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My holiday feast begins early
I’m writing this before the Championship weekend because I will be spending next week with family that I haven’t seen in over a year.
I know, some of you are going to groan when you start reading this, but come on, if you’ve been reading my blogs all along you know good and well what this blog is going to be about.
Kyle Busch is the 2009 Nationwide Series Champion!!!
I know, it’s not official yet (and don’t think I wasn’t completely bummed out last weekend when he missed clinching the championship by what, 5 points?), but all he has to do is take the green flag on Saturday and the championship is his. Make sure you all have your ear plugs in at that point, because I’m sure you’ll be able to hear me screaming with pure joy as soon as that moment happens. (I’ve already warned my dad to have his earplugs in since I’ll be on the phone with him when that moment does happen).
I’ve been a Kyle Busch fan since the early years, and I’ve never given up on him or big brother Kurt, no matter what. So it just makes it even more special to me that they will now each own a championship trophy. And yes, I will be placing my order for a championship t-shirt as soon as they’re available.
Can you tell that I’m getting just a little bit excited about this weekend? The final three races of the season (I don’t usually start suffering from withdrawal symptoms until long about the week after the banquet), Kyle winning the championship and my family coming to town. The only thing that will make this weekend better is if (well, you all know I’m really saying “when”) Mark Martin pulls off the upset and takes the Cup championship.
So, I hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Leave me a comment and let me know how you spend your Thanksgiving, I’d love to hear your stories.
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Motorsports
Ford Championship Weekend means different things to different people
For some, it’s the end of a long 38-week grind and an opportunity to start recharging the battery by spending time with family and friends during the holiday season.
For others who have gotten in the habit of watching or listening to a race every weekend, it’s a feeling of sadness because the season is over and there’s no more racing for two months.
Looking back, the biggest highlight on the track for us at Ford was when Matt Kenseth won the season-opening Daytona 500, giving car owner Jack Roush his first victory in NASCAR’s most prestigious race. You don’t forget days like that because they don’t happen very often. My only other Daytona 500 win in the 12 years I’ve had this job came in 2000 when Dale Jarrett drove away with the checkered flag, so this one was special.
I remember when Matt passed Elliott Sadler on Lap 152 and the rain started to fall and knowing that the race might be over. Knowing how drivers like to scatter after races, especially when rain is involved, I decided to go outside with my umbrella and try to find as many guys as possible.
My task was made easier by the fact that I had already gotten comments from Travis Kvapil, Jamie McMurray and Paul Menard, who had all been in accidents earlier. I found David Ragan standing in his pit stall with an umbrella over his head, and then got Carl Edwards a few minutes later while walking down pit road toward the garage area.
Feeling that the race wasn’t going to restart, I made my way towards turn one and while I’ll never be accused of always being in the right place at the right time, I just happened to be at the back bumper of Matt’s black and yellow Ford Fusion when the race was called. I got to see him give wife Katie a big kiss, and could see the tears in his eyes as Steve Byrnes began interviewing him on television. I was right next to them and won’t soon forget the emotion Matt displayed as he thanked everyone that gave him the opportunity to drive a race car for a living.
The next day I drove over to The Daytona Experience, where the car was going to be put on public display, and was greeted by the entire No. 17 DeWalt team in their uniforms just standing around the parking lot waiting to go inside for the car induction ceremony.
I had never experienced that event before and it was really neat how all of the crew members signed the hood of the car and then posed for a series of photos, along with Matt, Jack and crew chief Drew Blickensderfer. It was also a great opportunity for the fans in attendance because they got to take plenty of photos and ask questions.
Even though the rest of the season didn’t go as well as we would have liked, it’s still not a total loss when you can say one of your teams won the biggest event of the season.
This weekend Ford will be the title sponsor for all three races and watch champions crowned in the NASCAR Camping World, NASCAR Nationwide and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Ford teams have won the Sprint Cup race each of the last five years and six of the seven times it has been called the Ford 400, so there’s an optimism that 2009 can end the same way it started.
Then all that will remain is the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Banquet in your lovely city of Las Vegas on Dec. 4. I know many fan-friendly activities are planned and I can’t wait to see how warmly you embrace this newest attraction.
I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to share my stories and behind-the-scenes memories of what it’s like to be part of this giving and generous NASCAR community. Thanks to Las Vegas Review-Journal and LVRJ.com for providing me this space every week and for those of you who took the time to read on a regular basis.
Now it’s time to start planning for 2010 and there’s no time to waste.
After all, Speedweeks is less than 75 days away.
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A Liberal Politician ??
