I can’t believe I’m sitting here on my couch writing my second to last blog.  We were in Phoenix this past weekend and it was great.  We stayed at a really nice resort called the Wig Wam and I loved it except for my room being so huge.  I know that isn’t a normal complaint that people have but when you are affraid of everything like I am...it can really creep you out.  We went to dinner and to the hotel lounge on Saturday night and on our way back I made my two friends walk me back to my room and check under the bed for monsters.  Yes, I am dead serious.  Raceday was fun (it’s my favorite show of the weekend) and it was even better this weekend because some family friends from back in Ohio stopped by the stage to hang out.  All in all...Phoenix was fun! 

Off to Homestead tomorrow for the last race of the year.  Homestead is my favorite track because it is the first track I attended a race at thanks to my friend Crystal and her family.  If it wasn’t for her and her family I would have never gone to a race and certainly wouldn’t be here working for the SPEED Channel.  I’m very excited to head back to Homestead because I have such great memories of it and because it’s just a few short hours from my home in Tampa...and of course the great weather doesn’t hurt either!

I can’t believe it’s the last race of the year.  This year seems like it went very fast and slow all at the same time- is that even possible?  My dad always told me that time really starts to fly as you get older and he’s right.  A big thank you to all of the SPEED fans and the SPEED family at the track for making this year such a great one for me.  If you haven’t stopped by the SPEED stage yet this year make sure to stop by this weekend if you will be out at the track.  AND GO CARL!!!!!

Carl Edwards wins again!  Unfortunately it didn’t seem to close the points gap enough.  Two more races and we will have the NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion for 2008.  I can’t believe the 2008 NASCAR season is so close to being over.

Halloween was on Friday while we were in Texas.  A few of us dressed up, it was so much fun!  I dressed up as a hula dancer, Robyn was a monkey/bear/panther/cat, and Lindsay was a roller skating waitress.  A lot of fans came out to the stage on Friday night dressed up in costume too.  It was a blast!

It you are coming out to Phoenix make sure to stop by the stage and check out your favorite show.  Your time to catch us at the stage and sign up to be a SPEED Fanatic this year is running out.  Hope to see you soon! 

Once again we visit Atlanta which is supposedly known as “HOT-LANTA” and it’s freezing.  I’m officially done with Atlanta...it isn’t hot and will always be cold in my book.  I decided just a few minutes ago that we are going to stop talking about anything related to cold weather and maybe it will spare us for the last three races of the year.  The best part about the weekend was having John Cena on Trackside Live.  It’s always fun to have a random non-NASCAR related guest on the show- it mixes things up a little.  He was very nice and HUGE! 

A big special thanks goes out to the biggest SPEED fan ever, Jim from Michigan.  It was a pleasure meeting you and thanks for coming to hang out with us at so many races this year!  I have faith that we’ll see you in Homestead. 

Congrats to cousin Carl for winning this weekend.  Unfortunately Jimmy Johnson came in right behind him so Carl is about 180 points behind.  I have faith that he will win...come on Carl you can do it!

Texas this weekend...if you’re at the track stop by the stage to say hello and check out our Halloween costumes!  We will be dressing up on Friday.  See you soon! 

It’s even more official than before...we have been plagued with the worst weather ever this year on the NASCAR circuit.  I guess every weekend we should just start to expect that the weather won’t be good.  Friday was rainy and cold- two things that don’t mix well with this Florida girl.  The rain stopped on Saturday and Sunday and the sun came out but temperatures were still way lower than I’m used to.  Robyn and I made a trip to Super K-Mart on Saturday night so I could buy gloves and hand warmers for Sunday.

We had a killer lineup of driver guests on Friday for Trackside Live.  We had Ryan Newman, Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin on the show.  We didn’t have as big of a turn out as we would have if it wasn’t raining, but we still had a good number of people come out to see the show.  Thanks to all of the loyal SPEED fans who stuck around in the rain and cold weather!

Jimmy Johnson wins again...looks like he’s on his way to winning the Championship AGAIN.  It’s not over till the fat lady sings and she hasn’t sung quite yet but unless Jimmy makes a mistake soon the Championship will be his.  I’m really hoping that Carl Edwards or Greg Biffle pull it together and win...it’s not that I don’t like Jimmy, it’s just that I think it’s time things get mixed up a little.  That’s just my opinion,

If you’re planning on heading to Atlanta make sure to stop by the SPEED stage!  See you in Atlanta!

