A word of Thanks

I just wanted to thank each and every one of you who have taken time out of your busy day to read my blog. The hits are up, both here and on my web site, which is somewhat surprising, because those of you who have visited my site know that I am much more a writer than I am a web designer. I continue to work on the site, and am coming up with some ideas to re do parts of it, and hopefully make it a more entertaining place.

My blog is my passion, and it's hopefully getting better as time goes by. I'm somewhat overwhelmed by the range of locations represented by the readers of this blog. My recent visitors have ranged from California to Maine, from Miami to Alberta, Canada, and even Spain, Poland, Germany, and Korea. I'm still trying to get a hit from North Dakota, or Idaho, but I'm not going to give up until I've got a few! I've had several readers from the U.K., and I know one or two of them are transplanted Yankees, but at least a couple are natives to England. It's exciting to know that people who have never smelled the fumes of a Nascar race are still fans and read something as insignificant as my blog. I hope one day Nascar will run an exhibition race in the U.K., as they did years ago in Japan. For some strange reason, I would pay money to see Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Elliot Sadler wear a traditional 'Bobby' helmet. (For those of you who haven't heard that term, that's a policeman's helmet)

While giving thanks, I'd also like to say thank you to Mike Helton. Mike has had a tough job over the years, but he is basically the guy that keeps the wheels on Nascar. Mike has been a friend and mentor to many drivers over the years, has always been there to pray with a friend, or to give a little much needed stern advice. I don't know how much Nascar pays Mike Helton, but it's probably not enough. Mike has seen this sport go through a lot of changes, some of them very tough changes. I'll never forget the moment, back in the evening of February 18, 2001, when Mike had to do the toughest job he's ever done, which was announce to the world the death of a good friend and hero to many, Dale Earnhardt. God Bless you, Mike Helton.

There are so many others within the Nascar organization who deserve our praise, and also frequently our scorn. Racing fans are a tough crowd to please, but these people do their best.

April 29th would have been Dale Earnhardt's 57th birthday. DEI will be having it's annual Dale Earnhardt Day, and I went to the first one, in 2002. As a Dale Earnhardt Jr. fan, I've certainly got my differences with DEI, but I'm willing to put them aside and go up that day and celebrate the life of a man that has made an impact upon my life. DEI was started by Dale Earnhardt, and whether or not we agree on how Teresa Earnhardt has run the place since then, I'm going to go and pay my respects to the man I consider to be the greatest race car driver ever.

Thank you, the readers of this site. I will try to improve my skills and hopefully provide more interesting columns as time goes by. I'm flattered that you are willing to visit this site, and I hope to give you much more as time goes by. I originally started this blog with some advertising, but I removed it, because I didn't like they way the ads fit with what I was doing. This site, as will my website, will remain ad free.

If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or just want to rip me a new one, go ahead. This is a work in progress, and all comments will be read. You folks are great, but I warn you! If you keep reading, I'll keep writing!