And to think, the greater majority of our Democrat (aka liberal) politicians are “Attorneys” ! Including our President, Vice President and Secretary of State ! This explains it all !
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Health Care Update !
“ZETIA”
The Obama administrations drug of choice!
It costs a bundle !
It does nothing !
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Johnson’s crash harkens to 2004
History is repeating itself at the moment in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and I’m not talking about Jimmie Johnson dominating the chase en route to another championship.
While the result still might be a record fourth consecutive title, the path Johnson is taking to get there this time around got a little bit more stressful after he got collected in an accident on lap three last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. The resulting crash opened the door for his closest chase pursuers and Mark Martin took full advantage, finishing fourth and moving within 73 points of the lead.
Johnson entered the race with a commanding 184-point cushion over his Hendrick Motorsports teammate after avoiding two major accidents and finishing sixth at Talladega, but that all changed in the blink of an eye when Sam Hornish got tapped from behind by David Reutimann and clipped Johnson, sending him careening into the wall on Sunday and an eventual 38th-place finish.
If this sounds familiar to you race fans in Las Vegas, it’s because this scenario is eerily similar to the one hometown hero Kurt Busch took in winning the first championship under what is now called the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
The year was 2004 and Kurt was rolling along in NASCAR’s new playoff format. He won the very first Chase race at Loudon and went on to finish fifth or better in five of the first six events. The only race he didn’t post a fifth-place finish or better came at Kansas and he barely missed that by coming home sixth.
All was progressing smoothly until the series got to Atlanta, and I remember it well because Kurt was driving the No. 97 Newell Rubbermaid Ford Taurus for car owner Jack Roush at the time. Things were going so well that from a public relations standpoint we wanted to try and take advantage of Kurt’s place in the standings, so I arranged a quick media tour to St. Louis around Game 4 of the World Series between the Red Sox and Cardinals.
Kurt was in Atlanta early that week for some public appearances, so our plan was to fly out of Tara Field, which sits right next to Atlanta Motor Speedway, on Wednesday afternoon and stop by The Sporting News headquarters before heading to the ballpark for more interviews. We had secured tickets through our friends at Fox Sports, so everything was arranged until Mother Nature intervened.
The forecast called for a 90 percent chance of rain that night in St. Louis — not 10 percent, not 30 percent, but 90 percent! If you live in St. Louis, you’re willing to make the drive and sit through a few raindrops, but we were coming from halfway across the country and after a great deal of deliberation decided not to go. Well, wouldn’t you know it, the rain stopped long enough for Boston to complete a four-game sweep and win its first World Series in 86 years, which made our decision even more regrettable the next day.
We didn’t know it at the time, but that proved to be an omen for the weekend because things didn’t go as planned on the racetrack, either. Kurt had a 207-point lead over Jimmie heading into that race, but a blown engine on lap 52 ended his day. The only one who had a worse day was younger brother Kyle, who fell out eight laps earlier, so Kurt finished 42nd while Jimmie proceeded to go on and win his third race in a row, cutting the deficit to only 59 points heading to Phoenix.
Where is the series going this weekend? That’s right, Phoenix.
Will history continue to repeat? It’s anybody’s guess, but we can only hope for something similar at Ford Championship Weekend in Homestead because that would mean a dramatic finish to the season. We may not see a driver lose a wheel coming off turn four and somehow still make it to pit road, or have the champion determined by a mere eight points, but it sure would be nice.
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Stimulus ? What Stimulus ?
Who’s driving this disaster ? Nevada has the highest foreclosure rate in the nation (and the senate majority leader lives here) ! Home values continue to DROP in Nevada! Unemployment nation wide continues to go UP (over 10% and rising daily), Nevada’s unemployment continues to be one of the highest in the nation ( 13% and rising daily). BUT we are blessed with the Senate Majority Leader! The price of GOLD surges while the dollars value is plummeting! Our soldiers and our military generals are begging for more help in Afghanistan while our administration is deciding whether to have a Christmas Tree or a Holiday Tree this year! In one year Obama has increased our nations debt three times higher then what George Bush increased it over eight years (but he still blames George Bush for everything) ! So, are we going “Forward” or “Backing Up” or just “Sitting There Idle” while our esteemed leaders attempt to “pull the wool” over the tax payers eyes ? You make the call!
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A Picture Worth A Thousand Words !
The Obama Administration (in all it’s brilliance) with absolutely NO CLUE what drives America’s greatness.
(Do we go forward? Do we back up? Do we make a U turn? Who’s driving this disaster anyway ? )
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It’s not an easy accomplishment to win back-to-back races at one track, much less to win four in a row at one racetrack. But two of my Vegas boys have done just that.