I have been a fan of Jessica Simpson since her first album came out back in 1999.  I own every album of hers and was a her show Newlyweds on MTV is one of my all time faves.  Some say I live in an MTV and US Weekly world...go ahead and make fun of me, I don’t care .  Jessica Simpson is my favorite!  So, when I found out she was coming to Charlotte to sing the anthem at the BOA 500 and do a pre-race concert I was ECSTATIC!  Then I heard she was coming to the SPEED stage to do Trackside Live.  Words can’t describe my level of excitement!  Highlight of my year on the SPEED Tour!  This past Friday I FINALLY got to meet Jessica and have my picture taken with her. 

Talladega was just as crazy as I remembered.  We had a huge crowd for Trackside Live on Friday because Dale Jr. and Jeff Gordon were our guests.  Jr. Nation and the Rainbow Warriors were out in FULL FORCE!  It was probably one of our biggest shows of the year!  What a blast!  A few lucky fans got to be on the side stage for the show and were super excited when Dale Jr. and Jeff Gordon took a few pics and signed a few autographs.  Jeff Gordown even walked up and down the wall of fans on his way in and out to sign autographs for his loyal fans. 

How does everyone feel about the controversial end to the race this weekend?  I caught a little bit of the race from the airport but since I didn’t land in Tampa until after midnight I didn’t see who won the race until today.  Poor Regan Smith, he thought he had his first Cup win only to have it taken away from him.  I understand the rules and think it’s a pretty fair decision but what a disappointment for the poor guy.  I’m excited for Tony Stewart since he got his first win of the year.  What a bitter sweet end to the final Talladega race of the season.

Back to Charlotte this week!  Is anyone coming out for the race?  Make sure to stop by the Speed Stage to say hello! 

This weekend in Kansas City was absolutely amazing.  I am originally from the Midwest (Ohio to be exact) and I must say that Midwesterners are the nicest people in the country!  Thanks to everyone in Kansas City for making our weekend awesome!  I felt right at home all weekend long.

I think we had some of the biggest crowds of the year this weekend for Trackside and Raceday.  We had Clint Boyer and Michael Waltrip on Trackside and we had a ton of Boyer fans come out for the show since we were close to his hometown.

The only thing that was lacking this weekend were the campgrounds.  Although I was a huge fan of the family who turned their campsite into a scene right out of the Wizard of Oz, the rest of the campgrounds were bland this weekend.  I think the folks in Kansas City need to visit Daytona for some inspiration. 

Jimmy Johnson wins the race....poor Carl tried really hard at the end to inch by him but it didn’t happen.  I was lucky to run into Rutledge in the airport since we were on the same flight to ATL.  His wife was keeping him updated on what was going on so he was filling me in as well.  I’m really pulling for Carl to win this championship so hopefully he’ll be able to do well this weekend too!

If you’re coming out this weekend for Talladega round two make sure to come to the Speed Stage to visit.  We are having Jeff Gordon and Dale Jr. as our guests on Trackside.  Also, don’t forget to ask us how to sign up to become an official “SPEED FANATIC”!

The highlight of my weekend from Dover round two was seeing our friends Max, Ryan and the rest of their family.  They’ve come around for a few races this year and let me tell you they are AWESOME!  Max even made a poster for us this past weekend.  It was a sad goodbye since they won’t be making it to any other races this year...but I know I’ll see them again. 

The Biff does it again!  Poor John Roberts, he gave up Biffle for his pick this past weekend.  I think Wendy took him, so I’m sure she was thrilled!  She’s probably leading in their fantasy points now.  The Chase has been quite exciting so far and I’m anxious to see how it pans out.  I’m pulling for Carl Edwards or Greg Biffle to win...how about you?

We’re headed to Kansas City, MO this weekend.  Is anyone headed out to the race?  If so, make sure to come by the SPEED Stage and ask us about becoming an official “SPEED Fanatic”!  It’s only the coolest thing, EVER!  See you soon! 

Does it always rain in Loudon?  I’m starting to think that it does… This was our second time back to Loudon and it rained just like it did the first time.  The only difference was that the first time we got stuck an extra night and this time we went home on time!  This entire season has been plagued by bad weather and Loudon part two was no different.

Even with all of the bad weather this weekend we still had a ton of loyal SPEED fans at the stage!  People were out in full force this weekend rain or shine!  Thanks to all of you who battled the elements to hang out at the stage with us and to see the shows.  You are true fans!

