure we don’t fall back any. We’ve got to keep this level of work up and I think it’ll pay off in the end.”

Looking to save a little green next time you fill up?

Better start cheering for Kurt Busch.

If Kurt Busch wins a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points race during the 2011 season, Shell Saver Card holders will receive a savings of 22 cents per gallon. The savings will be applicable when cardholders purchase fuel at Shell the Wednesday following Kurt’s win -- now known as “WINsday.”

The Shell Saver Card is a non-credit payment product exclusive to Shell that acts like a debit card by linking directly to cardholders’ checking accounts and offering savings at the pump.

Considering Busch’s recent performance at Daytona, and his record at Phoenix International Raceway – one win, four top-five and nine top-10 finishes in 16 starts – he could help drive prices at the pump down as early as this weekend.

For more information about the Shell Saver Card and the Shell Family of Cards, visit www.shell.us/cards

Actors Josh Duhamel and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and director Michael Bay, from the upcoming "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," will serve as grand marshals for the running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday.

The cast will deliver the start command for the race, which will be televised on FOX beginning at noon ET.

In addition, the modified NASCAR stock cars featured in the movie will make their first public appearance by leading the 43-car field during the pace laps of the season-opening NASCAR Sprint Cup event.

In 2009, Bay piloted the official pace car at a NASCAR Sprint Cup race to promote the DVD release of “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.”

Kyle Busch Motorsports and Dollar General have extended their sponsorship relationship in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

The company will now sponsor the No. 18 Toyota Tundra for eight races instead of the previously announced five this season. Busch will drive in those events.

The sponsorship includes the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway and the season-ending event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It will also include the races at Phoenix International Raceway (Feb. 25), Nashville Superspeedway (April 22), Kansas Speedway (June 4), Kentucky Speedway (July 7), Bristol Motor Speedway (Aug. 24) and Chicagoland Speedway (Sept. 16).

“I’m extremely excited to be representing Dollar General, their 9,000-plus stores, 88,000 employees and millions of customers once again this season,” said Busch, who has 24 career victories in the series. “I’m confident that driving the No. 18 Dollar General Toyota Tundra in to Victory Lane will in turn drive traffic to Dollar General, making this a win-win partnership.”

Kyle Busch Motorsports and Dollar General have extended their sponsorship relationship in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

The company will now sponsor the No. 18 Toyota Tundra for eight races instead of the previously announced five this season. Busch will drive in those events.

The sponsorship includes the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway and the season-ending event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It will also include the races at Phoenix International Raceway (Feb. 25), Nashville Superspeedway (April 22), Kansas Speedway (June 4), Kentucky Speedway (July 7), Bristol Motor Speedway (Aug. 24) and Chicagoland Speedway (Sept. 16).

“I’m extremely excited to be representing Dollar General, their 9,000-plus stores, 88,000 employees and millions of customers once again this season,” said Busch, who has 24 career victories in the series. “I’m confident that driving the No. 18 Dollar General Toyota Tundra in to Victory Lane will in turn drive traffic to Dollar General, making this a win-win partnership.”