2008 Kansas Nationwide Weekend

Judy Kay poses with our out-of town Above Average Race Fans. Left to right we've got Pam Liticker, who comes up north from Oklahoma; Laura Miller is originally from our hometown of Wellsville, now she's living the race watch life on the East Coast (NASCAR country!), Judy Kay, (baby seester), and Tina Morton, taking the northern route to Kansas from Oklahoma with Pam L. Hey Ya'all!

2008 KANSAS SPEEDWAY NATIONWIDE & SPRINT CUP WEEKEND!

"It was the Pits!!" For Me (NASCarla) and my daughter Shannon... Yeah, that's right - we've got creds! Thanks to Rick Walker - NASCAR official, Shannon met him last year at Race Fest! She was able to go into the Kansas Pits last year, and to Texas (sigh!), and this year I was able to go with her - what an eye-opening experience for this die-hard fan! So while Shannon is a pro at this Pit Pass business - I was a nervous wreck while getting my creds - kept thinking it was way too good to be true - I'd be stamped "access denied". Well, that didn't happen, dreams really DO come true! We were able to go everywhere in the pits - unbelievable! Friday, Saturday and Sunday I started the days in the pits, then took the looooong trek to the stands to watch the race with my peeps. It's impossible to watch the actual race when you're in the pits, you just get bits and pieces - not enough track action for this fan! But still - an experience I will be happy to repeat!
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words... To me, these pictures are priceless, I'll let them tell the Race Weekend Story!

We waited and waited to get Bobby's autograph, people kept stopping him - they all are, after all, working! That's why I was hesitant about stopping them. At least the first day. Pictured below are the Biggest NASCAR Fans - I have a great camera, 12x zoom, this pic was taken from inside the Fan Walk area (good thing nobody I know was pickin' their nose...). Is Richard handsome, or what???

Got anything to sell? Especially if you're deaf, or blind, or have any other handicap that you can turn into a quick buck - just look for James - he'll buy anything! Did get a cool t-shirt or two, but you know what? Most of us work at a bumper sticker factory - don't really need decals! I guess it's for a good cause?

Wait - the day's not over yet! Kathy Beth, James and NASCarla are headed out to Lakeside Speedway for the second dirt-filled night of the CAPITAL FEDERAL Late Model Showdown and Modified Shootout! It's a once-a-year event we always look forward to, when our local dirt track drivers mix it up with the big NASCAR boys - dirt flies! So, we usually miss the last 10 or so laps of the Nationwide race - but it's worth it, one weekend a year!

Friday - Day 1
Practice and Qualifying! We were on the Cup side of the pits. Shannon checks in with Rick (pictured above), the official who made it all happen for us. Clark is the engine man on Martin Truex's team - another "in" for Shannon, cute one too! I was SO impressed with how many Race people know Shannon - and how much she really knows about the Race life, behind the scenes! We were fed at the Budweiser hauler... I'm a dork, but had to take a picture of my plate! And look who was there, just like a regular guy - Richard Petty - honestly, it doesn't get much better than that! Well, maybe it does - like rib-eye steaks with mushroom sauce, grilled to perfection, eaten on the steps of the Truex hauler, in the pits at Kansas Speedway, surrounded by pit crews and drivers!!! Everybody made sure we had plenty of soft drinks and water to quench our thirst, there are coolers in front of every hauler. Fans, officials, mechanics, and cars everywhere! We even got to go into the garages, next to the cars, but weren't allowed to take any pictures of the engines. I was way too aware of the fact that the drivers, mechanics and crews were working - took me awhile to get comfortable asking for autographs... But not Shannon, she steps right in there, and they are happy to oblige! I did get the King, Richard Petty's picture and autograph, he truly is a great, friendly man!

Shannon poses next to Truex's tool-box, the next stall over is Ryan Newman's. Ryan is a real sweetie, seems kind of shy... Here's an interesting side-note observation: we didn't see many driver wives or girlfriends, what's up with that??? They do come out for the race, and maybe we just didn't recognize the women, maybe we thought they were just fans, like us! I just can't imagine that job getting old!
Jr. sure gets a lot of attention, any time he is out of the car he's swarmed by fans and the media, we couldn't get close!

Here I go again - my first day in the pits when there will be a race going on! Maybe I should have stayed and socialized with my friends and family a little longer, but the anticipation was too great, Shannon was waiting! Besides - I had a long trek ahead of me: through the parking lots, inside the gates, through the tunnel, good thing I had the magic Hot Pass!

David Stremme watches over practice while standing on top of his hauler - perfect view, for him, and a great view of David for us! This was Nationwide practice, so we had to do some walking. Nationwide cars are on one side of the pits, Cup garage is on the other - Fan Walk is in between. I wonder if David remembers that he met the 3 sisters, before we organized into 3sistersracing.com? I'll bet he does, looks like he's thinking about that right there, standing on top of the hauler...

I was so glad that Shannon was muching when I finally arrived - I needed to catch my breath! It's not all run run run, only when you have a Hot Pass and Grandstand seats, most people just stay in the pits if they can. But I want to do it all - I can rest when I'm dead! Which won't be any time soon - always have a race to get to!

What nice weather we had this weekend! You never know what to expect in Kansas in the fall, most of us bring sweatshirts and tank tops. Rusty doesn't car what kind of weather we're having, he's always got a smile on his face. Except for the time they drove back to Oklahoma in a tornado... oh, I'm getting ahead of myself...

SATURDAY - OFF TO THE NATIONWIDE RACE!!!