Monday, June 28, 2010

2 in a Row!!!

Wait, where am I?  Which race is this?  Suddenly I'm getting a funny feeling...like...like deja vu!  Oh, of course!  It's because the 48 team won last weekend AND this weekend!  So not only is it deja vu because they won last weekend, but it's deja vu for the last time the 48 won back-to-back races at Fontana and Las Vegas (which I was there for).  I could get used to this!  On the other hand, this one will always stick out in my mind because it's always a good day when my two favorite drivers pass Kurt Busch for 1st and 2nd place.

Got a little hairy at the end there between Kurt and Jimmie...Kurt tried to put the nudge & budge over on Jimmie after the restart, but in the end, Jimmie gave him the ol' Dale Earnhardt "pardon me...#$%hole" move and took the win.  As much as I rag on Kurt Busch, that was some damn nice racing from both of them.  Nobody got too into it and ruined the other's day; each pushed it just enough to give himself an advantage.  Loved it.

Hey, speaking of smooth moves, can I give a shout-out to Kyle Busch for looking like he meant to do a complete 360 degree turn and then getting back in the gas after Burton got into him?  My God that guy can drive!  Please somebody give him a decent car again next week...I love watching him get up on the wheel.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Michigan Photos

Actually, the title is misleading because I could only find one whole picture from Michigan, argh. It's a pretty cute one, though, at least...I love Pensive!Chad. Especially with the arm on the car...you can tell each and every car has a special place in his heart. ;)

Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 at Michigan International Speedway, June 13, 2010

(Can I just say that this race and the Hershey's Milk and Milkshakes one at Dover have the most awesome sponsors? I've never tried either one, but I love the names.)

Well, as a consolation prize, here are a few pics of my favorite Michigander/Swede (hehe, you were afraid I was going to say Brad Keselowski for a second before I added "Swede," am I right?), Nicklas Lidstrom, who is the captain of my favorite hockey team, the Detroit Red Wings. Nick had the honor of driving the pace car last weekend at the Michigan race, which is where the NASCAR connection comes in, in case you were wondering where I was going with this. I love it when my two favorite sports come together!

Nick with Ndamukong Suh of the Detroit Lions

Driving the pace car

Love that smile...SO glad he re-signed for one more year!! A total class act.

WIN AT INFINEON!!!

Jimmie, Chad, and the 48 team just won their first road course race ever today, namely the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA. Congratulations, guys! You can officially cross "Road Course Win" off your To Do list. Something tells me they won't be completely content unless they go for the double and get one at Watkins Glen, too, knowing how their minds work, hehe.

Well, I feel bad for Marcos Ambrose...I guess he knew the rule, so at least he wasn't caught completely unawares and didn't have it come as a nasty surprise, but it's kind of a bummer. I mean, I don't feel TOO bad since it played right into Jimmie's hands, but still, I think he deserved better than sixth. Oh well, that's racin'!

I just realized I haven't given a standings update all year, so now would be a good time to start: with their win today, the 48 moves up 4 spots into the No. 2 position in points. Harvick better be on the lookout! :Jaws music plays: We are getting closer and closer to Jimmeh Season with every race, after all.

Oh - Michigan pics are coming right up in a few minutes! Better late than never, eh?

Monday, June 14, 2010

6th at Michigan

Well, I'd say that was quite an improvement over last year's finish at Michigan! Not quite as exciting, but I much prefer the calm version, thank you very much. Didn't get to see the whole race...I kinda slept in after a, um, late night on Saturday, so I missed a lot. Therefore, I'm going to shut up and spare you all the usual hot air and just get the pics done NOW instead of putting it off, which I think will make everybody (if anybody still reads this) happy.

...Or not, since my favorite picture places haven't updated yet. Ok, pics are coming in the next couple of days, then; I promise.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Random B.S.

"...But wait," you say, "Shouldn't that be the title of every post here?" And the answer is yes. But that would be confusing. So.

