NASCAR FUN!

For Teacher Appreciation Week this year, the families of my 32 students surprised me with a ticket and pit pass to the NASCAR race at Infineon Raceway which took place yesterday. For the past ten years now, I've enjoyed traveling up Highway 37 to Sonoma to take in the race nestled in the hills of wine country.

Jimmie Johnson took the checkered flag yesterday and as you can see from the slideshow above, the race was merely part of the fun in the daylong event. There are always plenty of fun things to see, interesting and tasty food to sample, and all sorts of colorful people to watch out at the races. I even bumped into Emmy Award-winning Headline News anchor, Robin Meade, who was on hand to sing the National Anthem.

As I enjoyed my *free* ticket and pit pass to the event this year, I reflected on the past nine years that I've made the trek out to Sears Point for the NASCAR race. Growing up I could not stand motorports. I rarely, if ever, thought about them. I was aware of the Indy 500 and NASCAR was off the radar for me. I kinda sorta knew about Jeff Gordon, who was making a name for himself while I was back East on a mission in Philadelphia.

My wife's father, Ron, used to take pictures for the paper of the NASCAR events in Riverside and Sonoma in the late 60s and has maintained an interest and enthusiasm in the sports ever since. It was Ron that first invited me to attend a NASCAR race and I was hooked from my first event back in 2001.

My interest in NASCAR grew quickly. I became a fan of the local boy, Jeff Gordon, who happens to be one of the most decorated drivers of this generation. He's a four-time champion, which is unusual, because in just about every other sport, I've never been one to cheer for the frontrunner or jump on a successful team's bandwagon. But I started a collection of Jeff Gordon die-cast vehicles and just about everything else with a #24 on it that has grown and grown and become an important part of my school classroom, in fact. All of my students are keenly aware of my interest in NASCAR and Jeff Gordon. They've treated me to race tickets for the past couple of years and each time I've had SO much fun and have felt so appreciated to receive such a generous gift!

Yesterday I was fortunate to bump into a former student out at the races. He's the big dude pictured with my in my profile picture: Matt. That was a real treat, and a reminder of the strong connection my classroom has had with my interest in motorsports. I left a bit early this year on account of it being my son's birthday and once again, it was Father's Day. Kari and I had her sisters and their husbands and children over last night, along with her parents. It was a fun way to end the day.

I look forward to NASCAR weekend every year, and yesterday was no exception. I had a fantastic time out at the races!