Penni and I went to Ohio last weekend (Aug 14-19) to visit Sarah & Andi.  On Friday-Sunday, we were actually a couple of hours north in Michigan for some NASCAR.  On Friday, we saw Cup practice & qualifying plus Nationwide practice.  On Saturday, we saw Nationwide qualifying plus the Nationwide race.  Then, on Sunday, we saw the Cup race.

I don’t think attending a NASCAR race will ever be the same if I don’t have a weekend pit pass.  A pit pass allows you to get so much more closer to the cars, drivers, and on-track action.  I took over 600 photos in Michigan and got half a dozen autographs that I really wouldn’t have gotten without the pit pass.  Here is a picture of me prior to Nationwide qualifying on Saturday in front of the JR Motorsports #88 Navy Chevy.

I’m going to post another blog entry explaining some of my photos.  (There’s a story to every photo, you know?)  If you want to go ahead and see the best photos I took in Michigan, click here.  (Clicking on the thumbnail will take you to a larger version of the photograph.)

I am sitting in the Memphis International Airport right now waiting on my flight from MEM to Northwest Arkansas.  I should be home in 2 hours.

I had a great time in Ohio & Michigan.  (Although, Monday didn’t quite go how any of us had planned or wanted.)  I got several autographs and took over 500 photos at the track.  Penni & I have decided that attending a race without a weekend pit pass just won’t be the same.  Besides seeing Penni again and officially meeting Sarah & Andi, I also got to officially meet Hilary.  She came into town last night and we (me, Penni, & Hilary) went and had supper together.

I feel like I could sleep the day away once I get home today so, if I do, you probably won’t hear from me much the rest of today.  If I get home and am awake, I’ll start working on photos and blog entries about my trip.

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.)