Nascar On My Mind

Update: I just got an email from patcarpentier.com !!! They saw my post and mention of Patrick and thanked me for being a fan. That just made my day (week, month...) Woot! Um, Jimmie, I'm waiting............................. :)

Back to the post:
My name is Kelly and I love Nascar. There, I said it. It has been a rare occurrence for me to find many fellow Nascar fans in the blogosphere. I admit, I used to hate Nascar but am happy to have been converted. Let me share my story....

My husband's brother and wife lean more towards the redneck side of things. We got together with them often and I would always groan when I realized the gathering was going to be based around a Nascar race.

At one race gathering, everyone was picking their driver and putting money into a betting pool. They bugged me to pick a driver (even though I had no clue), and someone suggested I choose Jimmie Johnson (since no one else there liked him). What do you know, he won! I won a hundred bucks and my interest in Nascar increased a bit. My in-laws nurtured their new Nascar fan seedling by properly watering me with Miller Lite until I flourished into a true fan.

Jimmie Johnson wound up winning the championship that season.... AND the next season! I picked #48 that fateful day and have enjoyed watching him race ever since. I was expecting him to be a shoe-in this year for a 3-peat for the championship, but we have run into some tough competition this year.

Kyle Bush (The Punk, as I like to call him), has taken Nascar by storm both in the Nationwide series and the Sprint Cup series. He has become my husband's driver (sorry Tony Stewart, maybe you will become his favorite again next year), so we have some fun battles around here. I will tell you a secret as long as you agree not to tell my husband...... I kind of like The Punk too (you have to admire his driving). That being said, I still want Johnson to step it up a little and crush Kyle in the chase for the championship.

The other driver I have been cursing this year is Carl Edwards (I call him Flippy Boy). Although he is a great driver, I am NOT a fan in the slightest. This is probably just because I find him to be in Johnson's way and I am being petty. What the hell, isn't that part of the fun? When he wins, I walk out of the room because I refuse to watch his back flip out of his car window. Let it be known however that while I might not like a particular driver, I respect them all and their talent.

Let it also be know that I am NOT a part of Jr. nation! I thought I might give him half a chance when he joined the Hendrick's team, but after he left my boys Johnson and Gordon out to dry a few times, I am back to rooting against him 100%. Now, on to an honorable mention. I always like to root for an underdog and for me that is Patrick Carpentier. He is a rookie from Canada and has done well this season. I like him because he appears to be such a sincere and heck of a funny guy in his interviews.

Isn't that what Nascar is really about: the drivers? So many people say that it is just a bunch of cars going around in circles. Yes, there are cars involved and they do go around in a circle (oval really). Yet, after you throw in the pit crews, crew chiefs, strategy and drama.... well that is Nascar baby!

I am looking forward to hearing some comments on this. I will tell you now that I will not tolerate any disrespectful trashing of any driver in comments. Although I spoke of Bush and Edwards, I did it in a jesting and respectful way. As stated above, I respect all of the drivers and care about their safety. Any abusive comments will simply be deleted.

Now, let's get around to a song! This is a great Nascar video called "I Love Nascar". For my parting words: Go Jimmie Johnson #48!!!!!!