Wild Weather

Weather has been a hot topic throughout the spring – not just the way it’s hampered the 2011 World of Outlaws Late Model schedule, but it’s affect on the country in general. We got a first-hand view of the problems Mother Nature has been causing when we made a trip to tour events in Michigan and Kentucky the last weekend in April.

When we departed our home base in Phenix City, Ala., for that weekend’s action we had 80-degree temps and sun, but that changed as we went north on Interstate 65. In Tennessee the skies started dumping rain, and by the time we reached Kentucky you could see that farmers were in a world of hurt from all the flooding of rivers, creeks and streams. When we reached Indiana the flooding worsened – and then the skies began turning black and ugly. Though we were far from the tornadoes that ripped through Alabama with such devastating results, as we approached Indianapolis in the WoO LMS hauler we saw what appeared to be a cloud dropping down from the sky in a sideways manner; later that night it was confirmed that a tornado passed by Indy. It had to be true, because the wind that night about blew us out of the Walmart parking lot where we stopped to sleep!

The next day we arrived in Hartford, Mich., to set up for the following evening’s WoO LMS event at Hartford Motor Speedway and were greeted by extremely cool temperatures. It got down to about 42 degrees – we were freezing to say the least! Race night, however, was near 50 at night, so it wasn’t too bad I guess.

When we got to Bardstown, Ky.’s Bluegrass Speedway on April 30 after a long overnight haul from Michigan, the temps rose to over 80 and we thought we were clear of any precip. But we were wrong! While we got the A- Main completed, it was under a threat of rain; showers did begin just before the drivers got paid, so we just beat that one!

On the way home our hearts were filled with sadness as we made our way through Alabama and witnessed the damage left in the wake of the tornado outbreak just days earlier. You just can’t imagine what those people in Tuscaloosa went through. On I-65 we saw steel billboards and poles that were ripped out of the ground! The tall lights that surround entrance and exit ramps were bent in half. Trees were snapped like wooden matchsticks, and the debris we saw on the side of the road and in farmers’ fields included giant pieces of aluminum and steel from buildings; the problem was, there were no buildings anywhere in sight! The EF-5, 200-plus-mph-wind tornado that passed through Alabama was the most powerful and longest traveled in U.S. history, and the devastation we witnessed was awful and sobering. It makes you appreciate what you have.

Life sure can be interesting on the road when you live your life as an outlaw! More to come…

Road Cuisine

When you’re on the road chasing races, it’s a given that you don’t get to eat in quite the same nutritious or timely manner as you would at home. I spend the majority of time in ‘Matilda’ – aka, the WoO LMS hauler – and my choice of cuisine is limited mostly to frozen dinners. I eat from the likes of microwaveable items from Swanson, Banquet, Stouffer’s, Boston Market and Red Baron. Occasionally we have the time and get close enough to park near, and eat at, a Mickey D’s, Burger King, Wendy’s or, if I’m really lucky, my personal favorite, a White Castle!

Here I am digging into some leftovers.

Sometimes, though, you hit food paydirt. Such was the case for me during last month’s Commonwealth 100 weekend at Virginia Motor Speedway.

When the weekend began with a qualifying program on Friday, I was cordially invited by track owner Bill Sawyer and his staff to indulge in the plethora of goodies offered in the VMS suite – we’re talking pasta salad, BBQ ribs, potato salad and lemon chicken. That worked for the racing portion of the night; once the action was done and our post-race work was complete in the pit area, it was time to head over to Mike Hubbard’s compound in the pits for the ‘Brian Daugherty Birthday Bash,’ which – go figure – included more food! This time it was chopped pork, pork loin, potato salad and cole slaw. After that feast, it was off to Brent Robinson’s trailer, where his mom Elaine had delicious fruit, brownies, chips, drinks, etc. Needless to say, that Friday was a success all the way around.

Saturday brought heavy rains, storms, wind, hail, lightning and tornadoes to VMS and its surrounding area, so the evening’s scheduled racing was put on the shelf until Sunday. What was there to do after rainout, you might ask? Eat! We piled in Robinson’s SUV, and along with about five or six other vehicles we headed up Virginia Highway 17 to Lowery’s Seafood Restaurant in Tappahannock for the all-you-can-eat buffet. Now this was pure heaven for an eater like me, as they offered fish, clams, oysters, hushpuppies, shrimp, fried chicken, ribs, mashed potatoes, salads and pies of all kinds. I definitely got my money’s worth on that trip.