It’s been rough on me as a competitor not to be at the track competing.  I am used to competing at a very high level and Pro Stock, in my opinion, is the highest level in the same line as the NBA.  It’s been kind of tough to sit back, but we realize we have bigger things to look after as far as our sponsorship is concerned.  That is the main priority in order for us to go out there to continue to move forward with racing and our Race for Achievement program, which gives us a chance to win races and make a difference in kids’ lives.  We know this is a very important part of our race team’s career, and we want to give 110 percent.

I am happy to say we are working on some potential partners to be involved with our program. Hopefully, we will have something to report as soon as possible.  Just like everyone knows, until the deals are done and the ink is dry, you don’t have anything.  We are moving forward and working hard to get back out there on the race track and in the classrooms where we need to be.  But, this does not stop me from having fun.

This break has also allowed me to spend more time at home with my kids before they go back to school.  It has really been a lot of fun.  Fellow competitor Allen Johnson gave me a pretty good deal on two dirt bikes for my kids, and it’s been a lot of fun and challenging teaching Keelan and Kaison how to ride before they go back to school. They’ve taken out a few small trees,  but that’s to be expected.  That has been the highlight of my summer.  Now, I do get a chance to ride with them, and I have to cherish these times.  They grow-up to fast, and it has really been fun to spend the time with them.

Lastly, we launched another piece to our website, http://www.tomhammondsracing.com/, which is up and running.  It is a myspace page at www.myspace.com/tomhammondsracing. Though I was skeptical, my publicist, Tonita Perry, convinced me to have a page. It looks very, very good.  Make sure you visit the page and invite us to be one of your friends.