  • JJ wins the Prelude to the Dream at Eldora Speedway, and all without Chad there to tie his shoes for him. Good job, dude!
  • JJ is on baby watch and has Aric Almirola lined up as an alternate driver for the next 5 races in case he needs to leave for the delivery. Chad says there's no way he'll let Jimmie miss the delivery: "You will be there. I don't care what it costs, what it takes, if we don't get points." (ESPN) Aww, see? Crew chiefs really do have feelings!
  • This has almost nothing to do with NASCAR, but congratulations to the Chicago Blackhawks for winning the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals! I have no idea if Chad is a hockey fan, but he is from Illinois, after all, so I thought I'd congratulate him on his home team winning, just in case. And he'd better appreciate it because this is the last time this Red Wings fan will ever say something nice about the Hawks. While we're at it, congrats to Jonathan Toews for getting the Conn Smythe trophy (that's the MVP award for you non-hockey peeps) because he's one of my favorite non-Wings players.

Pocono & Charlotte Photos

(Note: some of these are from practice or qualifying or whatever a day or two before the race, but I can't be bothered with details.)

Gillette Fusion ProGlide 500 at Pocono Raceway, June 6, 2010



Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, May 30, 2010

Dover Photos

Apparently I have work ethic today, so here are some pics from a few weeks ago at Dover, and then the two most recent races (Charlotte & Pocono) will follow in the next post.

Autism Speaks 400 at Dover International Speedway, May 16, 2010

Monday, June 7, 2010

Was that really Pocono?

Hey, it's me! I'm still alive! Well, I couldn't help but put in my two cents about all the drama at...Pocono. Hmm, "drama" and "Pocono" in the same sentence? Hey, works for me. I've always thought it was one of the more scenic tracks there is and wouldn't mind going there if the races were a little more exciting. Well, yesterday's race would've been a perfect one to be at!

First things first, the 48 finished 5th, which is a nice comeback from the last couple of weeks. I think it's funny how Jimmie has a bad couple of races, and everybody starts saying, "Oh, it's not Hendrick's year this year, looks like JGR's rising to the top," etc. Well, it's true that JGR is having a good year so far, and I like those guys for the most part, so that's a good thing. However, those who say HMS is losing its dominance aren't taking the past 4 years into consideration. As a Tony Stewart fan, I know exactly who was at the top of the standings this time of year last year: Tony. Not Jimmie. Funny how things change by the end of the year, eh? All I'm going to say is that we still have a long way to go.

Ah yes, now on to the Grudge Match 500. This involves two drivers I actually like (well, at least until now), so for once, no previously existing bias here. I'll make it short: I think it was Harvick's fault. Yes, they were going for the same piece of track, but since Logano was half a car length out in front of Harvick and could only see what was happening by his limited view from the mirrors, I feel that it was up to Harvick, who had a much clearer line of vision right out the windshield, to watch where he was going. Thanks, Harvick. You ruined Joey's top 5 finish and took a spot away from Tony, who had worked so darn hard to get to 2nd. Usually I wouldn't care about one measly spot, but that was an incredibly hard-fought 2nd place, and to give Kyle a chance to just breeze by Tony on the restart when he wasn't able to pass him before under green really sucked, at least for me.

I liked Joey's reaction at the end of the race. I thought it was really, really lame of Kevin's crew to surround him like that and not let Joey talk to Kevin...come on, it's not like Joey was going to start throwing punches or something. As for the post-race interview, well, I liked his sarcasm last year when he got into it with Robby Gordon after the Nationwide race at...Watkins Glen, I think? And I liked it again yesterday. Maybe it wasn't totally above-board to bring Delana into it, but it's not like he insulted her, so I don't think it was that big a deal. I think he did the right thing, all in all, and maybe Harvick will get a clue in the future. I like Harvick's aggressive driving style, but there's a difference between aggressive and reckless. If you're going to drive like that, you have to drive smart at the same time. Lord knows everybody's veered across the line from "up on the wheel" to "I-don't-give-a-darn-right-now" at some point, but it seems like Harvick has a hard time accepting blame and learning from his mistakes.