Sep 24
Posted: under General, NASCAR, Rants.
It was announced all over the internets this week that the writing that we all saw on the wall as of late was true. A.J. Allmendinger is out at Team Red Bull Racing possibly as early as the Cup race at Talladega, and the very likely replacement for him next year is Scott Speed. Mike [...] [...more]
It was announced all over the internets this week that the writing that we all saw on the wall as of late was true. A.J. Allmendinger is out at Team Red Bull Racing possibly as early as the Cup race at Talladega, and the very likely replacement for him next year is Scott Speed. Mike Skinner, who is the current “mentor” for both Speed and Allmendinger, could be tapped to finish out the season in the # 84 Red Bull Toyota.
Read More over at FastMachines.com
Aug 27
Posted: under General, NASCAR, Rants.
NASCAR and Budweiser recently announced that the Budweiser Shootout, an exhibition race held during Speedweeks prior to the Daytona 500, will undergo a major format change starting with the 2009 race. For the past 30 years, the race sponsor extended invitations to those drivers who won a pole the previous season, or previous winners of [...] [...more]
NASCAR and Budweiser recently announced that the Budweiser Shootout, an exhibition race held during Speedweeks prior to the Daytona 500, will undergo a major format change starting with the 2009 race. For the past 30 years, the race sponsor extended invitations to those drivers who won a pole the previous season, or previous winners of the race. Now, the race will only be open to the top 6 teams from each manufacturer. The top 6 teams will be determined by the previous year’s points position.
It is quite obvious the underlying reason for this shift in how the race is run: Coors is now the sponsor of the Pole Award every week, whereas Bud held that sponsorship. The folks at Anheuser-Busch did not deny this, in fact, they cited it as the fundamental reason for the change.
Read more over at FastMachines.com
Aug 10
Posted: under General, NASCAR.
Another week, another Kyle Busch win. If you are still out there thinking that Kyle and the #18 team is having a fluke season, you might need to check yourself into the clinic. This kid is on fire. When you can win on short tracks, road courses, 1.5 mile cookie cutters, and superspeedways, you might [...] [...more]
Another week, another Kyle Busch win. If you are still out there thinking that Kyle and the #18 team is having a fluke season, you might need to check yourself into the clinic. This kid is on fire. When you can win on short tracks, road courses, 1.5 mile cookie cutters, and superspeedways, you might just be the best in NASCAR. For sure, the M&M’s team has what it takes to win in the elite NASCAR Sprint Cup series. Onto the thoughts…
Read more at FastMachines.com
Jul 30
Posted: under General, NASCAR, Praise.
I’ll admit it, I used to hate Randy Moss. There is something about narcissistic pro athletes that really bugs me. The sense of self entitlement, the smugness, the ego, it all drives me completely nuts. In the past, Randy Moss was the definition of the classic pro sports athlete. Read more at Fastmachines.com [...more]
I’ll admit it, I used to hate Randy Moss. There is something about narcissistic pro athletes that really bugs me. The sense of self entitlement, the smugness, the ego, it all drives me completely nuts. In the past, Randy Moss was the definition of the classic pro sports athlete.
Read more at Fastmachines.com
Jul 29
Posted: under General, NASCAR, Rants.
I’ll admit it, I’m still a little in shock from the race from Indy this Sunday…if you can call that 400 mile parade a race, that is. I debated even posting anything this week, I was so miffed at that debacle. I decided that like all good bloggers, I had the responsibility to join the [...] [...more]
I’ll admit it, I’m still a little in shock from the race from Indy this Sunday…if you can call that 400 mile parade a race, that is. I debated even posting anything this week, I was so miffed at that debacle. I decided that like all good bloggers, I had the responsibility to join the millions of detractors and badmouth NASCAR in a public forum…ahh, this is what I love about blogging.
On to the thoughts after the “Allstate 400, Brought to You by the Color Yellow”:
Read more at Fastmachines.com
Jul 13
Posted: under Fun Stuff, General, NASCAR.
Yea yea, I got back from Loudon a while ago, and I know I was supposed to put up some pictures, but to be honest, I was just lazy, and really have been in vacation mode up until this past week. Then I got sick. Anyways, like the post title says, better late than never. [...] [...more]
Yea yea, I got back from Loudon a while ago, and I know I was supposed to put up some pictures, but to be honest, I was just lazy, and really have been in vacation mode up until this past week. Then I got sick. Anyways, like the post title says, better late than never.
