Joe's No Fool

Future pace car??

Joe Gibbs is a very wise fellow. His [possible] decision to go with Toyota next season carries with it many facets, one being the development of the new R07 engine, and the there's Chevrolet's dominance, proven performance, etc. etc. Perhaps he has a crystal ball, because this has to be a hard choice to step away from Chevy and GM. I have faith in TRD, I mean look at their dominance in the Truck Series. The future very well could be Toyota taking the lead.

Smoke has the biggest transition. He has a very big relationship with GM outside of NASCAR, but something tells me things will all come together.

Joe Gibbs Racing to host fanfest ... check this out. What a great way to help.

Got String?

It all started a few months ago when a filling in my #14 molar fell out. My stubbornness and dislike of dental work kept me from doing the right thing. Soon I developed the occasional night time toothache, which would go away. Then on this past Monday morning it hit hard and stayed basically knocking my 6' 1" 180 lb. frame to my knees. Yesterday a dentist discovered a massive infection and today I am on a regimen of Penicillin and pain killers. I'm sitting here now with a throb that brings tears to my eyes, but it has moved to the more localized area, while before it was the whole left side of my jaw. It's been the worst pain I've ever felt... I've put a nail into my hand with a nail gun... put on a band-aid and kept working... sliced myself with utility knives, saw blades and splinters are a daily occurrence. I've dislocated shoulders, broken ribs, and suffered back injuries from my days as a competiton water skier and downhill racing and nothing compares what this one little tooth has done.

Moral of the story... go to the damn dentist bucko!!

In NASCAR... I was in the dark about the Gene Haas investigation, so the recent guilty plea and probable 2 year stint came by surprise. It wasn't long ago I wrote a post about him and his innovative robotic business as well as the state of the art 40 mil wind tunnel he had plans to build... almost the amount he has been charged with. Well, 24 months is short... he'll be back in time for the opening of the new NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte in 2110.

Fox Help Us All

Good Sunday Morning.

After a somewhat restlest sleep, I'm happy it's a day later and one day less that ESPN/ABC will be broadcasting NASCAR. The Sharpie 500 last night, according to NASCAR.com's schedule, was the last for ESPN, but the rest of the season is ABC which has me wondering if we will still be subject to TV ad bombardment. ABC owns ESPN so it's likely things will not be pretty. I'm not a big fan of NBC's broadcasting of the races either, but they are better than these clowns. Why can't we have the Fox Network exclusively?

It was cool to hear Dale Jr's words of defense. Teresa is still family and she owns DEI... period.

The point standings barely changed after last nights race at the coliseum. Amazingly, the 10th - 13th place drivers all had good finishes, which left things pretty much equal as they were going into the race. I was hoping for a mix up... oh well, and with only 2 to go it's looking more and more like the current 12 will be the contenders... but then again, anything can happen.

It was good to see Pretty Boy Kahne have a good weekend. Poppa Ray must be happy having some Canadian money to help his struggling teams. And Bobby Labonte... wow!! The Dodge's are strong.

Mikey was funny in his #55 Toyo fighting with the leaders. One of the commentators stated that he was trying to get TV exposure... like he doesn't get enough! In the next moment came yet another ad and it was one of those stupid NAPA one's with Mikey reading his fan mail... although I like the fan that said his head is you know where... not on his shoulders.

Not Bristol Typical

The lineup for the Sharpie 500 is so different. Seeing the Dodges of Kasey Kahne and Monty on top, especially Monty at Bristol, is bizarre. In fact, there is not a Chevy in sight until 9th where Queeny sits and the naked #31 sits in 10th. And another odd ball, David Ragan in the 4th spot??

I watched some of the practice runs and the Busch race last night, which by the way was not A-Typical of Bristol. The new surface is "tire saving". I almost thought Ryan had the win on tires that should've been down to the wheels. Of course he was overpowered in the final laps by Kahne with some typical Bristol fender banging and tire rubbing which took what little life Newman's tires had right out of them and into the wall he went. Nice try though!! Newman's CORN Dodge is starting 7th tonight and he normally runs well at short tracks. It'll be interesting to see if things can be mixed up a bit for those near the fence line of The Chase.

Back at the Cottage... below is a shot of my next project. Coming off of the gable end of the area where the sliding door is will be a 16'x 20' family room. To the left is the backside of the garage... the addition will have a 12'x5' extension there that will serve as a stairwell leading down to a full finished basement from inside the garage. This was my client's idea. I will post photos of the progress.

Bring Back the Good Ole Days

More like INSANITY... but NASCAR prevails in the latest battle of the Cellular War. Perhaps the appeal in Atlanta District Court later will side with RCR and AT&T. What really has me tweaked is the apparent lack of respect for Richard Childress. Right, I know, business is business, but this is small potatoes. It's only one car. So, what will the #31 have on the hood Saturday night?

Below is the most recent addition to my growing collection. It is a car that was purchased from Harry Gant. Dale got his 1st win on asphalt with this 1964 Chevelle in 1974. I picked it up at our annual County Fair the other night for $60.00, [which is about 1/2 of it's value], brand new in the box from a collection dealer.

Bring on the Sun

I feel bad for the folks who travel long distances and plan to see a live NASCAR race months in advance only to have it washed out. The last two races I've been to have been rain delayed... one, at Talladega was run on Monday, but it cost us dearly in motel fees and air fare, plus missing more time off from work. Today doesn't look much better. There is a heavy band of rain stretching from northern Wisconsin into northern Illinois that is moving east, but there may be an opportunity. If not... tomorrow!?

Back at the Cottage... It's always nice to complete one of my projects. The guy on the steps is Bob, the home owner, and as you can see he is pleased. The before deck was a mere 6 feet wide by 16 feet long and slowly sinking into the ground because the person who built it did not use footers. I removed that and built the 12 foot by 20 foot one that you could park a truck on. The fellow in the background is my carpenter, Mike, and Bob gave Mike a $25 tip on top of the 5k plus he paid me. I thought that was very cool!!