The Elevator: Up and down the Vegas sports scene

Saturday, Nov. 8, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Who’s headed toward the penthouse on the local sports scene — and who’s getting the shaft.

GOING UP

Carroll Shelby: It just so happens the new sponsor of the NASCAR race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway also will be honored for his many contributions to motor sports by LVMS and Speedway Children’s Charities at the Mel Larson Night of Champions at the Bellagio. Shelby was a World War II test pilot who became a chicken farmer after the war. When his chickens died, he turned to auto racing. The rest, like those chickens, is history.

Steroid-tested bulls: I’m not talking about Derrick Rose or Luol Deng. I’m talking about top Professional Bull Riders bucking bulls Copperhead Slinger, Troubadour, Bones, All In and Spitfire, who recently were tested for steroids. All tests of bulls previously examined by the PBR this year (apparently, ’roid rage was an issue in bull riding long before it was in baseball) have come back negative. Per PBR policy, any bulls that test positive are immediately replaced by Jose Canseco.

Barack Obama: Parents of minority children can still put a basketball or a football in their hands and tell them they can be anything they want. As of Tuesday, they can put the United States Constitution in their hands and tell them the same thing.

GOING DOWN

Thursday night flip-flop: When the Mountain West decided the break away from ESPN, one of the biggest reasons it gave was it was tired of playing midweek football games. Like on Thursday nights. This past Thursday night, Utah beat TCU in the Mountain West game of the year. “I think it’s gigantic, and I think it’s great that it’s on a Thursday night,” UNLV coach Mike Sanford said this week before casting a real late vote for John Kerry for president.

Gwynn and bear it: San Diego State presented baseball Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn with a three-year coaching extension this week. Gwynn’s record in six seasons as Aztecs baseball coach is 173-190. Hitting a line drive in the gap is one thing. Teaching 18- and 19-year-olds how to do it apparently is another thing.

This elevator operator ... For stating earlier this season that at the end of it, UNLV’s victory at Arizona State would count for something. The Sun Devils haven’t won a game since. They are a bad team in a bad conference. Iowa State, the Rebels’ other “big” win, hasn’t beaten anybody since then, either. The Cyclones are a bad team in a bad division in a good conference. The Rebels haven’t beaten anybody since playing those two. They are a struggling team in an non-BCS conference that is still playing football games on Thursday nights.