Pre-Martinsville

Hello! Bubba here... Well, Atlanta came and went and we have a destroyed truck to show for it. The race went pretty well until about 12 laps to go. While running in third, we got bumped out of line which shot Colin straight into the backstretch wall. For those of you who watched the race, you know that it was a pretty amazing hit, but also there was nothing Colin could do. Luckily he was okay, but I can't say the same for chassis #58... It was a total loss. After the race, we cut almost everything from the windshield forward off of the truck. We had to do this to be able to load it into the transporter. Another little trick that I've learned is to lay a tarp down underneath the motor after a wreck, to keep the oil from getting on the floor. We unloaded the truck as soon as we got back so it wouldn't leak any more than necessary in the trailer.

We have spent the last week or so doing some testing at Rockingham. We went there earlier in the week, and ended up watching it rain all day. We will return later in the week, and try it again. All this testing is for Martinsville. I have spent a lot of time getting ready for Martinsville as well. This is a track where we unload everything from the trailer that we need for the whole weekend. We work on pit road out of tents, and it usually rains. It's very important that I remember everything we could need for the weekend. It takes about an hour and a half with five guys to unload the whole trailer. We race here twice a year, and I have been going to Martinsville for eight years, so I am used to this procedure. The transporters are then moved about a quarter of a mile up a hill to a gravel parking lot. You realize very quickly how much you miss the trailer when it's so far away. After the Martinsville race, we have three more weeks off, but I already know there is another Rockingham test planned, so I know we'll keep busy. And don't forget, my Baby Boy #2 is closer and closer to being here! I am really looking forward to his arrival.

To answer Frankie's question from my Atlanta blog, my co-driver spends most of his non-driving time in the sleeper. We really keep the wheels rolling on this truck, so it's important that we both get as much rest as possible when it’s available to us. Other times, he'll just sit in the passenger seat, and we'll talk about almost everything, or just look at the beautiful scenery. Driving can be tough sometimes, but I'm really glad that I get paid to see the country. I'm sure most of you will agree.

Stay safe...
Bubba

Pre-Atlanta

Hello everyone. Back from our coast-to-coast trip, we now look forward to Atlanta this week... but first let’s wrap up California. I thought we would have a promising finish, but a mechanical failure kept us from reaching our full potential. We decided to try to stretch our fuel mileage, but it turns out that it was a little too far to go. The trip to California and home went off without a hitch and I even got to stop and see my parents on the way home for lunch. Any chance I get to go through Oklahoma City and see them always gives me a little extra motivation for a long trip. After a 3pm ET race on Saturday, my co-driver and I were back in Mooresville by 8am ET Monday morning. As you can probably tell, we don't stop and waste much time when going across the country.

I had a short week, and then a nice weekend off with my family. I spent most of my free time painting a bedroom for my new son, who is to arrive in May. One good thing about the truck series is that we don't race every weekend. This week we are prepping to go to Atlanta. I will probably leave Wednesday night, so I can be down there first thing Thursday morning. This seems like the best time to drive through Atlanta... it’s best for me if I can avoid any Atlanta rush hour... I'm sure a lot of you know what I am talking about. I am looking forward to some southern warm weather after our surprise snowfall of six inches this past weekend. We should be pretty competitive in Atlanta, and I hope we can get our momentum headed in the right direction.

To answer Greg M's question from an earlier blog, the stretch of highway that I hate driving the most is I-20 going through Jackson, Mississippi. It is some of the roughest road that I have ever driven on, but Oklahoma City is a close second. As far as just not liking the roads, the trip to Loudon, New Hampshire doesn't rank very high in my book either. If anybody out there has any other questions for me, feel free to add a comment, and I'll try to get to them in future blogs.

Stay safe!
Bubba