It’s 5:35PM PST and I’m watching a baseball game? This is very wrong and I’m pissed. I could give a rat’s ass about the Red Sox and the Yankees right now. I’m tuning in for NASCAR, not this crap. The baseball game had a rain delay and they ran over the allotted time for the game, that’s great move it on over to FX. Why the hell are they still showing it on Fox???

If this was a NASCAR race and we were in a rain delay you know they would of moved everybody over to FX already, none of this, “oh the rain’s stopped so lets show you the rest of the game even though it’s interfering with our other scheduled live event.” Jeez!

They keep saying that they’ll get us to the green flag, but that doesn’t work for me, I wanted the whole pre-show. This just doesn’t make any sense and I’m sincerely annoyed. Grr!

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Here in Northern California it’s finally warm enough for me to not wear a jacket the entire day, and that’s saying something. So in honor of the first true day of spring, and the fact that I’d rather be outside right now, I’m keeping things light with photos from this week.

Tony Stewart was at Motor City Hotel & Casino in Detroit on April 9 promoting the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series LifeLock 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Detroit native Kid Rock also dropped by which helped promote the event. (Photo Credit: Dave Frechette for Michigan International Speedway)

I can’t help but think of that one “I Love Lucy” episode when I look at this photo.

Carl Edwards’ fitness program was put to the test on Wednesday at Infineon Raceway as the driver of the No. 99 Office Depot Ford Fusion combined with two young Bay Area children in a Mini-Triathlon. (Photo Credit: Chucke Walkden)

The trio first rode mountain bikes through a half-mile course on the hillsides behind the raceway. (Photo Credit: Chucke Walkden)

They then took part in a half-mile run around a portion of the world-famous road course, which included the legendary hairpin at Turn 11. (Photo Credit: Chucke Walkden)

Kasey Kahne sits on the pit wall prior to qualifying for the Subway Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. Kahne will start fifth in Saturday night’s race. (Photo Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR)

It sucks that he’s replacing Jeremy Mayfield, but it’s cool that he’s back in the field again.

Johnny Sauter, who replaced Jeremy Mayfield in the No. 70 Chevrolet earlier in the week, waits to practice for the Subway Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. Sauter grabbed the final qualifying position among drivers not already locked into the race. (Photo Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Ok, so I’m really excited about this. I was given a copy of the new 2-disc DVD set Daytona 500: 50 Years of the “Great American Race.”

I watched it last night and it gives you some really cool insight into the history, legacy and champions of the Daytona 500, NASCAR’s biggest and most significant race as we all know. The first disc is an interactive experience that allows you to watch this year’s Daytona 500 from the driver’s perspective. It’s pretty trippy to feel like you’re in the car with them. The featured drivers include Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and of course the race winner Ryan Newman. You get to hear the team radio communications and you also have the option of switching to the broadcast coverage as well.

The second disc gives you a round table discussion (or square table as Michael Waltrip put it) with past Daytona 500 winners like David Pearson, Junior Johnson and Mario Andretti to name a few. The conversation is great and full of little interesting anecdotes, plus great footage from the archives of the race’s history. Oh and I just want to say that it’s pretty uncanny how much IndyCar driver Marco Andretti looks like his grandfather Mario when he was in his twenties. But I digress. The second disc also features some interviews with drivers from today including Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick.

I highly recommend this DVD set to anyone that is a serious NASCAR fan. It’s a cool way to experience the race all over again. This DVD set is available for purchase online and you can also win a copy of the set from me! I was given an extra copy to give away to one of my awesome readers! Click here to enter the contest. The contest is over! Thanks!

The 50th running of the Daytona 500 is one of NASCAR®’s most unforgettable and highly-anticipated milestone events. Already the most prestigious race in motorsports, this landmark running is sure to be remembered and cherished by millions of race fans. On April 15, join A&E Home Video and NASCAR® Collections to celebrate the golden anniversary of “The Great American Race™” with DAYTONA 500: THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY, a highly-collectible 2-DVD set that puts fans in the driver’s seat like never before! Available just weeks after the 50th Daytona® 500 (February 17), this is THE official NASCAR® collectible of this historic race.

