NASCAR 2008

Victory Celebration…NASCAR Style

/ Trixie / Leave a comment

 As I mentioned over Bloggers FT Digest, this is one of my favorite times of the year I love being a NASCAR fan. I am, however, very excited about the Inaguaral Pennzoil Burnout Challenge. I think this will be an interesting event.

Driver’s will have to perform the following…

  • A full drag racing-style, tire-smoking burnout–it must be maintained from the “Start Box” to a designated transitionpoint.
  • At this transition point, the driver will then throw the car into a 360-dgree spin (aka donut) without crossing onto the apron fo the frontstretch or they will receive a penalty (boo)
  • Then the driver must maneuver out of the donut and spring into a “Victory Lane” marked on either side with traffic cones and into the “Finish box” stopping the clock.
  • Winner with the fastest time after penalties (if any) are accessed.

And here are the Burnout Competitors for the 2008 Inagural Challenge
1. Jimmie Johnson–no stranger to Victory celebrations, and I even have to admit, he has had some pretty good burnouts

2. Greg Biffle–has been able to celebrate much lately, but worth watching.

3. Clint Bowyer–he should be fresh and ready to go coming off a victory a couple of weeks ago at Richmond

4. Kyle Busch–he too should be fresh and ready for this competition

And finally, my personal favorite in the contest is…

5. Kevin Harvick–this boy can do a burnout like no other…he is famous for his burnout after following his 2003 victory at Indianapolis where he left his tires and his car’s back end in shreds.  This clip isn’t all the long, but you definitely can tell, this was a good from the Happy Harvick. 
 


Plus I can’t wait to see Kevin’s burnout.  He says he will aim purposely to inflict damage, going for sytle points…”Just blow the tires out.”…that’s what I’m going for.  Just pop the tires.” And when asked how he will get to Victory Lane? “We can walk.”    Now that’s a man with a plan! 

I guess they were afraid to ask Smoke because he would have wanted to climb the fence.  Also why not Carl Edwards?  I mean come on now…he does have a back flip in his aresenal.  And who could forget the ever popular Snow Angel by Kurt Busch.  Jeff Gordon was invited to participate, but declined the invitation.  I guess he would lose points for trying to avoid beer cans (he he).

You can read more about the Challenge on NASCAR.com

 

Saturday Racing

/ Trixie / 4 Comments

I didn’t get to catch much of the race on Saturday night.  I had to work during most of the day so by the time I got home it was about 5:30 then my brood needed to run to the grocery store to get the breakfast stuff for my Mother’s Day breakfast Sunday morning.

By the time we got home there was about 50-60 laps left.  All I know is that it was a good thing I was out shopping when #19 got into Smoke.  I am sure I would have been cursing at the television set despite the fact that I like the #19. 

Congratulations to Kyle Busch for his 3rd win this season on the Cup side. 

I have been surfing out there on all the NASCAR sites both in the media and those who are listed here in the Park.  There are different camps regarding Kyle Busch.  There are those who think he is a punk ass and should be taken out to the wood shed and those who think he is a great driver (yes, I have see positive posts about him).  I consider myself to be right in the middle.  I do think he needs to be taken out to the wood shed and have an attitude adjustment, but I really do like him as a driver.  This boy can drive.  I about fell out my chair last night while talking to my dad.  Let me preface here…die hard Earnhardt fan (more Senior than Junior), but a fan none the less. He actually agress with me on Busch.  He even mentioned how Rusty Wallace drove and behaved early on and now look at how we all view Rusty.  I think the same thing can be said for Smoke and yes, even Dale Sr.  I think he will come into his own as he continues on through his Cup career and yes, he might even pull it back during interviews, but hopefully not too much.  I kind of like his style.  That’s the reason I am a fan of Tony.  He says what he feels and pretty much does what he wants.  He’s a rebel. 

