Walmart

Pocono 400 and Vegas too

/ Trixie / Leave a comment

race driven

Before I visit Vegas, let’s take a quick visit to Pocono…

I have posted about a wonderful contest sponsored by Walmart and Pocono Speedway the past several weeks.  Fans would be given the opportunity to name the Pocono 400 race on June 9, 2013.  Fans were able to submit their names for the name via walmarturl.com/FanDriven.  Three finalists have been chosen and now it is your turn to help these NASCAR fans. Before you head on over to vote, here are the three finalists.

  1. Race More. Live Better–submitted by Carrie Conway Wilson
  2. Pocono for the People–submitted by Diane Martin Carroll
  3. Party in the Poconos–submitted by Shawn McMillan

As I mentioned, you can vote via walmarturl.com/FanDriven.  You are able to vote once a day, every day until April 8!  So head on over and help choose the name of the Pocono 400.  By the way, I have already voted today!

If you are thinking about heading to Pocono, you can take advantage of great offer.  You can purchase tickets for the race on June 9 for ONLY $25!  That’s right!  ONLY $25!  You better hurry though, there will only be 16,000 of these specially priced tickets. These tickets can be purchased at Walmart.com/NASCAR or through Pocono Raceway at poconoraceway.com/

Now back to Vegas…

If looked at the odds (shameless use of Vegas cliché), Jimmie Johnson had the best chance to win on Sunday.  After all he has won 4 times at Vegas.  To be honest early on I thought Jimmie was going to run away with the race.  But as we all know, you can lead the most laps and have the fastest car of the day and not win.  Clearly Kasey Kahne had the car to beat most of the race.  He was up front and racing for the win.

Several drivers were complaining their car was loose including Tony Stewart.  If you know Tony Stewart, if he is complaining about a loose race car, things aren’t going to great.  And that is what happened.  It went south for the #14 team early on.  He stayed pretty much mired back in 23/24 place most of the day.  However, he was able to get the lucky dog after the caution flew for Bobby Labonte’s spin.  I don’t think at that point in the race he had the car to win the race.  I just wanted him to have a decent finish.  And he ended up finishing 11th.  I know it had to be frustrating for him.  He has the third highest driver rating over the previous 8 races at Vegas. He was also the defending race champion.  But as you know Vegas can be cruel to her visitors.

Congratulations to Matt Kenseth and the #20 team!  I like Matt Kenseth and I am thankful he ended up in a great organization.  The #20 still holds a special place in my heart.  It was the ride for Tony Stewart until he left JGR to form Stewart Haas Racing.  I was none too thrilled when Joey Lagano took over his #20.  But when it was announced last year that Matt Kenseth would take over the #20 I was pumped.  Matt Kenseth is a great driver.  I knew he would get that #20 back to Victory Lane!  This was Matt’s third race in the #20.  The sure joy in his voice when he got those checkers was great!  And of course, this was a great way to spend your birthday…in Victory Lane!  I don’t think this will be the last visit to Victory Lane for the #20 this year.

The talk was about how the Gen-6 car was going to perform on the first of the 1.5 mile tracks.  Several drivers complained of the car being loose.  Was it the car itself?  I know that many crew chiefs couldn’t have missed the mark.  Was it the track?  The drivers in pre-race interviews said they thought the track was going to be hot and slick and well fast.   It seemed track position was important in this race as well. Once a car got out in front, he was gone.  Many drivers received penalties for speeding and/or uncontrolled equipment.  Kyle Busch got tagged for speeding early on in the race.   He finished 4th.  I am not a huge fan of Mr. Busch, but that man can wheel a race car.

Few other tidbits…

  • Thank you NASCAR.  I, along with many other fans, have had issues with Raceview.  I sent an email last week to voice my concerns and politely asking for a refund.  This week, I received an email from NASCAR.com stating I had been refunded $9.95.  That is equivalent to a monthly charge for Raceview.  I know it may not seem like a lot, but it for me it went a long way.  And…I was able to log in to Raceview!  I did have some issues, but I don’t think it was on NASCAr.com’s end, but mine.  My internet access was sporadic during the day.
  • I so want to go to a race in Vegas!  My buddy over at http://www.badgroove.com/ makes an annual pilgrimage to Vegas every year.  Every time she goes, she has a blast along with her friend Misty.  One of these days, I will make the pilgrimage to Vegas!  I can’t wait to read her post about her Vegas vacation.
  • The “what the heck what were they thinking” moment of the race came when NASCAR threw a caution when Marcos Ambrose spun his car.  His car started spinning and Marcos was able to get it back going right and headed back onto the track.  No other cars in sight.  I don’t get it.  Of well…that is NASCAR.
  • Denny Hamlin was fined $25,000 by NASCAR this past week for his comments about the Gen-6 car after the Phoenix race. He is refusing to pay the fine. I read what he said on ESPN.com and to be honest I didn’t see anything disparaging about his comments. It wasn’t like he got out of his car and said the car sucked ala Kyle Busch.  But NASCAR has worked tirelessly on the Gen-6 car.  I can understand their point of view too.  Here is what I found on ESPN.com, you can judge for yourself.

