Snow in Southtown or better known to me as Pearl MS?   Is this the year without a Santa Clause?  Did Mrs. Clause go to Mother Nature and ask her to get her sons Snow Miser and Heat Miser to agree to a warm day at the North Pole for a day of Snow in Southtown?  What about global warming?  Will Kurt Busch get to make another snow angel?   More important, what about the races this weekend?   They may just get them in, although, the forcast is 50% chance of rain today, with a low of 40,  30% chance of rain and snow tommorrow with a high of 40 and a low of 25.  Sunday has a 10% of precipitation with a high of 56.  So be prepared to chill out with a blanket, and some hot chocolate, or coffee if you are going to the race.  It promises to be a cold day.  

Thanks to Mother Nature this time I was all amped up only to be disappointed again.  I have mixed emotions on this race.  I know they were trying to get the race in but, if they had dried the track a little longer, and started it a little later, I think they could have gotten more racing in.  A four car pile up involving Casey Mears, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Sam Hornish Jr., and Reed Sorenson delayed the race for over an hour.  If they had taken the time before they started they started the race to insure the track was dry, and that any weepers were taken care of, then they would not have had to red flag the race for an hour or more while they cleaned and fixed the track.  So that is why my emotions are mixed on this one.  I wanted them to go racing, but, not on a track that clearly was not ready.  Congratulations to Carl Edwards on the win, and Congratulations to Kyle Busch the points leader. 

cya,

J Steele(jst41162)

I was all amped up on Mountain Dew and ready to call in the National Guard to cut Tony Stewart's hair when all of the sudden my afternoon was ruined by an Alltel phone call and a can of Miller Light.   I ran out of Dupont paint and went to Lowes who didn't have any. Then I thought maybe I would eat some Kellogg's but I was out of that to.   Well then I thought I would check the Home Depot for some Interstate Batteries, but that didn't happen either, because, my Alltel phone rang and my friend had some Miller Light.  And I have to give some atta boys to, Target, Best Buy , Budweiser, Jim Beam, Cheerios, Red Bull, and how about UPS while I am at it.  Well that is my version of the Daytona 500.  Hope you liked it.

CYA,

J. Steele (jst41162)

Tony Stewart was the Tony we all know and love on media day.  Not only that, but he managed to get in a scrape with Kurt Busch during Bud Shootout Practice.   You gotta love it.  Tony being called to the NASCAR hauler already.  Maybe it's the hair.   Then Dale Jr. goes and wins his first race for Hendrick Motorsports.  That grin on his face stretched from ear to ear. That was the happiest I have seen him since he won the Daytona 500.  For those of you who doubted his ability, doubt no more.  If there were any question about the car of tommorrow, and what kind of racing we would see, I think they were answered.  The racing was unbelievable.   I like so many thought we were gonna see racing like we saw at Dega, but I was wrong.   It was exciting.   I sure hope that the 500 is that exciting.  Well those are my thoughts.  Let me here some of yours.

C ya,

J. Steele (jst41162)

There are moments in sports for each of that we will never forget.  I have several. I will start with the 1972 olympic games in Munich.  The tragedy that occured there with the 11 Israeli athletes will forever be etched in my memory.   I won't forget the miracle on ice during the 1980 winter olympic games.  I remember in 1983 Jim Valvano running on to the court looking for a player to hug after his underdog N. C. State team beat Houston to win the NCAA national championship game.   I will always remember the home run hit by Kirk Gibson in the 1988 World Series and him limping around all four bases.  Another moment I will never forget is Dale Earnhardt heading to victory lane after winning the Daytona 500 with all the crews from other teams lined up to shake his hand.  The death of Dale Earnhardt in 2001 is another moment that I will always remember.  The Cubs loosing after being one game away from the World Series in 2003 after a fan interfered with the ball that Moises Alou was about to catch.  Dale Jr. winning the Daytona 500 in 2004 three years to the day after his father died.  Of  course I would have to include a few Super Bowl games from John Elway and Bret Favre in there to.   These are just a few moments in sports that are special to me.  Let me know some of yours. 

Cya

J Steele(jst41162)

Of course the most obvious difference from a year ago is the change in the name from Nextel Cup to Sprint Cup.  Think back to last year at this time, the Toyota teams were searching for speed, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was driving for DEI, and Joe Gibbs Racing was fielding Chevys.  Michael Waltip didn't make the Daytona 500, and his crew chief was fired for cheating.  So now we come to 2008, and all I can say is what a difference a year makes.  Six spots out of ten on the speed charts are held by Toyota teams.  Thats right I said six, and one of those is Michael Waltrip.  Two others are held by Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas. Also, if you haven't heard by now, Dale Earnhardt Jr sits atop the speed charts in a Hendrick Chevrolet.  This is just testing, and this is just Daytona, but what an improvement from a year ago.  What I am waiting for, is to see how well these teams do at the mile and a half and two mile tracks.  We will find that out when the teams go out west.  Leave me a comment or two, and let me know what you think. 

C ya

J Steele (jst41162)

The first round of testing is over, and one thing is certain, the 48 team has picked up right where it left off.  In fact all the Hendrick teams testing this week looked strong.  Having a year under their belts certainly has seemed to help the Toyotas.  Kyle Busch in a Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota , A. J. Allmendinger in a team Red Bull Toyota, J. J. Yeley in a Hall of Fame Racing Toyota, and David Reutimann in a Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota , were around the top of the charts for most of the practice sessions.  Then we have the Fords and Dodges that seem to be searching for speed.  Only the unsponsored Yates Ford of Travis Kvapil seemed somewhat consistent.  Wasn't it just last year that we had an all Yates front row for the 500.  How can he not get a sponsor for that car. Oh well that is for another day.  What is yet to be determined is how all the information gathered this week translates to the Daytona 500.  I guess we will all just have to wait 38 more days to find out. 

Until next time,

J. Steele (jst41162)

I dont know about ya'll, but I can't wait.  Testing begins next week at Daytona and the Nascar Sprint Cup season will be underway.   There are a lot of questions to be answered at these test sessions.  Will Dale Jr. be as strong as the other Hendrick cars?  Will Joe Gibbs Racing be as strong in Toyotas as they were in Chevys?  Will all the changes made in driver and crew chief combinations pay off?   Will the Hendrick organization continue the dominance it has had with the car of tomorrow, or, have others caught up?    I don't know about you, but, I will be watching to find out. 

Catch Ya Later,

J. Steele aka jst41162