Greg Biffle won this weekend!  GO BIFF!  I bet John Roberts was thrilled when his man Biffle won!  Mr. Roberts has been picking Greg Biffle almost every weekend for his fantasy racing that the hosts of Raceday do each weekend.  I bet he’s happy he STUCK WITH THE BIFF this weekend!  I’ll have to ask him about it....

Is anyone coming out to Dover this weekend?  If so make sure to stop by the stage to say hello and sign up to be a SPEED Fanatic...you can also get a free copy of NASCAR Scene for signing up.  It’s only the coolest thing to sign up for...EVER!

See you this weekend! 

Back to work this weekend after an amazing 11 full days off.  I celebrated my 26th birthday and also got engaged while home in FL.  Oh, and I dodged a few hurricanes...I was pretty busy during my vaca! 

Back to Richmond we went.  I decided it would be fun to have show and tell this weekend at work so I brought Hurricane Hannah along with me (I’m used to all this hurricane business since I live in Florida).  As I’m sure you heard the track was shut down on Saturday due to the inclement weather that was expected to come through.  Thank goodness Hannah decided to play nice and she didn’t bring too much bad weather.  I guess they figured it’s better safe than sorry.  Sunday was absolutely gorgeous!  I hope everyone enjoyed seeing both races!  Thank you so much to all of our loyal SPEED fans who came by the stage on Friday and Sunday!  We couldn’t do it without you! 

Any thoughts on Jimmie Johnson winning the race and the final list of chase entries?  I’m pretty happy with it...I would have made a few changes but nothing major.  I would have added Kasey Khane and Martin Truex Jr.

I can’t believe there are only 10 races left.  Where has this year gone?  We’re headed to Loudon this weeked.  Can’t wait to see what the first race in the chase brings!

Round two at Bristol this past weekend was almost as good as round one.  We had an awesome Trackside Live on Friday which was camouflauge themed with taxidermy animals and shrubbery...they wanted to really capture the feeling of the great outdoors.  The hosts, Richard Childress and our team even wore camo!  The guests were Martin Truex, Paul Menard, Clint Bowyer and Richard Childress- talk about action packed!  It was a blast!  Thanks to Motorsports Authentics and Real Tree we were able to throw out tons of camo giveaways! 

Friday night Robyn, Cathy (our boss) and I snuck inside to watch part of the Nationwide race from the pits.  What an awesome view- last time we watched the race from the stands so it was quite an experience to see it from the pits this time around.  Bristol is definately my favorite track to watch a race!  There is absolutely nothing else like it. 

Raceday is my favorite show of the week so I always get pretty pumped when it rolls around.  This weekend we only did one hour of Raceday from the stage and then the guys moved inside to finish off the show.  Thanks to all of the fans for coming out.  Sorry you only got to see the first hour, but hopefully you still had fun! 

I didn’t watch the entire race...we had early flights to catch on Sunday morning.  I got into bed with every intention of staying awake to watch the entire race but I ended up falling asleep just after 9 pm.  I know, I know...I’m lame.  What can I say...I was exhausted!  I made sure to look at all of the highlights.  I’m SOO happy that Carl Edwards won the race...he’s my new second favorite driver.  GO CARL!  I loved his post race interviews.  He really gave Kyle a taste of his own medicine! 

I’m not heading to California this weekend because it is my week off.  My birthday is this weekend so my boyfriend and I are going on vacation!  Hope everyone has a safe and fun Labor Day weekend! 

Michigan round two was just as good as round one!  It’s official...Michigan fans are out of control!  I think we may have had record crowds for Trackside and Raceday on Sunday.  And if they weren’t record in terms of numbers they were definately record in terms of rowdyness!  If I had to pick one race to attend to party with the NASCAR fans it would be a tie between Talladega and Michigan. 

Anyone who has visited the MIS and has taken route 12 to get to the track has probably passed by the western town/old amusement park that has the huge Paul Bunyan statue standing out front, right?  Well, Saturday on our way back from the track Robyn, Cathy (our manager) and I decided to stop and check it out.  What we found was a closed amusement park with storefront shops that were still open.  When we walked into one of the shops I felt like I stepped a western movie from the 1950’s.  Right next door was a saloon that smelled like it hadn’t been aired out in 50 years.  When we inquired about the place the woman working said it was shutting down after this summer for good but we could still take a train ride around the 60 acre park to see what was.  We didn’t take her up on that train ride because we thought it might be awkward since everything was closed down but we contemplate going over to the “Train of Terror” which was next door.  We decided against it.

So I guess all of the Speed fans who came out to MIS this weekend read my blog from last week about coming to the stage to sign up to become a SPEED Fanatic???  Thanks to everyone who came out!  If you’re wondering what I’m talking about and you’re coming out to Bristol this weekend I guess you just need to stop by the stage to find out! 

