This is a special photo combo post for the Bristol weekend and the Nationwide race in Montreal.

The Montreal race was absolutely awesome. I loved that last lap. I wanted any of those guys to win, Boris Said, Jacques Villeneuve, or Max Papis. But Boris was able to pull out the win over Max. Such a great crazy finish. I, for one, would love to see what would happen if there was a Sprint Cup race at Montreal.

I was disappointed that Boris’ son, with his little blonde mop top, wasn’t on hand to watch his dad win. That would have been such a cute victory lane celebration.

Oh and how kind of freaky was it to watch Jacques breathing so hard in his car during the red flag? I seriously thought he was going to pass out at some point. I’ve never seen anyone breathing like that in a race car. Crazy. But he seemed totally fine after the race, must of been the adrenaline on that last lap.

Too cute!

Carl Edwards (R), driver of the Aflac Ford, stands on the grid with his wife Kate (L) as he hold his daughter Anne prior to the start of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series IRWIN Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on August 21, 2010 in Bristol, Tennessee. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images for NASCAR)
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hehe.

Seriously. Today is my birthday. I owe you guys so much content, it’s not funny. I still need to wrap up my time at the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma, post stuff from Bristol and Boris Said’s awesome win at Montreal. Oh! And my awesome interview with Chip Ganassi.

I’ve been busy with a little project that I hope will turn into big news, and I’ve been sick and I’m getting over the shock that I’ve been around for 30 years.

30 is a big milestone but I’m thinking that turning 31 next year on August 31st will be even bigger.

It’s funny when you don’t realize you want something so bad until there’s a chance it can actually happen. For me that was the possibility of AJ Allmendinger getting his first win at Watkins Glen yesterday. He was chargin’, running up front with those guys and it really seemed like it could of been his day.

Well, he didn’t win, Mr. Juan Pablo Montoya did, but I had a lot of fun cheering for AJ. I don’t have anything against Juan Pablo, but during the race when I was imagining who would have a better, more fun, reaction to winning in Victory Lane AJ won hands down. You know he would be waaaaaay more excited and happy and thankful if he’d won that race than Juan was. I love a first-time win, what can I say?

Anyway, congrats to Juan Pablo and the No. 42 Target Chevy team. And bonus congrats to crew chief Brian Pattie for his first Sprint Cup Series win, it was sweet to see his emotions post-race.

Even though I’ve never been to Watkins Glen I think it’s beautiful there. From what I can see on TV it looks fabulous and I really, really wanna go to the next race there. Hopefully that’ll happen next year. Watkins Glen is right up there with Bristol, Daytona and Talladega as the tracks that I want to visit the most.

I know the drivers might not agree but I really wish there were more road course races in the Sprint Cup Series schedule. I love ‘em. It jumbles everything, in terms of the race itself and the points standings. I guess as a Dale Earnhardt Jr. fan I shouldn’t wish for that but I have confidence in my driver no matter what, and one day that guy will prevail at a road course.

Denny Hamlin, driver of the FedEx Freight Toyota, stands on the grid with girlfriend Jordan Fish prior to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at Watkins Glen International on August 8, 2010 in Watkins Glen, New York. (Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images)
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On the morning of the Toyota/SaveMart 350 I attended the NASCAR Tweetup held in front of Victory Lane. It was there that I met an awesome ‘Fabulous’ reader, Angela (aka @caligirl88 on Twitter). She was super nice and she totally surprised me because I wasn’t expecting to meet anyone that read my blog. Thanks again Angela for your kind words!

After checking in with Dawn, my fabulous friend who is the queen of efficient packing for NASCAR races (she also makes great cupcakes!), I headed over to the driver’s lounge for the driver’s meeting. For some reason my memory of that room was that it was much, much bigger than it actually is. Once the meeting started we were packed in there like sardines. Even some drivers and crew chiefs had to stand.

Nothing earth shattering happened in the driver’s meeting but I like being in there and knowing that I’m in there with ALL 43 drivers. It’s kinda neat. Matt Kenseth was the first driver in the room, showing up 30 minutes early, which is smart move if you want to get a seat. I find his punctuality refreshing.

Post-driver’s meeting I met up with Kristen (read her blog) and the No. 2 Miller Lite “Brew Crew” as they walked their Dodge through inspection. I don’t remember if I’ve ever talked about Kristen before, I apologize if I’m repeating myself. Anyway, back in 2007 she won the “Miller Lite Next Great Sportswriter” Contest and she got to spend a bunch of time and race weekends with Kurt Busch and the entire team doing interviews and writing. She’s been their “unofficial tool cart girl” ever since and she’s superfun to hang out with. We have an awesome time swapping gossip and chatting about this and that. (more…)

Saturday is always my favorite day in the garage because it’s all about practice and we haven’t reached the max level of wandering people that will be around come Sunday.

Something I hadn’t realized about the garage at Infineon is how perfect it is before the cars roll out for the first practice session of the day. Infineon’s garage stalls are all in one long row. You walk a straight line and you get to see everyone. This is especially eerie when all the drivers are sitting in their cars with their visors up just waiting for the call to drive out to the track.

It’s the only time when they’re basically a captive audience. You could jump out in front of their cars and do a little dance or hold up a big sign saying whatever you want and they have to watch because they can’t go anywhere. I didn’t do a little dance, I just tried to take pictures but I recommend that if you’re going to get a garage pass make sure it’s on a day when the guys are practicing. It’s the best time. (more…)

All of a sudden Watkins Glen has turned into a road course version of Talladega. The huge, gnarly crash that caught Sam Hornish Jr. and Jeff Gordon off guard seemed like a smaller version of “The Big One.” I’m glad everyone was ok after the wreck. Although, Jeff’s bad back was activated. I wonder if his back issues will be the reason he calls it quits on his career sooner as opposed to later. It’s just a thought that runs through your mind. (more…)