Being on your home turf is usually always a good thing. Sure schedules get hectic and the hours might get a little bit longer but hey, you get to sleep in your own bed at the end of the night. Normally, my week involves flying to a major hub city like Detroit on a Thursday, meeting up with Johnny Gibson and then heading out for successive nights of racing. Usually, I wrap up the weekend on Sunday morning with an early flight and a long day of laundry and cleaning.
So far in 2011, those nights of "successive racing," have been few and far between but that's another story for another day. This past week was different. After flying home from another rain out on May21st at I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Michigan, I took a little time to relax. I was in a calm state of mind because the week's race was in the Charlotte area which is a quick 30 minute drive from my apartment. Although we had a very busy schedule leading up to the race with planned live TV coverage, I was a bit at ease knowing that I would be able to go home after the checkers flew and the equipment was put up and the fact that my girlfriend would be out here.
Maegan made her first trip on an airplane to come out for the weekend. I picked her up Thursday night amidst rain and thunder. I jokingly told her that she always knows how to "make an entrance." Originally we had plans to do several things until Mother Nature got in the way. For the eighth time this year, rain either delayed or canceled a World of Outlaws Series event and what a show it was on Friday. Right after the drivers meeting, the wind and rain blew in full force. Even though it only lasted about 10 minutes, the amount of water that was dumped on the grounds was immense. Small and large pools of water emerged all over the pits and the racing surface had a bright sheen to it as the lights came on. Track officials tried their best and prepped the track with such a situation in mind. As the hours ticked on, it appeared we might be able to get the show in. An impromptu autograph session helped tide the fans over and just as the drivers had returned to their haulers and began to suit up, the rains came again, effectively ending the night. You could see the dejection on everyone's faces as they packed up once again and took off for the motels.
Saturday was the polar opposite of Friday. With sunny skies and warm temperatures all day, the track was in great shape as we began the night of racing. Once the dust settled a few hours later, Paul McMahan emerged victorious with car co-owner Kasey Kahne looking on. It's great to see some like Paul win because he does race so hard. The driver of the HR cattle wagon hasn't had much luck this year but has been fast. It truly was only a matter of time before he got to victory lane.
While McMahan and KKR had a great night, I experienced a horrible one from the checkers on. When I went to go set up my camera for the post race interview, we realized the camera had froze with the only fix being to let it slowly die on battery power and then recharge. Thankfully, Sean Cain from KKR stepped in with a beautiful Canon SLR and helped me out. Due to that and a delayed Victory Lane celebration on the front stretch, most of the drivers had packed up and were on their way to Michigan so my story was a little lean on quotes. A big thanks to Donny Schatz and Cody Darrah for helping me out in a pinch. With the internet giving me fits again and a delayed delivery on my video, I wasn't able to get our results and recap posted until after I got home. The evening finally ended at 3 am when I crawled into bed and shut my eyes for a few hours.
Sunday on Memorial Day weekend is a racers dream. The Grand Prix of Monaco, the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 highlight a day made for fast cars, good friends and even better food. Maegan and I made a quick trip to the grocery store for supplies and then it was over to Kellen's apartment for deep dish pizzas and watching America's best. I must admit, the pizza's were good and so were both finishes! I really feel for both National Guard machines. First at Indy and then at Charlotte, it seemed like the cars that represented our troops couldn't make it through the final turn without an issue.
It was another early wake up call today as I had to be at the airport by 7. Maegan dropped me off and gave me a big hug before I walked into the terminal. As I saw my pickup drive off, I realized how truly lucky I am to have a gorgeous girl who puts up with a lot. Originally, she was going to get to go white water rafting, go to a few big malls and experience her first NASCAR race. Instead, 'lil Mae,' got treated to cold and damp conditions on Friday, muggy weather Saturday and a lazy Sunday. She didn't see nearly as much of her boyfriend as she would have liked. Being the little trooper that she is, Maegan never complained and helped me out with what ever I needed. In life, you are truly blessed if you have someone that is willing to stick by your side as you do something you enjoy.
As I write this, I am hearing the boarding call for my flight to Grand Rapids, Michigan for tonight's make up race at I-96 Speedway. The radar looks clear and I feel refreshed after having a race at home to get me ready for the gauntlet stretch coming up.
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