Bristol Race 2008 (August)

We have had tickets to go to the fall race at Bristol since we purchased them with our spring tickets back at the first of the year. I made arrangements for the Saturday night race (for babysitters) but forgot that we also had Busch tickets also! Duffer was going to take Davis to the Busch race, just the two of them, but he worked until 5:30 and was just too tired to deal with the crowds. So we ate those tickets. :(

Some family stuff happened to ruin our babysitting plans so we were going to sell the Cup tickets until our friends, Tommy and Jayme, decided they were going and wanted us to go with them. (Tommy won the tickets at his work!) So I had to line up another babysitter at the last minute but it all worked out and we got to go.

Jayme went with me to drop the kids off at my MIL's house before Duffer got home from work. My MIL lives near the airport so as we were leaving I saw a plane landing and freaked out...I have this odd obsession with planes. I whipped the vehicle around in the middle of the road to go back to where I could see the runway. Jayme thought I was absolutely crazy...which I am!! It was just a propeller plane...hate to ride in those kind...so we watched and then pulled out again. Then another plane came and I didn't stop but I did go really slow as it flew over my car I could tell it was a private plane and just KNEW it was one of the race car drivers!!!

This is the first year that Duffer has worked on Race Day. We are usually up at the track by 10am) when the race starts at 8pm but Duffer didn't get off work until 3:30. We headed out around 4:30, grabbed a bite to eat and drove to Bristol. We were all surprised that we didn't hit much traffic but I guess everyone was already there!! haha

Jayme and me in the truck on the way there...



Our wonderful buddy, Kevin, let us park up close near the track...and of course I had to take his picture. When we were talking to him he said he had to go escort Dale Jr. to the track!!! I begged to ride in the cooler of his golf cart...hahahaha...he told me that Jr was very unfriendly and that I shouldn't be wearing his shirt....but I still love him!!!

So we went beside the helicopter pad and sure enough here comes Kevin in his golf cart and a black Suburban behind it...the windows were tinted but we still saw Jr. in the back. You have look really close (or even click on the picture to enlarge it) but Jr is in the back seat with a hat and sunglasses on the passenger side of the vehicle.




Tommy and Jayme

Duffer and me

As we were walking to the trailers to look around....these guys drove by us (Jimmy Spencer and Larry McReynolds). They had been doing the Trackside TV show right where we were headed but they were moving it inside the track.

This was a funny moment...can't remember who these guys in the background were but they were standing beside a race car. Jayme didn't even notice the guys but was taking a picture of the car. The announcer said over the microphone, "Sure go ahead mam and take a picture of these guys. Oh wait she is taking a picture of the car!!" Everyone cracked up and Jayme was clueless...too funny!!!

You can't tell from the glare but that is a cardboard Tony Stewart that Duffer is flipping off...haha.

We were trying to get a picture of Jayme and me but Tommy jumped in there too. haha


Thought this shirt was funny..

If you look closely, you will see Jayme and Tommy in the very middle...they both have on black....we spotted them from our seats with my zoom lens.

Driver introductions...Jr and another driver but I couldn't tell who it was.

They had sky divers come down and then they had this guy come down with the flag...

I thought the flag wasn't supposed to touch the ground but this one did...wonder if they burned it?

My favorite part...the jets flying over!!!



Then they let off fireworks as soon as the jets went by.

They had us do the wave like 3 times and we beat some record for the wave going around with 160,000 people attempting it.

Jeff Gordon for Tommy and Duffer.



Dale and Matt

Matt Kenseth pitted in front of us so took these for Jayme.

Dale pitted a few down from Matt...



Kevin drove a different car and I never could recognize it.



This was the first wreck that happened.





And this was the second wreck...pretty bad one...had to red flag the race until it was cleaned up.

I like this picture because you can see Jr totally sneaking through the crash and missing it all!







We thought the race was pretty boring compared to others in the past. Kyle Busch led something like 460 laps until in the final 20 laps Carl Edwards passed him...it was awesome!!! After the final lap Kyle was driving up against Carl rubbing cars and I am sure saying stuff......so when Kyle pulled away, Carl just plowed his car into Kyle's! It was PRICELESS!!!! Here is Kyle driving away...Carl went on around the track to get the checkered flag and Kyle followed him until someone probably stopped him. The said NASCAR officials were not happy but I love this part of racing and wish they would let them do it without fining them and so on.

Carl getting ready to do his famous back flip...which BTW I think is so cool!! I got pictures of the flip but they are blurry. :(

Driving around with the checkered flag.


Driving into victory lane.
Kyle whining about not winning. haha NOT a Kyle fan.

The fireworks at victory lane.


So we walked back to the helicopter pad because we learned from Tommy that you could watch all the drivers get onto their helicopters. Can you believe I have been attending Bristol races for 11 years and never knew this!!!!! Warning though...these pictures are terrible...it was dark and I was so far away that a flash wouldn't work anyway so I had to just use a VERY slow speed and high ISO so a lot turned out blurry and I didn't even post them.

Here is Clint Bowyer in the white shirt and dark hat.
Clint was talking to Martin Truex, Jr.

Martin Truex, Jr in black shirt and Richard Childress in Chevy hat.
Greg Biffle in green shirt.
Rusty Wallace came and stood right in front of us...we yelled his name and he wouldn't even turn around.

Here he is again getting ready to get on helicopter.
This was someone who walked right in front of me and Duffer said who he was last night but today he has no clue who he is???
Ahhhhhhhhhhh....here is Dale Jr leaving....what I would have given to hop in that helicopter! :O)

Kevin Harvick and his wife, Delana.Walking to their helicopter.
Ryan Newman in the blue and Tony Steward in maroon shirt.

Ryan again and Denny Hamil in black.
Jeff Gordon and his woman...never knew he was shorter than her but he obviously is.
So we got home around 2:30am and decided to not pick up the kids since it was so late. We slept in this morning instead of going to church because I didn't want to leave the kids until church was over. I didn't know they were staying all night so when I took them I never said anything about staying so I hated to leave them too long when they thought I was coming to get them last night.

Duffer went and got them around 10am and we have lounged all day. Actually Duffer has slept all day, the kids have played and I have been on this computer all day. So I am happy to say that my longest post ever is now over...and unfortunately so is our weekend. :o(