Sunburns and big grass fields

If you have been around here very long, you probably know I'm a pretty big race fan. If it has four wheels and goes fast, you have my attention. So in Alabama sunburns and big grass fields can only mean one thing... last weekend was Talladega weekend.

I had not really planned on going to Talladega this year but my new boss Sean won tickets to the Saturday race and given that he is not a race fan and was going to be out of town... he offered the tickets to me. Whoo hoo!! So I got up on Saturday morning to cloudy skies and a weather forecast that almost assured me it was going to rain at some point during the race that afternoon. My spirits were not dampened... I headed out for the track and figured that if it rained... I would head home and watch the rest of it on TV. The trip is not a particularly long one and with free tickets in hand I didn't figure I had much to lose.

Sean won two tickets but I didn't really want to force anyone to go with me... and I actually kind of like going to races by myself. I like doing my own thing, keeping my own schedule, sitting where I want and listening to the scanner as opposed to explaining what is going on on the race track. I mean no offense to my friends and family.... that is just usually the way I prefer to watch a race.

In college, my friend Bobby taught me the back roads to Talladega. If you have ever been stuck in traffic on the interstate on a race weekend in Alabama you will understand how important this is. On Saturday I ran into no traffic and as I pulled up over the last hill on some two lane county road, the track came into view. (It's an awesome sight... and coming over this hill is much more dramatic than passing the track on the interstate.) I got as close to the track as I could and pulled into the grass parking lot I was directed to.

I got there in time for qualifying and after picking up a new hat and a few other things at the merchandise trailers, I headed for my seat. I called my dad at some point and he reminded me to put on sun screen. When I was in college, I sat at Talladega all day one Saturday with Bobby and came back so sunburned I had blisters on my shoulders and the tops of my knees. It was stupid and painful.

So this Saturday once I got settled with my scanner and camera I put on the sun screen... at least I thought. The rain never came on Saturday and I sat out there for about 6 hours. I had a great time and took lots of pictures of my favorite cars. I watched qualifying for the Sunday race and then the race on Saturday afternoon. By the end of the race, I was hot, sweaty and I realized my ankles were itchy. I didn't think too much about it and when the checkered flag flew on the race Saturday afternoon I headed for my car.

Another thing my friend Bobby taught me in college was that the other secret to avoiding Talladega traffic is to leave as soon as the race is over so that you can beat out all of the people who dilly dally around after the race. So once I snapped a few pictures of the winning car, I took off for my car.

Remember that grass field I parked in when I arrived six hours earlier... it looks a whole lot like every other grass field surrounding this giant race track dropped in the middle of nowhere. Needless to say, six hours of sitting in the sun and my complete lack of a sense of a direction left me a bit turned around and lost. I finally found my car after wandering around lost for a little bit.

As I headed for home I looked at myself in the vanity mirror in the car... whoops... looks like I didn't get every spot with the sun screen. After I made it home, a shower was the first order of business. I'm not sure about you but after I have been in the sun, my sunburn really shows up after I have showered.

I have the most uneven crazy looking sunburn you have ever seen! I apparently forgot the front of my neck... so I have a v-neck red spot. I also missed the top part of my arms... not my shoulders but just below my shoulders. I missed my right hand and the inside of my left arm. And the worst part is the inside of my left leg. Apparently I sat for a lot of the day with my left foot propped on my right knee. So one side of my left leg is terribly red from my knee to just above my sock line.

Awesome!! I had a great time and I don't regret going... but next time maybe I will do a little better with actually applying the sun screen. And I guess I'll just have to put a homing device on my car. One day maybe I will learn.

The Rolex 24

If you thought I was excited about the Barrett Jackson auction last weekend... you should be at my house this weekend. This weekend it is the Rolex 24 race. What does the 24 stand for? That's right, 24 hours! I love it! Fox and Speed TV broadcast about 18 hours of it and I have watched most of it. It's the unofficial start to the race season. There are somewhere around 60 cars and each car has three or four drivers that rotate throughout the 24 hours. In the end, the winners get a Rolex

As opposed to last weekend, I am feeling much better so I have done lots of of other things (like reorganizing closets and my guest bedrooms) while the race was on... but I can still pay enough attention to the race to enjoy it. I have actually been to the Rolex 24. My parents and I went in 2001 for my birthday present that year. It was my first sports car race to attend and we didn't know what we were doing, but I really wanted to go because Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr. were racing with the Corvette team. The weather was absolutely miserable and my mom caught pneumonia while we were sitting out in the cold and rain all night. That's right.. we sat out in the rain all night... like I said, we didn't know what we were doing. Now when we go to sports car races, we camp in a tent... and mom stays home.