Hooray for Carl Edwards for takig the Nationwide and Cup race!  I’m a big fan of his...it doesn’t matter what happens he always has a positive attitude about things and says something nice at the end of it.  Way to go Carl...you deserve it! 

Hope to see you all in Bristol this weekend.  Hopefully I’ll be able to make it despite the hurricane we are awaiting here in Florida! 

Although I have been to New York City more times than I can count because my dad lives there; I have never once been to any other place in NY state With that said, I was anxious to visit this place called “WaTkins Glen”...or is it “WaKins Glen”???  Is it a silent T?  I think that’s the question of the week!

When we got to the Glen I started immediately having flashbacks of Pocono.  The only differences that come to mind is the fact that the Glen is a roadcourse and at Pocono there are no right turns and Carl Edwads swept Pocono and Kyle Busch took over the Glen.  Are there any other differences I’m missing??  I think not…

Our weekend started out with delayed flights due to weather and that was followed by a two hour drive to Ithaca were we spent our time while away from the track.  Ithaca was a cool little college town that had great restaurants and fun shops.  It was great to visit in the summer but probably not so fun during the winter if you’re like me and hate the snow and cold.  Saturday night a few of us went out to dinner and took John Roberts recomendation on a restaurant called Simeon’s which was awesome.  Thanks John!

Sunday broght out an amazing crowd for Raceday despite the bad weather forecast for the day.  Thanks to everyone for coming out to the stage!  After the show we went to the airport where a few of us found a bar and watched the race.  I was so happy to see that the weather missed the Glen (and us at the airport!) and they were able to get the race in.  It would be such a bummer for so many people if the rain would have prevented them from racing.

Do we even need to discuss the winner of the race?  Kyle Busch takes it AGAIN...8th time for this season. 

A special thanks to our friends the “sumo wrestlers” for stoping by again.  It was great to see you guys 2 weekends in a row.  Hope you had fun!  I’ll be looking for you guys in Dover! 

Michigan this weekend for the second time around.  If you haven’t stopped by the SPEED stage yet this season make sure to come by this weekend and sign up to be a SPEED fanatic.  See ya soon! 

Back to Pocono for the second time around...and let me tell you it wasn’t much different this time.  Friday was the usual...hanging out with lots of SPEED fans at the stage and in the campground.  Daryl and I met some huge SPEED fans Friday in the campgrounds.  When I say HUGE, I mean HUGE...they were sumo wrestlers...you can see their picture on the SPEED site- they are the SPEED fans of the week!

Saturday didn’t go exactly as planned.  We had a ton of rain and bad weather which made it impossible to have any fun!  See Loyal’s blog for pictures.  After we finished at the track Robyn and I hit up the local outlet mall to do a little shopping (you can usually find us at the mall at some point during the weekend).

Sunday brought out the beautiful weather, awesome SPEED fans and another win for Carl Edwards!  We had an awesome turnout for Raceday!  Thanks to everyone for coming out for the show and sticking with us all the way through. If you’re coming out to the Glen this weekend make sure to stop by the stage to say hello...and become an official “speed fanatic”!  See ya soon! 

Indy was an action packed weekend!  We stayed downtown this weekend which was nice because it gave us so much to do during our little off time during the weekend. Robyn and I attended a comedy show on Thursday night with our friends from Sprint and it was a blast.  We kept trying to get the comedian to tell NASCAR jokes but I don’t think he came prepared because he didn’t bite when we kept yelling NASCAR at him.  He clearly came to Indianapolis the weekend of the race unprepared...but we’ll let him slide because he was still pretty funny.

Saturday after work we went to the O’Rielly on Saturday night to catch some of the Nationwide race.  When we realized that Kyle Busch probably wasn’t going to lose his lead we decided to head out a little early so that we would miss traffic.  It was great to see a different track and to see part of the race.

Sunday we weren’t able to stay for the race because we had to get to the airport and catch our flights.  I watched part of the race from the airport in Indy and to my surprise when I landed in Chicago the race was still going.  The tires were a huge issue and extended the race and I’m pretty sure Goodyear had some work ahead of them.  Congratulations to Jimmy Johnson for winning the race over Denny Hamlin due to his quick pit stop!

Pack to Pocono tomorrow!  If anyone is coming out to the race make sure to stop by the SPEED stage to sign up and become a SPEED Fanatic or just to say hello!  See ya soon!