“I don’t want to be the pessimist, but it did not race as good as our Gen-5 cars,” Hamlin told reporters after the race won by Carl Edwards. “This is more like what the Generation 5 was at the beginning. The teams hadn’t figured out how to get the aero balance right.  “Right now, you just run single-file and you cannot get around the guy in front of you. You would have placed me in 20th place with 30 [laps] to go, I would have stayed there — I wouldn’t have moved up. It’s just one of those things where track position is everything.”

  • My youngest is still continuing to amaze me with his continuing fascination with NASCAR.  I was listening to Tony on the scanner on Sunday.  With his PBJ sandwich in hand, he climbed up on my lap and put in the earplug and started listening.  Check him out…chase with pbj

This week the boys are headed out to Bristol for some short track racing!  Once again a new test for the Gen-6 car.  Have a great week everyone!

Wednesday Musings

/ Trixie / Leave a comment

I have been debating whether or not to post about the Phoenix race.  I didn’t get to watch majority of the race and what I saw was here and there.  Because my husband in a letter carrier with USPS, he had a rare Friday and Saturday off.  This means lots of family time for us and that is exactly what happened this past weekend.  With that being said, I did keep track of the race and saw the last 60 laps of the race.  Congratulations to Carl Edwards!  After last year’s season, this was a welcome surprise for him.

I have been perusing the websites looking for something to write about today.  A couple of things have caught my eye.  One of those items came out of Texas Motor Speedway yesterday.  Eddie Gossage announced yesterday the National Rifle Association (NRA) will sponsor the April 13 Cup Race at TMS.  I do not like to discuss my political views on my blog.  My political views are my own and this is not the purpose of this blog.  I will say, I believe you should have the right to own a gun.  This doesn’t mean everyone should own a gun.  I grew up with a father who taught me the value of gun safety and what it meant to be a gun owner.  I am a gun owner.  I own two rifles, one of them is my grandfather’s and the other is my father’s.  I do not have them loaded and I do not keep ammunition in the house.  They have not been fired in years.  I keep them away from my children.  I will do exactly what my father did when I was curious about the rifles.  I do know Eddie Gossage is sensitive to the recent events in Newtown.  If you have not seen a race at Texas, the winner gets a set of guns and a cowboy hat.  The winner gets to shoot blanks in Victory Lane.  Eddie Gossage has stated if a Cup Team or owner is opposed of this celebration, it will be altered.  If you do not like the NRA, that is your choice as well as being a member of the NRA.  I am not here to debate this issue.  If you are visit often, please respect my wishes.  Thank you.

Another story that caught my eye was one about Christmas Abbott.  Who is Christmas Abbott?  I didn’t know either until I saw her story on Headline News.  She is the first woman to work for pit crew at the highest level of NASCAR.  She is currently the front tire changer for Michael Waltrip Racing.  She is the 8th crew member for MWR and will work as the front tire change for Camping World Truck and Nationwide Series teams.  I applaud her effort to break into the male dominated world.  She may not get the amount of coverage like Danica Patrick, but she is making her mark on NASCAR.

Now on to Vegas…

Tony Stewart is the defending race champion.  Last year was the first time he had won a race at Vegas.  In 2011, he was thisclose to winning it, but finished up as runner-up.  Not to use a Vegas cliché, the odds look good for Tony this weekend.  Tony has the 3rd best driver rating in the last 8 races at Vegas behind Jimmie Johnson (who has the highest and 4 victories at Vegas) and Jeff Gordon.  Tony has also led 290 laps out of the 534 laps in the last two races.  So if you are a betting person, I would put it all on Tony.  But watch out Jimmie Johnson is in the zone.  He finished 1st at Daytona and 2nd last week.  And as mentioned above, he has 4 wins at Vegas.  The Cup teams will be able to get some extra time in Gen 6 car.  Teams will have a full day of testing on Thursday.

If you are headed to Vegas or you are already there, check out some Race Time events sponsored by Walmart.  These events will be held at the following Walmarts in the Las Vegas area March 6, 7, & 8 according to the following website www.walmart.com/NASCAR.  These events bring NASCAR to life. So stop on by and check out it!