I actually had quite a blast back in NH, it was really awesome to see family and friends, and I actually got to hang out with my mom for a few days prior to heading to Loudon for the weekend, which was nice. Jeff came and picked me up in Portland on Wednesday afternoon and we made the hour-ish long journey to the dirt pit. When I finally got to see the camper for the first time in person since Jeff gave it the workover, I was pretty taken aback. Even after 10 years, Jeff’s now-famous paint jobs really impress me. They look very professional, and a few people even asked us if we did painting for a living. Heck, one guy even stopped to tell us that he had the picture of the old paint scheme hanging in his bathroom at home, and stopped to get a new shot so he could replace it. I dunno about that, sounds pretty white-trash to me, but hey, I was the guy living in a 1964 junker camper for 5 nights with no running water, so I couldn’t throw stones.
Highlights from the weekend, since it would be a 10 page post if I tried to include everything:
I guess I got fat. Haha, I actually knew this, but my relentless friends never missed an opportunity to point out the fact that I have gained about 20 pounds since I got here last June. Hey, life is good at the top, what can I say? Jeff was pretty happy though, he had a food buddy for the weekend. Used to be I’d rather drink another beer than go to grab a cheesesteak, this weekend I was actually game for both. Meanwhile, “Skinny Pete” has now taken my place among the fatness scale, while Jeff moved to the top. I am mired somewhere in the middle. Hold on a sec, I have to take another bite of this hot dog.
Jeff and I cleaned up on horseshoes. For the most part, we were just “on” this weekend. It was crazy some of the shots he and I were making. I’ve never played so well in my life. The big loss we did suffer was when we bet my Dad and his friend Craig that if we lost we’d drink my Dad’s Ballantine 16oz pounders. Of course, the pressure of having to drink that swill got to us, and we lost pretty badly. I don’t know how he drinks that stuff, but we got through it eventually. We even got Pete to join in on the fun, somehow. Pete’s a pushover I think. Haha.
We got to burn stuff. Burning stuff is half the fun of camping!
It was cool to see my friend Bill after not seeing him for like 10 years or so. After many, many years of trying to convert him to be a NASCAR fan, I never succeeded. We fell out of touch, and suddenly, though the magic of the interwebs, we “met up” again, only to find out he has converted and become a huge NASCAR fan. He agreed to meet up with us on Sunday before the race, bearing the gift of a bunch of cooked lobsters. Obviously, he was a hit with everyone up there, and it was nice to trade barbs and catch up on old times. He brought a friend up, and somehow, as is always the case on race day, some guy showed up in full Ricky Bobby gear, and she got in a good pic with him. I’m pretty sure that guy died of heat exhaustion in the track, cause there is no way a polyester suit would have been cool in that heat.
Tony Stewart’s Nationwide Series car is sponsored by Old Spice, and every year they hire a bunch of model-type girls to hand out free Old Spice body wash samples to the thousands of people milling about. They have a huge tractor-trailer parked inside the track with “shower karaoke” and all kinds of little games and gimmicks. Since the camper is professionally painted up like Tony Stewart’s car, we awoke one morning to an Old Spice utility vehicle parked outside our camper with a couple of said girls yelling at us to come out. They took pictures and handed out a bunch of T-Shirts and swag to us, and claimed that the pictures were going to go to Stewart. I doubt that would happen, but it was kind of cool to know that word got out to them that there was a camper dedicated to their driver, and they ventured out to check it out. Yea, we’re awesome, that’s just how we roll!
I got to see my neice Leighanne when my sister ventured up for the day. She’s growing like a weed! For her birthday, Lori and I gave her, among other things, a little Walter the Farting Dog stuffed animal. When you squeeze it, it belts out an assortment of fart sounds. To a little kid, this was endlessly entertaining. To be honest, it was pretty entertaining to Lori and I too.
After 11 years of listening to Jeff’s snoring, which could wake Rip Van Winkle, I finally found a solution – iPod! I plugged in my iPod right before sleeping (with the traditional Advil and two bottles of water to head off the hangover), and slept like a baby. Jeff did the same, but nobody told Pete about this solution. He had to deal with the wrath of both Jeff and my snoring, which, according to Pete, was pretty unbearable. I don;t know what he was talking about, I slept just fine. Sorry Pete! Bet you buy an iPod for September!
