RNO History

Ryan Newman and the Rocketman Clan History

The History of Ryan Newman Online and the Rocketman Clan is a journey of dedicated fans who have stuck together through thick an thin for one common goal, Ryan Newman. To start with Ryan Newman Online would not serve justice nor would it tell the whole story of how this loyal group of followers became the “Ultimate Fans!”

Our journey started way back in 2001, Ryan Newmans pre-rookie year. I personally, was searching all over for a website for the newest driver to the Penske stable. At that time, there was only one. Granted much of the country had not heard much of the South Bend driver unless you followed USAC. A young gentleman from Canada named Eldon had started a website, called RyanNewmanFans.com.

February of 2001 Ryan Newman Fans was about as green as a site could be. The ARCA race at Daytona was vastly approaching and so were the members. RNF.com as we called it in its day, had over 50 members but that number was quite skewed because the site was shared with Jimmie Johnson Fans.com. Thats right, the future rookies of the year was set on the same page.

Ryan got his first introduction to the loyal bunch in March of 2001 when Dave presented him with a sign, boosting the site. “Is this for real?” Ryan asked. “YES IT IS!, Dave told him and the fans at the signing soon caught notice. The fan base soon started to grow more and more after Ryan captured the pole for the Coca Cola 600 in 2001, and the it wasnt long after, that the “Rocketman” was becoming a household name.

After a very successful A.B.C. program in 2001, the Rookie of the Year battle as about to start at Daytona in 2002. RNF.com and JJF.com was now getting heated with many furious debates on who was going to win the ROTY. In March of 2002, NASCAR.com conducted a poll on who would win the ROTY between Ryan and Jimmie. To much of our suprise, Ryan collected only 23% of the vote. The low number was devasting to RNF.com but we all agreed that after we voted numerious times, that we were the 23% and the name 23%er’s became our alias.

To say that Ryans 2002 season started out rough was an understatement. After many DNF’s, the member of the 23%ers decided to do something very different. A Karma package was the thought and little did we know the effects it would have on not only Ryans season but the aftermath of RNF.com.

After Jacob put his first item in the Karma package and mailed it to the next member on the list, Ryan started racking up poles and top 5’s. After nearly 50 items had been added to the package, which traveled to every corner of the USA, Ryan scored his first win at Louden. At about the same time that Ryan was celebrating in Victory Lane, so was the 23%er’s but for another reason as well. Many NASCAR media sites did features on the Karma Package and the members involved. By the time the last lap of 2002 was run, the 23%ers were going crazy with excitement that the NASCAR.com poll turned out to be wrong, as Ryan held up the 2002 ROTY trophy. Was it Karma? We will never know, but we will never doubt Karma again.

In 2003, RNF.com took a wicked twist of fate. Eldon, the webmaster of RNF was overwhelmed because he also worked on Terry Labontes official site. Eldon decieded to shut down RNF with a 24 hour notice. Frantically, Brian started a new site called Ryan Newman Online. Trying to locate our members became tough. “We’ve lost contact with well over 200 members, how will they find us?”

Good news travels fast and within a month, Brian had Ryan Newman Online well over 300 members again. A new site, a new year, a new car, a new dominance and we need a new name. The 23%ers we constantly being asked, What the hell is a 23%er?” After a little poll on RNO a new nickname was chosen and the “Rocketman Clan” was born. 2003 became a year the “Rocketman Clan” will never forget and neither will most of NASCAR. Ryan started the year flipping at Daytona, and the “Clan” were not going to take any chances. Karma II started just 2 weeks later. As the fan base continued to grow so did Ryans performance. A couple of wins and poles and it was on again! By the time May had hit, RNO encountered a major problem. The Karma Package had been lost. This became a very emotional time for the group but the theory was the Karma had been started and Ryan will do the rest. Well Ryan did and by seasons end, he had compiled 8 wins and 11 poles as well as Driver of the Year Award.

RNO, the only website for Ryan Newman hit the media hard in December of 2003, when it broke the story of the signing of Ryan’s new teammate Brendan Gaughan. Nearly 4 weeks before the hint of a 3rd Penske team was announced, RNO expanded with a Brendan Gaughan section. Once again RNO was on the fire, but now for something more. Ryans official site opened in 2004 and the Rocketman Clan was feeling the pressure. “We are the first and best and hopefully we will remain that way! We need to do something more for 2004″ The idea of a traveling banner was derieved. The RNO banner would be passed from member to member to every track and every race. To say the banner took over is an understatement as it was featured again on many NASCAR media sites and eventually made its way to NASCAR SCENE magazine.

Ryan once again raced his way to Victory Lane as RNO hit member number 800. Now with the banner in hand, the Ryan Newman Fan Day was set for Michigan International Speedway. The Rocketman Clan hit fan day with a fury. With over 30 members wearing RNO Rocketman Clan T Shirts we made our presences felt. During a drawing for a Ride with Ryan in a Viper, it was apparant to Ryan, the love we had for him. During the drawing he claimed, “That rowdy group over there is getting restless! They’ve spent ALOT of money and havent won anything!” He was right as the Rocketman Clan spent almost $500 in raffle tickets but to no luck. I guess the Karma only works for Ryan! We were all pleased to see the money go to the start of Ryans Foundation. After spending a weekend together with Ryan and the Banner, the group went home, vowing to repeat our performance. Once the season ended, RNO, remained the leader of information and stats for Ryan which it was in the begining. In December, Ryan was opening packages at the Penske shop when he came across the banner that RNO had sent him as well as a Scrapbook that detailed the banners journey through a NASCAR season

2005 and still going strong as RNO hit 1000 members, but turmoil was brewing. Brian decieded after a very successful 3 years of running RNO to turn the reigns over to Dave. After realigining, the Rocketman Clan is once again, on a mission to set the NASCAR world on its ear, just like it did in 2001. With a brand new 2005 banner hitting the tracks and our new Mascot “Dewey the Alltel Crew Gnome”, things are looking better than ever. The motto on the 2005 banner came right from the Alltel Crew itself. “Never Surrender” when times get tough seemed to hit home with the Rocketman Clan with the current situation.

RNO has made a name for itself as a family and have adopted many members to the Clan. Trent Cherry and Bosco from the Alltel Nation hold a very special place in our hearts and are “Honorary Members of the Rocketman Clan” As the seasons come and go, the core 23%er’s remain daily contributors to the site and continue to bring new ideas to the table.

RNF-RNO was the first and only Ryan Newman Fan Site for nearly 5 years, and vows to be here long after the others have closed. You see, fans come and go but the Rocketman Clan is a mirror of its driver: Strong, Determined, and always on top!

DEC 2007 -
RNO and the blog of “Ryan Newman Fan” joined forces. Dave from RNO and Mike from “Ryan Newman Fan” decided to make Ryan Newman Fan’s blog page the home page to RNO’s forums. That way we could hopefully get a lot of Newman fans in one place.