Speaking of Smoke…I am listening to him on Sirius radio right now.  He is a guest DJ on the Elvis channel tonight.  Plus he will be broadcasting live from Graceland as well during his own show tonight.  I wish I could listen to the show tonight, but have lots of laundry still to clean.  This just gives me one more reason to like Smoke–he and I are both huge Elvis fans.

Well, the boys get a weekend off from points racing this Saturday night, but the gloves I am sure will surely come off for that $1 MILLION DOLLARS.  I believe the Busch brothers took each other out last year.  It’s a million dollars people.  It’s every one for themselves!

Friday

/ Trixie / 2 Comments

Whew..work was crazy today, but glad it was Friday.

Congratulations to Greg Biffle for gettin’ the Pole for tomorrow night’s race.

Congratulations to Tony for his win tonight! Woo Hoo!

I wasn’t able to catch much of the race. I was out taking care of some things and spend some of that money the government sent back to me.

If what I saw of the race is any indication of what tomorrow night will be like…kick the tires and light the fires…it’s going to be a bumpy ride

Too Tough To Tame

/ Trixie / 1 Comment

I can’t wait to watch the race tomorrow night. Once again the boys are short trackin’ it. After last week’s excitement, this week should be interesting. I am definitely going to be watching how the #18 and #88 race if they get near each other.

I am also excited about the new racing surface. It will be interesting to see how it affects the race tomorrow night.

“I know the track is going to be awesome,” said two-time Darlington winner Jeff Burton. “It’s just what tire do they have to bring to match the track. I know the first tire there was just incredibly fast, and I think their next tire they pulled a lot of speed out of it and I heard it takes a while to get going. Really, it’s just the first couple laps getting a feel for the tires. That’s how I look at it. I don’t have any answers, I just feel like I have all questions.”

“We all know when the speeds pick up through the corners like that, it takes away from the racing a little bit,” Jeff Gordon said. “The cool thing is, I had a blast. That track is unreal right now. It’s smooth, it’s super-fast, but it’s the same Darlington. The track is just really black right now from the new pavement.

 

I hope the race is fast and there is a lot of excitement. I know there will be because, well, it’s short track racing. Short track racing…lots of cars and not enough track for all them.

Richmond

/ Trixie / 5 Comments

I wanted to post after the race, but was too…well what’s the word…amazed.  Before I get into the discussion on the “hit heard ’round the world” on Saturday, I want to congratulate Clint Bowyer for the win on Saturday!

Now on to what has probably been the topic of discussion on all the message boards, blogs, etc.  In case you missed it…here is the incident that has sparked quite a bit of discussion.

Now that everyone has had a chance to review things let me continue on with my post. I want to begin by stating what I have to say will probalby set off some of those Earnhardt fans out there, but if are a frequent reader to The Park, you know I have never claimed to be a part of the Junior Nation. I am a fan of his father, but that doesn’t mean I have to be a fan of his son.

If you caught the race on Saturday night you knew exactly when Junior took the lead. Thousands of people in the stands cheered. This is a usual occurence no matter when Junior is in the lead. And we all knew when Kyle got behind Junior after the last cauation it was going to get interesting. Kyle does have documented evidence of moving drivers out of the way to win. And if you watch NASCAR on a weekly basis, you knew there was a strong possibility Kyle was going to go for the win. And that’s what happened. Both drivers were pushing their cars to the limit. Both drivers wanted the win, Junior probably wanted it a little more, but that’s what it was–two pasisonate drivers wanting victory. Kyle’s car did get loose if you caught the numberous replays. Could each of them given each other a little bit more room? Why sure they could have, but I wouldn’t have expected them to. The result…Earnhardt is spun and finishes 15th and Kyle 2nd.

With all this talk about the incident, I forgot about Denny Hamlin.  Denny Hamlin dominated the race Saturday night.  He lead I don’t know how many laps of the race, I lost count around 200, but he should have one the race.  He had the best car, but as we always know the best car doesn’t always win.  It isn’t always about where you start, but where you finish.  Not to diminish the win by Clint, but somtimes racing in NASCAR is about being in the right place at the right time and that is exactly what happened Saturday night.

