The cost of racing in every NASCAR series is constantly increasing. With top NASCAR Nextel Cup Series teams asking for - and in many cases receiving - upwards of $20 million from a sponsor for just one year, the price of playing poker is out of reach for many companies and individuals wishing to get exposure or to compete as an owner.

For some owners, even ones that can demand and receive the largest of the sponsorships, they find that there is a need for more funding to stay competitive. Richard Childress Racing, winner of six NNCS championships with the late Dale Earnhardt and last year's NASCAR Busch Series championship with Kevin Harvick, recently sold a significant portion of the team to a group of investors. Roush Racing, with 13 teams spread throughout the NASCAR scene, is in talks with Fenway Sports Group's John Henry. Fenway Sports is the owner of, among other entities, the Boston Red Sox. Ray Evernham also openly discussed the possibility of selling off a significant stake in his three-car operation to enhance the team's competitiveness.

While the financial stakes are not quite as high in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, there are few owners that can do it, or are willing to do it, out of their back pocket. Top sponsorships are a fraction of a NNCS program, with many teams able to function competitively on $2.5 to $3 million a season. But that doesn't mean that owners aren't looking down every avenue for revenue to stay competitive.

Billy Ballew, owner of Billy Ballew Motorsports, has recently announced his intentions to seek investors. Ballew's team has been one of the more successful in recent seasons, winning five races over the past three years.

"It's the same concept that Roush and Evernham are talking about," Ballew said. "It's just on a smaller level. Roush is talking about a $50 million investment. There's not many people out there that can come to the table with that kind of money, but plenty of people who would like to be involved in NASCAR. For $3 to $4 million, we can give someone that opportunity to be the co-owner of a competitive NASCAR team. There's many more people out there with $3 million to spend on a racing team that people with $50 million to spend."

Ballew said that whoever is willing to invest in Billy Ballew Motorsports isn't going to be writing a check and receiving nothing in return.

"Depending on what the investment is, I am willing to sell up to 49 percent of the team," he said. "You're not just writing me a check and getting nothing in return. There are real assets involved."

The deal, Ballew insists, is perfect for someone who wants to be an owner and wants to be competitive right away.

"I've been in this for over ten years now," Ballew said. "It took us a long time to get to the point where we were competitive and ready to win races. Sure, anyone can come in and be an owner. You can buy trucks and engines just like anyone else. But what you won't have are the people in place it takes to do it right. We have all of that right now. So rather than spending five years trying to build a team up from scratch someone can partner with us and have a chance to win right away.

"And whoever invests with us will be a team owner without necessarily having to be involved with it on a day-in, day-out basis. I'll still be here like I always have been keeping an eye on everything and making sure we're doing everything we can to win races."

*Interested parties may contact Billy Ballew Motorsports at (770) 592-7230 or via e-mail at jwballew@aol.com.