He was certainly busy during his days as a driver in the Sprint Cup (formerly Winston and Nextel Cup) series.

But Newburgh native Ricky Craven is equally busy these days.

In addition to his auto racing column on Yahoo.com and his radio spots on Sirius Satellite radio, Craven flies to the ESPN studios in Bristol, Conn., twice a month to film a roundtable discussion for “NASCAR Now.”

The “NASCAR Now” show is hosted by Allen Bestwick and usually involves three other personalities from the NASCAR world such as Cup owner Ray Evernham.

In addition, Craven has launched a public-speaking career.

“I’m enjoying [NASCAR Now]. I’m enjoying everything I’m doing right now,” said the North Carolina-based Craven.

He recently toured Afghanistan to visit with the troops along with former two-time Busch series points champion and Sprint Cup driver Randy Lajoie, former Busch and Cup racer Jeff Fuller and drag racing star Hillary Will.

It is something he has wanted to do for a long time and he said it was an unforgettable experience.

“I was overwhelmed by their attitudes. They were so positive. They were going to be there for 15 months and their feeling was they had an objective and they wanted to meet their objective. Their attitudes were fabulous,” said Craven noting that there is no shortage of NASCAR fans among the troops.

He also said he won’t take any of the freedoms or luxuries we have in this country for granted based on what he experienced in Afghanistan.

The trip was busy and they traveled in military vehicles, including planes. They slept and ate with the troops.

He said the teamwork required in the armed forces is similar to the teamwork required on a race team.

The plane trips reminded him of his racing days.

“The G-forces [produced by the military aircraft] were similar to [racing at] Bristol,” said Craven, who has 278 Sprint Cup races to his credit with two wins, 17 top-five finishes and 41 top-10s.

He hasn’t officially retired from racing but his last full-time ride was for Jack Roush Racing in the Craftsman Truck series in 2005 when he became the 15th driver in NASCAR history to win in the Cup, Busch and Truck series.

He won four times in the Busch series and won a truck race in Martinsville, where he also won one of his two Cup races.

His other Cup win came at Darlington.

He was also chosen Rookie of the Year in the Busch North, Busch and Sprint Cup series.

PASS races at Wiscasset Sunday

The Pro All-Stars Series Super Late Models North race, the Steel’s Real Rods and Custom 125, at Wiscasset Raceway last Sunday was postponed due to wet weather.

The entire race card has been rescheduled for Sunday. In addition to the 125, there will also be features in the PASS Modified and Sportsman classes.

And there will be a 50-lap Street Stocks National qualifier.

lmahoney@bangordailynews.net

990-8231