As part of DAYTONA® 500: THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY, the 2008 Daytona 500 will be presented in the ground-breaking “My Race” Interactive DVD format. This innovative user experience allows fans to choose the view of the race from six different driver perspectives plus the main broadcast feed, along with driver and announcer audio feeds — putting them right in the middle of the action. The second disc features the great stories and heroes that have defined the Daytona 500 through two exclusive NASCAR® programs: “A Sports Century” features a dynamic roundtable discussion of the moments and personalities that defined Daytona with a host and panel of NASCAR® experts including Richard Petty and Jeff Gordon, while “The Top 50 Daytona® 500 Moments” is the definitive telling of the story of NASCAR®’s Greatest single greatest event. Additional DVD extras include official NASCAR® PC wallpapers and time-lapse screensavers.

With a history of legend-defining and myth-making spectaculars, the Daytona® 500 winners circle has embraced NASCAR® heroes including: Richard Petty, Mario Andretti, Jeff Gordon, and Dale Earnhardt Senior and Junior. And DAYTONA® 500: THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY, an unprecedented and revolutionary DVD release, only adds to the legend of NASCAR®’s biggest race of the year.

April is Autism Awareness Month and this weekend’s race at Texas Motor Speedway kicks off some fundraising activities involving NASCAR.

Jamie McMurray’s No. 26 Crown Royal car will have a special paint scheme this weekend and his foundation (The Jamie McMurray Foundation) is launching a month-long auction with all of the proceeds going to autism research and support. You can bid on memorabilia by going to the NASCAR Foundation site.

Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder that currently affects one in every 150 children. This
weekend, at Texas Motor Speedway, NASCAR driver Jamie McMurray will help promote autism awareness through a special paint scheme, as well as the launch of a month-long online auction with all proceeds going towards the research and support of autism and families coping with this neurobiological disorder.

“Crown Royal has been extremely giving to my foundation by providing space on the car, as well as on my fire suits and helmets,” said McMurray. “Each season they pick a race where we can run the autism awareness puzzle pieces, and throughout the season, they assist us with promotions, donations and helping promote awareness.”

– Chevrolet is also working to help spread awareness about autism by working with the non-profit organization Austim Speaks:

During April people who go to the Autism Speaks website (www.autismspeaks.org), can click on the “Help Chevy Help Autism” icon and take a free virtual test drive of the 2008 North American Car of the Year — the all-new Chevy Malibu. Chevrolet has committed to a minimum contribution of $500,000, but every virtual test drive taken gets Chevrolet closer to its goal of donating up to $1 million to Autism Speaks to support its mission of increasing awareness of autism and raising money to fund autism research. Those who participate in the virtual test drive will be offered a free 30-day online trial of XM Satellite Radio.

It’s one thing when the economy sucks (or doesn’t suck, depending on who you ask) and people are defaulting on their home loans and it’s totally another when it starts affecting NASCAR.

I was at home yesterday and I caught an episode of NASCAR Now on ESPN. Dale Jarrett was on and they were talking about the whole General Mills swap from Petty Enterprises to Richard Childress Racing. This swap obviously opens up a sponsorship opportunity (Plus there are a ton of cars in the Nationwide Series that don’t have sponsors), but who’s going to take it? Apparently some established NASCAR team sponsors are looking around, but there’s also this idea that it’s hard for companies to justify spending money on sponsorships these days with the economy in the doldrums.

Jarrett hypothesized that this could possibly lead to a shorter schedule, after all less sponsors equals less money and less money equals less races. Of course the drivers would probably like this idea, but I’m not so sure how I would feel about it. It’s bad enough trying to fill the Sundays on the off weekends we do have. How would it feel to have a season that ends in August?

