Thunder Valley Time

Hey gang. Hope all of you are doing well. Last week at Nashville was the first week with David Stremme in the Ergon Racing truck. Make no mistake, I’m looking forward to driving again, but I learned a lot from him. I think it will only make us stronger in the long run.

I was able to stand on top of the hauler and see how his truck was handling, and then listen to Stremme describe how it felt to the crew chief. It helped a lot to hear him talk about the condition of the Ergon truck and what changes he thought would make it drive better. I’ve definitely picked up a few tips to use in the future.

We’re headed to Bristol this week. Bristol is one crazy track. It’s tough enough for two trucks to race there, much less 36 of them. Track position is so important at a half-mile track like Bristol. It won’t take long to get lapped if you’re not running at the pace of the leaders, so it’s easy for patience to wear thin. There’s not much “give and take” when the trucks are all crammed together in a tight circuit, so expect to see some fireworks on the track.

The track was resurfaced a year or so ago. It’s now got two good racing grooves to run on. It’s made it a little easier to pass someone, and you don’t see quite as much road blocking as you used to. You’ll probably see a lot more side-by-side racing than in years past – and that’s a always a good thing. I love the Bristol race and I’d be glad to pay for a ticket to the night race. There’s nothing else like it in NASCAR.

Give me a call if you’re at the track. Till next time, take care.