Life on the Road – Trucking News Blog

I’ve always said that Life on the Road needs a good NASCAR reporter. And I honestly have to say, that is not me. Although I’ve been a OTR (over the road) trucker for some time now, I am completely clueless when it comes to races, cars, drivers, tires, engines and sponsors. I don’t know a restrictor plate from a carburetor. Although I live not too far from Daytona, I have never been to a race. One time, parked at some truck stop in Las Vegas, there was a speedway across the street. I couldn’t see much, but was impressed at the incredibly loud engine noise coming from the track. I’ve always said that if I could afford to go to a NASCAR race, I go on a cruise instead. But maybe it’s time to think differently.

Being a truck driver and not knowing about NASCAR, is well like a fisherman not knowing about tides, hooks and rods. I know for sure that if I knew anything about NASCAR, I would “fit in” more at truck stops TV rooms nationwide. I could get unloaded faster when the fork lift driver starts telling me how much he hates Jeff Gordon. Not knowing about NASCAR and being a trucker is like being a member of the A-V squad in high school. I don’t have NASCAR underpants, don’t have any NASCAR stickers on my truck and I’m embarassed to say – and this really tough for me to admit – I don’t have a NASCAR hat.

So, in an effort to say something about NASCAR to Life on the Road readers, I tuned in to a race on the Sirius/XM NASCAR station. Wow. Charging Charlie Glutzbach, Coco Martin in the Nitro #9 car, James Hilton and Buddy Baker. The announcers (sounding they were talking into coffee cups) were saying: “What a race!” and “This is quite a race” over and over. I admit it sounded kinda interesting. Oh no! – JC Elder is out of the race with a broken rocker arm. Too bad! Ouch! Petty’s out with a blown engine. Ford, the Purolator Mercury and Dodge. Round the track they go – average speed 185.885 mph! Zoom. Into turn three they go. This is the  exciting “action” at the Talladega 500.

I listened for almost an hour. I did it for you, the Life on the Road reader. I figured if I can learn NASCAR, not only would I be a better trucker, maybe I could make more money being a NASCAR writer. I was feel’n pretty good about myself. Damn. I need to reset my GPS which is velcro’d in front of my Sirius/XM receiver. I leave the GPS unit down on the seat and look up to the display on the Sirius. I find out that I’m listening to the Talladega 500 – AUGUST 11 1974! And what makes me really depressed is – I didn’t know the difference.

Photo credit is: www.wallpaperbase.com/movie-nascar3d.shtml

Got ya. I’m just kidding. I just wanted your attention. Box drivers are OK, I guess. Again, just kidding. Hey, you know flatbedders, we’re always climbing on top (of loads) and using our arms, legs and toys, I mean tools – to tarp and secure, of course. Watch it VGrumpy. There are impressionable minds reading this. There are? Who knows.

ANYWAY. I love – love – but that’s not exactly what I want to talk about. Let’s talk about country music. Yup, I said country music. A new topic for ‘ole VGrumpy. Do you know who the man in the photo is? If you do, you’re a fan, if not, that’s OK. More about him later.

Do you enjoy country music? Most truckers certainly do.  Nascar, country music, fried chicken and beer – right? Personally it depends on my mood. I also love Sinatra and the standards. A little Elvis sometimes. Maybe some 50′s stuff. Chicago, the Beatles and others on occasion. The Eagles and Bon Jovi. But recently I’ve been “hooked” on country music via the “Highway”,  Sirius Satellite channel 60. I’m sure there’s an XM equivalent. 

I’m still kind of turned off by the whiny bouncing fiddley ”my dog done got run over and my girlfriend wants to drive my pickup to WalMart” kind of nonsense. But have you heard the song by Jamie O’ Neil? “Shiver, tremble, I never – no I never once felt so00 (my emphasis) much – it shakes me – how you take me – deeper than I’ve ever been – it’s to the core – under my skin – I shiver – I’m overwhelmed – you smile I melt – and somewhere inside, oh baby, I.”  Holy moly!

How about her other hit song (Feel like a Woman) –  Baby, lay me down on our bed – touch my body like only you can – kiss me softly & take away my breath – slow it down and make it real – cause tonight I want to feel – like a woman. For the guys out there, can I get a “rebel” yell. Come on, nobody’s look’n. “Saaa-looood.” Thanks.

This song is sizzlin hot! And it ain’t Brooks & Dunn or George Strait, for darn toot’n sure.  I almost drove off the interstate when I first heard it. If this is “country”, well I’m stick’n around a while to listen to more.  It is a prime example of the second wave of  ”new” country music. Far from Gene Autry and Roy Rogers. Heck – even actor and Academy-Award director Kevin Costner has a touring country band. I heard one song and I had no idea it was him. It was good. I was surprised. As Alan Jackson sang in one of his songs “He’s gone country!” Because of what I call this new “tweek” in country music, I like it better now than ever, whether Costner or Kelly Pickler sings it. It’s sexier and “edgier” and a real nice change from the traditional stuff. And wouldn’t you agree we all need a lot more lov’n, kiss’n and a hold’n this New Year?  Right ladies? Ok, so who is that guy in the photo?