March 6:

  • 6005 S Eastern Ave, Las Vegas   10:00-4:00
  • 5198 Boulder Hwy, Las Vegas      11:30-5:30

March 7:

  • 4505 W. Charleston Blvd, Las Vegas    10:00-4:00
  • 8060 W. Tropical Pkwy, Las Vegas        11:30-5:30

March 8:

  • 1807 W Craig Rd   11:30-5:30

If you are headed to the races this weekend don’t forget to stop by Walmart for all your tailgating needs.  I have been to several races Texas Motor Speedway and I always make a point to stop and get stocked up before heading out to the race.  did you leave home without your favorite Tony Stewart shirt and don’t want to pay all those high prices, don’t fear Walmart can help you out.  In fact, Walmart was the first place I looked when needing a new Tony Stewart shirt.  I can’t say it will bring your driver any luck, but I know you can get some responsibly priced NASCAR merchandise at Walmart.  IMG_1735

Want to make it to a race, but can’t spend that much money.  Walmart is offering Family Track Packs for select races this year.  You can get a 4 tickets, 4 Coke Sodas, and 4 hot dogs for only $99!  That’s right $99!  The next race you can take advantage of this opportunity is the race at Auto Club Speedway on March 24, 2013 and then the Southern 500 at Darlington on May 11.  You can head on over to www.walmart.com/NASCAR to purchase the $99 packages

Now for a little fun…

  • Got some free NASCAR swag last week in the mail, a Kyle Busch cup and a Jimmie Johnson calendar.  Would have loved some Tony Stewart stuff, but I don’t care.  I love me some free stuff!IMG_1840
  • I love being a NASCAR fan.  Being a NASCAR fan, is different from being a fan of other professional sports teams.  I feel as if all the NASCAR fans are part of a family and the last couple of weeks no different.  I was able to hook up another Tony Stewart fan with a copy of NASCAR Illustrated with Tony on the front.  She wasn’t able to locate any in her part of the country (California), but I was here in Texas.  I also found a set of tiny SHR race cars for her as well.  I thought she might like them.  I didn’t expect anything in return.  It was just one Tony Stewart fan helping out another Tony Stewart fan.  To my surprise, she sent me a Tony Stewart car to me.  That’s just how we are!  Thanks Amy!

IMG_1807

  • My youngest loves Tony Stewart.  He is his favorite driver (go figure).  Every Sunday, I ask him the same thing…what day is it?  Race Day…Who is going to win?  Tony Stewart!  However, he added a little to this the morning of the Daytona 500.

chase with tony mag

Racing Memories

/ Trixie / Leave a comment

I love the sport of racing. I have been watching all kinds of racing since I could remember. I think it all started with my dad. He had a good friend of his that raced at the local dirt track in Amarillo. My father would help him out on the weekends on his pit crew. As a result I spent many a Saturday night during the spring and summer at the dirt track.  My parents pretty much let me have fun at the track.  I remember hanging out with my buddies behind the bleachers just being kids.  I also remember sitting in the stands watching my dad’s friend, Bobby Gray, drive his modified around the dirt track.  I still can hear the track announcer, telling everyone how great the cheeseburgers were down in the concession stand.  He would also say, “All you race fans need to go get a cheeseburger, cheeseburger!”  And man…they were good. The memories of those days are so vivid.  There was the souvenir stand where you could buy a button with your favorite driver on it.  I proudly wore my #77 Bobby Gray button.  If you have ever been to a dirt track, you know you don’t leave the track without some of that dirt on you especially if the track was a little muddy.  The best part I think about it all was the racing.  These are guys who had other careers during the week, but on Saturday night, they were stars.  Just like now, I had my favorite driver and the driver I loved to hate.  After the races were over, we could go down in the pit area to see all the cars and drivers.  It was one of the best times in my life.  Here is a picture of my favorite driver (circa 1980).  Unfortunately my dad, Claude Crews, and his friend are not longer with us.  My dad is the man with the brown shirt over the white t-shirt behind Bobby.

That’s why today brought  back so many fond memories of that time.  I was headed to one of our local Walmarts and what do I see in the parking lot…race cars!  I think I was more excited to see them in the parking lot then my two boys.  Of course we had to stop and take a gander at our local racers.  They looked different from the ones my father worked on and saw race at the dirt track so long ago, but the feelings were the same.  These are guys who love to race and it showed.  My oldest son had a ball just going around taking pictures of the cars.  My youngest who loves cars was a little shy, but once he got to sit in the car, it was all over with it.

Every Sunday we all watch the big boys race, but the passion and pure love of racing can be seen in these local drivers.  If you can’t get to a NASCAR event, support your local tracks.  I can guarantee that you will see some great racing action!