Random Thoughts on a Week Off!

Well with a much deserved break NASCAR drivers get a break this weekend as the gear up for the final home stretch to battle for the 10 spots in the NEXTEL CUP Chase for the Championship!!!

My prayers and well wishes go out to 1973 Winston Cup Champion Benny Parsons, affectionately known as BP in NASCAR circles. Benny was diagnosed with lung cancer several weeks back and began chemo this past week. Luckily it's a very small tumor and only in his left lung. It's very beatable and I pray that Benny wins this war. My grandmother died of lung cancer from sitting in the same room with my grandfather for years breathing his second hand smoke. It's a strange dicotomy that Winston(Reynolds American Tobacco) supplied sponsorship for all those years to NASCAR and now one of its own is suffering from the product that made NASCAR so rich and gave it an identity. I'm just as guilty as the next guy. I smoked for about eight years. And I've spent the past fifteen years playing music in bars and clubs around the southeast. And let me tell you second hand smoke causes cancer and it causes lung pain. About a year ago I started having trouble breathing. I did all the tests, Ct scans and everything else and they were clear. Since then I've backed off from playing bars and clubs and mostly do outdoor festivals, fairs and private gigs with my band(the Dallas Reese Band, website is www.dallasreese.com)
I understand the toll tobacco takes on a body. I pray for smokers daily and I pray that I can beat back the effects of tobacco use on my body. I think it was a step forward for NASCAR to go to a new sponsor simply because the evidence of the damage tobacco does is overwelming compared to the evidence in the 60's and early 70's when Benny was making his name as a young driver.
No offense to smokers. I believe in people's rights to do what they want but as for me I choose to not smoke and don't wanna be around secondhand smoke either, just like Benny. Here's to ya BP keep on keepin' on and we'll keep watching and listening to your great analysis and commentary on the most awesome of sports, NASCAR racing!!!!

Is Tony the NEW Dale Sr.?

Well there's a lot of shouting going on in the world of NASCAR today. Poor Carl Edwards got caught up in the wrath of Tony the Tiger Stewart. On the surface the problem seems to stem from Clint Bowyer's inexperience. Tony Stewart is right when he says younger drivers have a lot to learn in the sport of NASCAR. Stewart didn't feel Bowyer was allowing enough give and take and to put it truthfully he probably wasn't. A lot of the younger guys don't know how to get up front and stay up there yet(Denny Hamlin excluded for this week because he drove a masterful race yesterday)
And Bowyer pushed Stewart too far. If Dale Sr. would have been here he would have done the same thing Stewart did. Maybe without the middle finger part that Tony displayed to Carl Edwards. Poor Carl Edwards was involved in a classic case of wrong place, wrong time. And Edwards had a right to be mad until he spun Tony out on Pit Road. Not smart. Spin him on the track and not where pit crew guys can get hurt or killed on the pit road. NASCAR doled out the proper penalities and now it's back to racing. Unfortunately, with that wreck Edwards' chances of backflipping his way into the NEXTEL Cup Chase for The Championship faded away with the scrap metal flying on the track.
Ah, Silly Season!!! I love it. And hats off to Denny Hamlin. What a weekend at Pocono!!!!
Tony is the new Dale Sr. NASCAR needs a bad guy!!! Jeff Gordon's going to be a movie star in a couple years so Tony needs to fulfill that bad guy role!!!
Give 'um you know what Home Depot Man!!!

Buschwhacked!!!

Kyle Busch came on strong Sunday at New Hampshire. Personally I think Carl Edwards would have won if there had been two more laps of racing. It was a rather bizarre finish with the eight extra laps because of the Clint Bowyer/Brian Vickers and Michael Waltrip crashes. Denny Hamlin didn't have the speed or the gas that Edwards had and that's why he wound up sixth.
What a day for Roush. Greg Biffle, Mark Martin and Carl Edwards all in the top five. That is consistency!!
And what a resurgence for Busch. He was 12th in driver points just three weeks ago. Now he's moved up to fourth. Go figure. Who woulda thought that Tony Stewart would be 11th in points at this point in the season. Tony's early wreck hurt him bad.
And how about that Jeff Burton. His consistency is really paying off for him in points. He's currently third and barring any major misfortune should be right there in the thick of the NEXTEL CUP Chase for The Championship in a month.
Kevin Harvick continues to roll well and make Richard Childress proud.
Jeff Gordon and Greg Biffle are battling for the final spot in the CHASE with seven races to go before the cutoff. They both need excellent runs at this weekend's upcoming Pocono race.
And wow what a bad break for Dale Jr. The blown engine at New Hampshire dropped him to seventh in points and he's gonna have to run like a champ these next seven races.
This is really SILLY SEASON. Things are getting whacky in NASCAR land.
I think I'm liking this points system more now.

The Dog Days are almost here!!!

