Friday was the longest day of my vacation. We were at the track for 12 hours or so. Friday included two Nationwide series practices, a Sprint Cup practice, qualifying for both the Nationwide & Sprint Cup series, and finally the Craftsman Truck series race. Plus, SPEED TV was filming Trackside Live and we watched that for a while.
I took this photo at JR Motorsports last October when I was in Charlotte for the fall NASCAR races. Brad Keselowski drove this car at Fontana, CA Labor Day weekend last year. Well, I guess I should say “wrecked” instead of “drove”. Brad was asked about this car this past weekend in Cali.
“Dale’s got it out on his property there,” said Keselowski, who lives in an apartment on Earnhardt Jr.’s property. “Every once in a while, we’ll get in a golf cart or a four-wheeler and drive by it and see it.”
“It’s a good conversation piece,” Keselowski said. “It’s actually out back in the woods. It’s on a hill and there’s vines and stuff growing through it. It’s cool because Dale left it completely intact. Every single piece other than the radio is in it. It’s really cool to see.”
Or is it…Brad Keselowski loves Tennessee?
Brad Keselowski won his first NASCAR Nationwide series race in Nashville, TN on June 7, 2008. He won his second on Friday night in Bristol, TN. His Bristol win, besides being the second of his career and this year, is the 4th win this season for JR Motorsports.
Around the Web:
My flight leaves at 6:15 in the morning bound for Columbus, Ohio by way of Memphis, Tennessee. What’s in Columbus, you might ask? Well, Sarah & Alisandra live there. Penni & I are going to be tagging along with them on their annual excursion a couple of hours north to Brooklyn, Michigan for the NASCAR races (Nationwide & Sprint Cup series) this weekend.
I’ll, of course, be taking my laptop with me. (We should have internet access in the hotel room.) Whether or not I use my laptop, I’ll have my cell phone and will be twittering along the way. Feel free to follow along with me this weekend. I’ll have lots of stories and photos to share when I return, I’m fairly certain.
Who’s gonna win this weekend? Well, I’m rooting for one of the JR Motorsports teams - #5 driven by Mark Martin or #88 driven by Brad Keselowski - in the Nationwide series race on Saturday. On Sunday, I’m rooting for the #88 driven by Dale Earnhardt Jr. All of these teams have a great shot at a win. (Junior actually won the June race in Michigan so I’m sure he can defend his win.)
Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR
At this point in 2007, Jeff Gordon was leading the Sprint Cup standings (and was 344 points ahead of 2nd place). He & Jimmie Johnson were tied for the most wins so far with 4 a piece. After today’s race, Kyle Busch leads all drivers this year with 8 wins and is leading the standings by 242 points. Both of those stats are alarming to me. First of all, I expected Kyle to do ok in his first season with Joe Gibbs Racing. I figured he’d have 1 or 2 wins and probably make the Chase. Instead, he has 8 wins and is a sure thing for the Chase (if not the championship). The 242 point differential between Kyle and 2nd place is a big surprise to me. Jeff Gordon had 4 wins at this point last year but was farther ahead of 2nd place than Kyle is with 8 wins. This makes me think that it may be any one’s ballgame once the Chase starts. Kyle has definitely had some great finishes this year (very reminiscent of Jimmie Johnson at times in 2006 & 2007 when nothing seemed to stop the team from a top 5 or win). Unfortunately, he has a handful of very poor finishes (including Martinsville, which is a Chase track). He will more than likely need no stumbles (or bad luck) in the Chase to keep his roll going and end up 2008 Sprint Cup Champion.
I Refuse to Have a Bad Day by Paul Whitley
Hello, I'm Tara. Welcome to my blog! I am a 27 year old from Northwest Arkansas. This blog is for me to share my thoughts on NASCAR, the Arkansas Razorbacks, and anything else I feel like sharing.