Brendan Gaughan won four in a row at Texas Motor Speedway in the truck series from 2002-2003 (and did I mention 2002 was his rookie year and the Texas Two-Step were his only victories that year). That was the first and only time four in a row had happened at Texas, that is until this weekend. Kyle Busch (or Shrubby as I affectionately call him) won his fourth in a row at Texas in the Nationwide Series.
So I really think Texas Motor Speedway should change its name …something like the Texas Speedway – Home of Las Vegas Winners. My Vegas boys sure do know how to win at Texas.
Kurt Busch won his first Nationwide race at Texas in 2006.
I know I’ll get a lot of flack for singing Shrubby’s praises, but he really does deserve it. I have watched this young man mature so much this season. The way he conducts himself during his interviews after a race hasn’t gone his way has greatly improved and his victory lane interviews have gotten so much better. He seems to always make sure he thanks the fans.
Not only did Shrubby win four in a row in the Nationwide series at one track this weekend, but he also won his fifth Camping World Truck Series in a row this weekend, giving him two out of three wins this weekend.
No driver has ever won the “trifecta” – winning all three of NASCAR’s top series at one track in one weekend, but Shrubby sure came close.
He led until two laps to go before running out of gas. But he did hand the lead over to big brother, Kurt, keeping the win in the family … so it was a Busch sweep of the weekend after all.
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Audacity
The height of audacity ? Lincoln, a truly great president,
I doubt many would ever dispute that statement.
Kennedy another great president most good Americans wouldn’t dispute. Pictured together with a kid who has done absolutely nothing great, has a habit of “Blaming America First” with the international community and is on track to bankrupt America. All in one frame, truly unbelievable ! Liberal Lunicy at the “Height of Audacity” !
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McMurray’s win ends my chase
Finally.
After winning the first two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races of the season it had been a long dry spell for those of us in the Ford Racing camp, but that ended last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway as Jamie McMurray avoided two big wrecks down the stretch to win the Amp Energy 500.
And while this race may be remembered for the scary accident that saw Ryan Newman’s car flip and land on its roof, it might also be thought of as the day Jamie sealed a full-time ride for 2010.
The reason he’s looking for a job in the first place stems from a decision NASCAR made in 2005 that limits the number of teams one organization can own to four. The grace period for getting down to that figure ends at the end of this season, meaning Roush Fenway Racing will no longer be able to field five cars each weekend. Due to existing contracts with other sponsors and drivers, Jamie finds himself as the odd man out.
But the way he drove the No. 26 Irwin Industrial Tools Ford Fusion on Sunday definitely made people take notice of his talent. The way he weaved through traffic, and then took advantage of some help from teammate Matt Kenseth to grab the lead and hold off the rest of the field for the final 11 laps was impressive.
Jamie winning a race is obviously good news for Ford, but even better news for me. The main reason I say that is because no driver is harder to catch for a comment after the race than Jamie. He’s like a super hero who has the ability to climb out of his race car and instantly change clothes before vanishing into thin air.
There have been countless times the past three years where I’ve caught up to Jamie and could barely ask a question because I was huffing and puffing from running him down. Earlier this year at Sonoma, I found him behind the wheel of a rental car as he was just about to pull out of the race track. I frantically waved my arms to grab his attention and as I got to the door he rolled down the window and graciously gave me a couple quick comments.
I took a deep breath and thanked him, turned, and started running back toward the garage to find a couple more drivers. That’s when I heard his voice from behind me yell — “Run, Forrest! Run!” Had I been being chased at that moment by a bunch of bullies from school, as Forrest Gump was in the Oscar-winning movie of 1994, I would have surely been caught because I broke out laughing and couldn’t stop. Now, every time I watch that movie and Jenny yells that line, I’m going to think of Jamie.
His disappearing act has become a running joke between the two of us, but, by winning on Sunday, it meant he had to come into the media center for the winner’s post-race press conference. When he finally arrived after all of the celebrating and pictures had been completed in Victory Lane, that trademark smile was still planted on his face. You could see in his eyes how much this win meant to him, so as he sat down behind the microphone I congratulated him on a well-deserved victory.
In his typical humor he just laughed and said, “Hey, at least you didn’t have to chase me down today.”
With three races to go in this season, it would be nice to have one less Ford driver to chase down from here on out. It would be nice to be able and have Jamie or one of his teammates walk through the doors of the media center after winning at Texas, Phoenix or Homestead Miami Speedway.
But racing is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.
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