Happy New Years! I just want to let everyone know that I’m excited and feeling better than ever and we’re ready for the 2009 NHRA season to start. The brothaman is ready to roll! The New Year is here and I’m feeling a lot better from the nose surgery I had on Dec. 19, the Friday before Christmas.

For New Year’s Eve I decided to do something nice for my wife, Billie Jo. We went to Kona Grill at Clay Terrace up in Carmel north of Indy. We went with Kelly Bustos from Impact! Racing and her new fiancé Tyler and Mike Knudsen and his wife, Kate. I worked with Mike at DSR. It was a nice night out with the wife. We got home around 11:30 and that’s all I could handle with the meds I was on for my nose. The cold weather and my sensitive nose didn’t go together too well. I made it to midnight on the couch with Dick Clark and Ryan Seacrest on TV.

This Monday, on Jan. 5, it felt so good to get back to the race shop to see my crew and our 3B Racing team. The crew hasn’t changed, but we’re basically starting a new team and building a new brand with 3B Racing. I’ve got to say that I’m so appreciative to be out here racing with the Matco Tools dragster. We’re going to give it everything we’ve got. We’re starting by being mentally stronger and more focused and being physically stronger.

To get in shape for the season, I’ve started doing some crosstraining with my boys Matt and Joe at Blast Fitness in Indy. By far, it’s one of the best fitness programs I’ve been a part of. It’s such a good workout, I even got some of my boys on the team to come. PR Ted, Lil’ John, Cameron, Jim from hospitality and Chris are going to be regulars at Blast Fitness. It’s not easy. We initiated Cameron, Chris, and Jim last night with 10 straight minutes of 10 situps, 10 pushups, and 10 squats. It might sound easy, but when those guys hit the five-minute mark, you could stick a fork in them. It’s a great core training program. Ted and I did dead lifts, box jumps and ring dips in sets of 21, 15, and nine. My lower back is feeling the dead lifts today. If we all can be stronger, physically, I think we can mentally focus better rather than getting fatigued and that will give our team an edge. Here I am with my boys: Chris, Jim, Cameron, Ted and me after the workout. Check out Blast Fitness online at www.blastfitindy.com.

I’m pretty sure I speak for all of us at 3B Racing, the Phoenix test and Pomona can’t come soon enough because we’re ready to get out of the cold and get back to the track and get racing. For now, that’s all that’s happening in my life at 3B Racing. So, I’m going to leave you on my final words of wisdom. You’ve gotta have some love, peace and hair grease, and I’m out like shout. And my next route will be at a drag strip near you.

Antron