But I was still very excited to be there. I didn't get to meet any of the drivers like we do now when we go to the races, but I was glad to have been there. The #2 Corvette won the whole thing and the Dale Jr #3 Corvette team came in second in class and fourth over all! It was also one of the last races that Dale Earnhardt was in before he was killed in the 2001 Daytona 500. That year for my birthday I also got a die cast car just like this one.

My dad ordered it before the race but the production was delayed and so it didn't come in until after the race. Because Dale Earnhardt died just a few weeks later, it is a pretty collectible item and I am very glad to have it. For now, it sits in a box in my closet but one day I can hopefully display it somewhere.

The race technically just ended but I have not seen the end yet. Since I was at church this morning and didn't get up at 5 AM or whenever the coverage started back, I have about seven hours of coverage on my Tivo waiting for me. Yes I know I need a life... no need to e-mail me and tell me that. :-)

Happy Race Day

I mentioned in my Weekend Reflections that I planned to park myself in front of the TV and watch racing all day. Well I pretty much did just that. Given that church and a brief nap were also a part of the day, I am just finishing up with some of my race watching.

Now I am the first to admit that it doesn't take much to make me happy but tonight I am very happy. I have actually met both the Indy 500 winner and the Coke 600 winner!

I know most of you couldn't care less :-) but Dario Franchitti won the rain delayed Indy 500 this afternoon. (And for those that don't care about racing... he is also married to actress Ashley Judd.) I actually got a chance to meet him at the Osh Kosh air show last summer and again at the Sebring race this past Spring. Here is a picture with him from Osh Kosh last year (we were under a yellow Klein tools tent so that's why we both look rather yellow).



And then Casey Mears won the Coca-Cola 600 tonight. I met him at an autograph session at Talladega a few years ago. I was by myself so I don't have a picture with him but here is a picture of him.



When I watched the end of the Coke 600, I was bouncing around the house clapping and acting goofy which only caused Brun to run around and act silly so now we are both out of breath.

Okay well I was just happy so I wanted to share... now it's off to bed.

Weekend Reflections

It has been another crazy busy week filled with lots of travel. Last weekend I went to my hometown and attended a baby shower on Sunday afternoon. The baby shower was so nice and the couple got lots of cute things for their baby. While I enjoyed the shower I missed getting my Sunday afternoon nap. :-)

After church Sunday night it was back to the town where I live. I was so tired I came home and went almost directly to bed. Monday was a normal day of work and then it was back to my hometown. On Tuesday I had to work in my hometown and then drive back to the town where I live. On Wednesday it was work back in the town where I live and then right back to my hometown again. Thursday morning was a meeting for work in my hometown and then it was back to the town where I live.

So given that each trip is about 2.5 hours each way... I was in the car 12.5 hours. YUCK!!

Thursday night after I got back to the town where I live Brun had a bath. He had been at my parent’s house all week and even though he had a great time he was filthy!! He loves spending time with my parents and his “cousin dogs” but he comes back quite nasty.

On Friday I had a normal day of work in the town where I live. My dad rode with me back to the town where I live on Thursday afternoon and then my mom came into town Friday night. Friday night we ate at my house and did some stuff around the house.

On Saturday Leslie and I hung out and she and Classic Rock Baby came over and we worked on some sewing projects. I am so amazed at how great Brun is with the baby. He can be an absolute looney toon when we are playing but he is so sweet to the baby… he lets him pet him and squeal at him and he just plays along. Saturday night, my parents and I went to dinner with Leslie, ToolMan and CRB.

The week was filled with lots and lots of travel but it all went well. So I would say my week was pretty tiring and the weekend was definitely the high point. This week I am thankful that I had safe travels in all of my driving. I am also thankful for my family and friends who I spent time with during the week. And I am thankful that I do not have to do any travel next week.

Finally, I am thankful for the fact that this coming Sunday is race day. Being a big racing fan I can start my day with the F1 race, watch the Indy 500 after church Sunday afternoon and then finally finish up the day with the Coca-Cola 600 after church Sunday night. I will be very tired of watching cars drive around in circles (or on road courses in the case of the F1 race) by the end of the day Sunday but I love it. :-)

For more Weekend Reflections, visit Judi.