In other news…

– If you’re going to the races this weekend in Texas and you’ve always wanted to meet Carl Edwards you’ve got an opportunity to do so tomorrow. Carl will be at the Office Depot in Grapevine, Texas from 6pm to 8pm on Friday, April 4th. He’ll be meeting the (lucky) employees of the store and then signing autographs for fans. The No. 99 Office Depot show car will also be in attendance. Below are some details if you’re planning on heading out there tomorrow.

WHERE:
Office Depot Store #406
1317 State Highway 114 West
Grapevine, TX 76051

WHEN:
Friday, April 4, 2008
6-8 p.m.

This event is open to the general public, and 250 wristbands will be distributed for autographs (one per person). The wristbands may be obtained on a first-come, first-served basis at the store beginning at 7 a.m. on the day of the event.

Ok… So I really only have a bunch of quick hits to share with you today, so here it goes:

– Best Week Ever (the super funny TV show from VH1 that you should never miss!) has a blog and this week they posted a hilarious photo combination that ends with Jeff Gordon. Just check it out. SIMPLE CELEBRITY MATH: How To Build A Legendary Driver

– Kurt Busch talks about his NCAA Basketball predictions, and I totally have to agree with him on Davidson’s loss to Kansas. I wish they could have gone all the way: “NASCAR’s PR guys asked us for our predictions just before March Madness began and I told them then that I thought I’d have to go with North Carolina, Kansas, UCLA and Memphis making up the Final Four,” Kurt said on Monday night. “I’m proud that I predicted that and it came true, but I really hated to see Davidson lose to Kansas, or to anybody for that matter. That was such a great story and the Curry kid helped really put them on the map. I’m a big Pac-10 fan because of growing up in Vegas and going to Tucson (University of Arizona) for a year. I said a couple of weeks ago that I thought I’d be pulling for my Pac-10 UCLA Bruins, but that Memphis would win it all and I’m sticking by that prediction. North Carolina has looked like they are unbeatable so far in the tournament. My thinking is that they sooner or later have to have one off game. I think it’ll be when they meet Memphis in the finals and Memphis will take advantage of the situation.”

– On Friday (This Friday the 4th of April) Casey Mears will be at the Chevy Thunder at Stockyards Station in Fort Worth, Texas, along with fellow drivers, Aric Almirola, Regan Smith, Jeremy Mayfield and Kevin Harvick. They’ll be signing autographs and participating in a question & answer session. For more details go to: http://chevythunderdays.com/index2.php

– On Saturday you can have Ryan Newman autograph a copy of his book “Pit Road Pets” for you. He’ll be at the Petfinder.com tent in the Blue Ox Camp Ground at Texas Motor Speedway at 2:30pm (local Texas time).

– More JR Nation apparel is going on sale at Sports Authority stores in Texas:

After making its debut in Daytona at the start of the NASCAR season, Dale Earnhardt, Jr.’s adidas JR Nation Gear has invaded the Lone Star state! Consumers can pick up the latest adidas Dale Jr. gear including men’s and women’s t-shirts, jackets, hats and jerseys, at any of the six Sports Authority locations in the Fort Worth area (addresses below). In addition, fans can check out Dale Jr.’s #88 AMP show car, which will be visiting Sports Authority stores across Dallas and Fort Worth starting April 1 and culminating on April 5 (dates, times and locations below).

Locations, dates and times of Dale Jr.’s #88 AMP show car appearances include:

April 2, 4-7pm
Cedar Hills Store
727 North Highway 67
Cedar Hill, TX 75104-2142

April 3, 4-7pm
Irving Store
3524 Airport Freeway West
Irving, TX 75062

April 4, 4-7pm
Denton Store
1800 South Loop 288, Ste 240
Denton, TX 76205

April 4, 10am-1pm
Stonebriar Store
2930 Preston Road, Ste 200B
Frisco, TX 75034

April 5, 10am–1 pm
Watauga Store
7612 Denton Highway, Ste 404
Watauga, TX 76148