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A rain delay didn’t douse Patrick Carentier’s hopes for his first pole, He knew that a cooler, faster race track could be just the ticket that he was looking for. Reed Sorenson was on the pole when a rain shower delayed qualifying with 21 more drivers to go at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. A cooler faster track relegated reed back to sixth when all was said and done and the Canadian road course driver was at the top of the speed charts for the first time in his new career in Nascar Sprint Cup racing.

Sunday Carpentier will lead the field to the green flag in the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Another road racing giant, Dario Franchitti will start the race in the top ten with a seventh starting spot on the grid. And to think that I thought at the beginning of the season that the road racers would have a rough time of it this year trying to adjust to the new, much heavier car? Well, win one first, then I will be sold completely. And I would be remiss if I did not mention that Dale Earnhardt Junior qualified solidly in the top ten in the fifth position. You have to go way down the chart to the twenty seventh position to find points leader Kyle Busch.
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For about fifteen minutes I was enthused about the road course race out in California. That was probably because it was in high def. After I got used to it being in high def I quickly lost interest with it. Folks, I have to say this again, Road courses are just boring and a gross waste of a racing weekend.

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The drought is over finally. Yea I am talking about Dale Junior winning at Michigan, and the missing Nascar writer here at Life On The Road. Where have I been you ask, well in my job I drive a dump truck and we had a job re-paving the main highway going into the military base here. Because of the traffic on it during the day, the state made us pave it at night. So I have been on night shift for the better part of the last month.

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Speedway Motorsports Incorporated has purchased The Kentucky Speedway for a reported 78 million dollars. That is a heck of a deal for a track that cost a Hundred and fifty million to build ain’t it? This sounded fishy from the second that I heard of it. It has under the table dealing all over it and stinks to high heaven!

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Well the fan favorite from last week wins again. The Coca Cola 600 it always a great race. I know That I am a few days behind the power curve with this post but I have had a busy holiday weekend. Did everybody enjoy all the racing this past Sunday? I sure did! As soon as I got in from church I had to tune in to the Indianapolis 500, and what a great race that was. I was so hopefull that Danica Patrick could be the first woman to win the Indy 500. Man was I ticked when she got wrecked in the pits. Did you see he walking down pit road ready to kill? Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Or wrecked for that matter!

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I love Saturday night racing! There is just nothing better than 800 horsepower under the lights no matter where you race. A night in the home of Nascar is always special though, with the points not being a factor, the racing is just more intense. I thought that there would be more cautions though. Even without the cautions I still think it was a great evening. Some pit stop decisions took out any chance for some people to win though didn’t it?

Kasey

For the first time ever, the fans vote driver has won the all star race. Not only did Kasey Kahne make that history but he also gave Dodge their first victory in an all star race. Crew Chief Kenny Francis made the right call in the pits by taking on fuel only. Later that call would propel Kasey into history as Denny Hamlin lost his engine allowing Kasey to take the lead again. Greg Biffle might have had a chance to take the one million dollar plus purse had this been a longer race, as he was making a charge on the Budweiser Dodge in the closing laps. There just wasn’t enough time left to make the pass.

Gibbs Engine Woes

Tony Stewart was the only Gibbs Racing Toyota left running at the end of the night. Engine problems got the teams of Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch. The Home Depot team knew ahead of time that there were problems withthe Gibbs engines because they found a broken rocker arm after qualifying. They changed the engine causing them to have to drop back to the back of the field for the start of the race, but they were there in the ending up in fifthplace at the waving of the checkered flag. Kyle Busch had the car to beat as he was just spanking the field before he too broke a part in his engine. Shortly later the same thing for Denny Hamlin. It does make me wonder why they didn’t all three change engines when they knew that there might be a problem in all of the Gibbs engines? With a car that dominant, Kyle surely could have gotten back to the front couldn’t he have? He had a much better ride than Tony, and Tony got back up to 5th.

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Headlines all across the sports pages will read various ways, all of them proclaiming Kyle Busch the winner. But is he really a winner? I’m really not sure he is.

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Hey everybody, I’m back with the starting grid for tonight’s Dodge Challenger 500 at Darlington Raceway! Before I get to that, Did you see the Nationwide Series race last night? Did you see Kyle Busch get spun out and wrecked? I almost fell out of my chair laughing at the whole thing. When they interviewed him afterwards he was a little baby about it wasn’t he? How soon he forgets that he did the same thing just last week. It was nice to see Tony Stewart get his first win at Darlington even if it was in the Nationwide Series. I really like his car in that series. I’m not a big fan of Old Spice but the paint scheme is cool on the car.

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