I don't know about you but I'm sweating. The last two or three days have been smoking here in the Triangle region of North Carolina. Makes me wonder what it feels like in a race car on days like today. The temperatures certainly are hot enough to make you lose a bunch of weight. Makes me glad I can watch the races on FOX 50 in the comfort of room temperature.
But this weekend the drivers get a break from the heat. At least they should as they travel to New Hampshire. I've been to the track there and this time of year is gorgeous there. Last time I was there(about three years ago) the temps were very nice the whole week. I drove up the Maine coast from New Hampshire and passed the shop of Ricky Craven. I never knew he was from up that way until I went by his shop up there. The northeast is not generally a haven for stock cars but it is beautiful and the fans are catching on quite nicely up there. The one thing that always saddens me about this weekend's race though is the memory of Adam Petty being killed at New Hampshire. He was merely making a practice run when he was killed but that memory sticks in my mind about this track and the fact that racing is a dangerous sport. No matter what safety adjustments NASCAR makes the sport will always be risky. But boy is it so much safer now than it was even five years ago when Dale Earnhardt was killed at Daytona. The Hans device is certainly a Godsend!!!! And I'm a huge fan of the safer barriers and foam in the walls. Helps quite a bit.
Picks and Pans
As much as I don't wanna pick Jeff Gordon, I think his chances this weekend are quite good. His team really seems to be coming around. I also think Greg Biffle could be dangerous at this track. And Tony Stewart will qualify well and I think he could be in the top three. Look for Ryan Newman to finally get it together this weekend. He could be a winner. That's my view. What do you think?

Vino, Victory and Veneration!!!!

Well Chicago was a blast. It was a great race for the Childress team once again. Jeff Burton was STRONG!!!!! Kevin Harvick was sharp as well. Way to go Childress guys. While they were jamming on the track I was jamming (acoustically) at Childress Vineyards in Lexington, North Carolina. Race fans if you've never been to Childress Vineyards you should go. Richard Childress has built a top notch winery and winemaker Mark Frisolowski is one of the best. Try the Pinnacle Red when you're there. It is superb. And a favorite of mine with the steak. All fans are welcome and there's a great gift shop and the tours are absolutely free. Plus there's live music every Saturday and Sunday thru the summer and fall on the Terrace. I'll be there again on Labor Day weekend(Saturday and Sunday) The tunes are from 1pm-4pm and I had a great crowd this weekend with lots of different fun folks. The place is fascinating, amazing and the process of making wine is incredible to watch.!!!! I had a chance to talk with the new chef on Saturday. His name is David Thomas and he's the former personal chef for Dale Earnhardt Jr. And no Dale doesn't like peanut butter and banana sandwiches but he does like his pizza kicking!!! Richard Childress hired David away from Dale and that's good news for food lovers. You've gotta try the New Zealand Lamb chops which is also a favorite of Richard Childress. And for lunch my favorite is Richard's roast beef. The potato salad is awesome and for desert the cranberry cookies are unbelievable. Bring a blanket or sit at one of the picnic tables in the courtyard. The vineyard is right off Hwy 52 at Exit 89 as you head south towards Charlotte. For directions and details go to: www.childressvineyards.com

Now on to commentary on the Sunday Kenseth/Gordon spin match!!!!!Did Jeff Gordon intentionally spin out Matt Kenseth? Kenseth says yes because it was leftover aggression from Bristol. I don't agree. I think Matt's car didn't have the juice and he fell off the pace in the turn where he spun. Gordon stayed on the throttle and Kenseth felt the air and then he went for a ride. To top it off he wrecked after the restart because I think he was angry at Gordon. Matt could have finished much better but he let his temper get the better of him. Gordon was smart and played his cards right. No whining in the sport. As they say, "That's racin'" I'm not particularly a Gordon fan so I don't have dog in this fight but I think Jeff was racing clean. Just my opinion.
Dale Jr. was superstrong again. After not qualifying well he came out looking good. I'm liking his chances in the CHASE for the NEXTEL CUP.
We're getting down to the nitty gritty and the bubble drivers have gotta make it happen in the next several weeks. Looks like Jeff Gordon is headed towards the CHASE after his performance this past weekend!!!
Have a great day!!! What a beautiful July day in Raleigh!!!

Jamming July

Well after another day off I'm back in the saddle and writing away. This time of year in radio is the window we have for taking days off and most people in the business do take some time off in the summer. It's about a 12 week window we have and then it's back to being in the station full time so we can cover the all important ratings periods(spring and fall)
What a weekend at Daytona. Tony Stewart evidently isn't being bothered by his formerly hurt shoulder. He had no problem climbing the fence at Daytona after he pulled off the victory. And then he came down in the crowd and floated on the mosh pit. That was the coolest. I was scared for a while because I thought Boris Said was gonna win the race, but Tony came through with flying Home Depot Orange colors.
Tidbits:
Did you hear about the press conference NASCAR chief Brian France had last week? He says there'll be changes in the Chase for the NEXTEL CUP in 2007.
I wonder what they'll be? I've speculated already in a previous post but I thought today I'd give you some changes that would most certainly be monumental in the Chase for 2007.
My Top 5....
5. All drivers will race against Darrell Waltrip in the pre-race fun and everybody that Darrell beats is out of the CHASE. I'm telling you Darrell can still drive the wheels off that Petty Driving Experience Car.!!! 4. Jimmie Johnson will just be handed the trophy he would have already won if the CHASE worked the way it used to....
3. Fans will be allowed to drive in school bus races to determine which of their favorite drivers make the CHASE. That'll really make it a fan participation sport.
2. Sportswriters will draw straws to see who makes the CHASE.
1. The two drivers on the bubble(11 and 12) will have a no holds barred cage match officiated by Nature Boy Rick Flair to determine the final driver to make the bonus spot in the CHASE!!!!!