The race itself was rained out with about 20 laps to go. And when the skies finally opened up, they really opened up. The rain was just plain crazy, with the lightning and thunder and soakingness. Of course, this did not stop Jeff and I from doing a little shopping in it anyway. Hey, we were drunk, and already wet anyway, might as well enjoy it. By the time we got back to the camper, there was nothing that wasn’t wet. Except the camper, which was completely dry for once. That rebuild was very much worth it.
These are just a few samples of the good times we had up there, I am sure that I missed a lot of things, but this post is getting lengthy at this point, and it’s dinnertime! I don’t miss many meals these days, and be damned if I am going to miss this one. It’s the last pizza I’m going to eat for a while. It’s about time I got my fat ass to a gym, and the workout regimen starts this week!
Some more pics that I have no real stories for:
Jul 13
Posted: under General, NASCAR.
With 6 races to go before we get to Richmond to decide this year’s playoff contenders, it’s time to do a quick rundown and postulate who will be in and who will be out when the Chase starts up in New Hampshire. Here’s my guess at who we’ll see in the top 12 and the [...] [...more]
With 6 races to go before we get to Richmond to decide this year’s playoff contenders, it’s time to do a quick rundown and postulate who will be in and who will be out when the Chase starts up in New Hampshire. Here’s my guess at who we’ll see in the top 12 and the reasons why. Agree with me? Think I’m an idiot who shouldn’t be behind a keyboard without adult supervision? Drop me a line in the comments section and let me know your predictions!
Read more at FastMachines.com
Jul 13
Posted: under General, NASCAR, Rants.
After a few weeks off in which I took a much needed vacation, got to see some family, and attended the Cup race in New Hampshire, I’m ready to start back into a venting/rambling groove again. Would have been nice to write last week, but alas, my Comcast DVR decided that it didn’t want to [...] [...more]
After a few weeks off in which I took a much needed vacation, got to see some family, and attended the Cup race in New Hampshire, I’m ready to start back into a venting/rambling groove again. Would have been nice to write last week, but alas, my Comcast DVR decided that it didn’t want to record the race for me. But…that is a different story for a different time. On to the semi-conscious thought stream…
Read more at FastMachines.com
Jun 17
Posted: under Fun Stuff, General, NASCAR, Praise.
I head out to Loudon, NH next week to tailgate, hang out with friends and family, and watch the NASCAR race for the weekend. As I have mentioned numerous times, Jeff has been diligently working over the Ladybird (our sleeping quarters for the weekend), revamping her from inside out, including a brand-new paintjob that is [...] [...more]
I head out to Loudon, NH next week to tailgate, hang out with friends and family, and watch the NASCAR race for the weekend. As I have mentioned numerous times, Jeff has been diligently working over the Ladybird (our sleeping quarters for the weekend), revamping her from inside out, including a brand-new paintjob that is going to be the talk of the town. Jeff has a real talent for putting together a great paint scheme, and this year he has outdone himself, redoing both sides of the camper with a kickass Tony Stewart/Junior scheme. I considered not letting the cat out of the bag, since some that read this blog will be seeing it for the first time in person next Thursday, but decided I couldn’t deny the fact that I am so stoked to show it off beforehand. Without further adieu…
[slideshow id=1369094286738059801&w=426&h=320]
Jun 17
Posted: under General, NASCAR, Praise.
I wrote a blog post on Fastmachines.com lately, and one of the points that I had made involved Mike Joy (the play-by-play man on the Fox NASCAR broadcasts on Sundays) calling Tony Stewart’s Home Depot team “Big Orange”. I had made a comment that he should not have done that out of respect to the [...] [...more]
I wrote a blog post on Fastmachines.com lately, and one of the points that I had made involved Mike Joy (the play-by-play man on the Fox NASCAR broadcasts on Sundays) calling Tony Stewart’s Home Depot team “Big Orange”. I had made a comment that he should not have done that out of respect to the late, great Richie Evans, a popular, wildy successful driver of the 70′s and 80′s.
Come to find out, Mike Joy himself read the post and sent me a personal email explaining why he had used the term.
Read more over at FastMachines.com
