PICKING UP SPEED
Along the way, Brust got to meet Harvick, along with his spotter. "It's just crazy how Twitter works,''
Brust said, "that I was able to meet all these people.''
There may even be a summer mar- keting internship with NASCAR in the works for Brust thanks to a connection that his brother-in-law has with the Roush Fenway Racing team. "I never imagined it would open so
many doors,'' Brust said of his Twitter family.
Reaction has been varied at home: Hawthorn Woods, Ill. "My mom thinks it's crazy,'' Brust said. "She doesn't know what's hap- pened to me.'' Nonetheless, Barb and John Brust
agreed to take part in their son's You- Tube video depicting a Harvick pit stop. Brust's title? "Tire changer and director." The genesis for the video? "I was just bored on the Fourth of
July,'' he said. "We were eating dinner, and we were talking about how I had become this big nut about NASCAR.'' Brust is prouder of the video from Sunday's Red-White Scrimmage. He had 22 points. His parents were pres- ent at the Kohl Center, and some NAS- CAR friends texted their support. "It always helps your confidence to
have a pretty good game,'' said Brust, a 6-2 sophomore. "But in essence it was just a scrimmage. It didn't count in the win-loss column. But it definitely helps.''
Gard liked everything that he saw
out of Brust — confirming what he al- ready knew.
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» Brickyard Bonding Ben Brust has attended several NASCAR races this season, most notably the Brickyard 400 at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In addition to meeting favorite driver Kevin Harvick on pit road (below), Brust grabbed a seat atop the No. 29 car's pit box and had the chance to meet several of those involved in the sport he has developed relationships with over Twitter.