Way to go Smoke for your 4th place finish!

One more

/ Trixie / 2 Comments

Carl Edwards is done with the silly season before it kicked into high gear. It was announced today Carl Edwards has resigned to driver for Roush-Fenway racing. One free agent down…so many more to go.

Now on to some Friday night racing. I really didn’t watch much of the race. It was on in the background, but to be honest it was mostly background noise for me. I would like to congratulate Denny Hamlin for winning the race from the pole. In the closing laps, there was a caution and race leader Kevin Harvick chose to stay out on old tires while Denny decided to go in to get fresh new ones. This was Denny’s home track and he had never won at the track either in Nationwide or Cup. In the closing laps Denny passed Kevin and took the lead for good. But Kyle Busch was headed towards the front. I changed the channel for just a second and switched back and it was over. Denny was doing his victory burnout. And ESPN was showing Kyle and Steven Wallace “discussing” the race. Of course we all know how tempers can flare at the short track. I am sure they were both called to the “principal’s office” after the race. Congratulations Denny!

I will be watching tomorrow night more closely. I really do like short track racing. With the momentum from tonight will Denny sweep the weekend? Will Junior get his first victory in roughly two years or will his teammate Jeff Gordon come away with his first win of the season? Of course as well all know, just when you think you have everything figured it, you don’t.

Oh…blurb running across the bottom of my tv screen…Eddie Gossage offering a wee bit of money to run at the IRL race in June at TMS.

Just another day in NASCAR….

Dale Earnhardt Fan Photo Mosaic

/ Trixie / Leave a comment

This article courtesy of NASCAR.com

The Hershey Company honored the life and career of racing legend Dale Earnhardt with the unveiling of a replica of a large fan photo mosaic during the Dale Earnhardt Day celebration in Mooresville, N.C., on Tuesday.

Bearing Earnhardt’s likeness, the 6-foot-tall, 8-foot-wide mosaic is comprised of approximately 1,400 photos from fans across the country, including actress Carmen Electra, racing team owner Richard Childress and drivers Mark Martin and Martin Truex Jr. The mosaic, previewed to fans, will serve as a permanent tribute to “The Intimidator” at Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) headquarters in Mooresville when completed later this year.

In recognition of Earnhardt’s impact on the racing world, Hershey is paying tribute to Dale Earnhardt by producing a series of Collector Edition Dale Earnhardt Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bars, Hershey’s Milk Chocolate with Almonds Bars and Kit Kat Wafer Bars. The specially moulded bars feature a distinctive on-bar design, including Earnhardt’s signature and stylized No. 3.

The Collector Edition bars will be available at select retail outlets nationwide while supplies last. Hershey is also encouraging fans to honor the racing legend by inviting them to visit http://www.hersheys.com/dale to upload a photo for inclusion in the permanent mosaic and to make a donation to The Dale Earnhardt Foundation. Fans can still upload their photos and tribute messages through June 3 for inclusion in the final mosaic.

“Dale Earnhardt touched the lives of many people both on and off the track, and The Hershey Company is honored to recognize his legacy and fans through this promotion,” said Michele Buck, Senior Vice President, Global Chief Marketing Officer, The Hershey Company. “We are proud to give our consumers a chance to show their support and be part of history through the Dale Earnhardt photo mosaic and online tribute.”

“This mosaic, presented by The Hershey Company, is such a unique and fitting tribute to Dale Earnhardt,” said Dick Baker, executive director, The Dale Earnhardt Foundation. “We want to thank the loyal fans for all of their passion and support in helping Dale’s legacy live on forever.”

I found this very interesting.  I have to say I uploaded a photo to be included in the mosaic.  Hopefully I will be one of the lucky ones to have their picture included in the final mosaic.  If you are interested in uploading your photo and would like to leave a tribute, stop by Hershey’s and leave your mark.

Do you have your collective Hershey bars? I do. They are carefully stowed away amongst my Tony Stewart shrine. I figured this was the safest and most secure spot away from Little Smoke and Postman.