Hey NHRA fans! Sorry for the delay in posting a new blog. It is really hard to believe that the season is almost over already. It has been a long, hard season for me but we’ve been so busy that it seems like it has just flown by. This past weekend was a lot of fun because I spent the weekend with my 10-year-old daughter Jessie. We went to Michael’s, the arts and crafts store, and got a bunch of supplies to make Halloween decorations.

After that we left town to drive down to the beach, Oak Island, N.C. Jessie’s friend Olivia came with us and they always have fun together. On the way we stopped by Maxton, N.C., where the ECTA Races. Many of the Bonneville racers from the East Coast go there to test. I didn’t get to stay long since I had a couple of 10-year-old girls with me and they wanted to get to the beach. I’ll go back to Maxton another time and give everyone a full report.

It was pretty cold but Jessie and Olivia were very brave, not to mention maybe a little crazy, and went right in the water! I didn’t want to go but Jessie talked me into it! She bribed me but I think that I got a good deal – 30 hugs and 10 kisses, plus her going to the BRAKES driving school with me next weekend and going with me back to the beach for another weekend sometime soon.

We did a lot of cool stuff. For me, just spending time with Jessie is so special and fun. Walking on the beach at sunset was awesome. We chased crab around the beach for awhile and once we caught one we brought it back to the house in a sand bucket. Jessie and Olivia thought that was really fun. The girls spent a lot of time boogie boarding, all of that paddling probably kept them warm! Jessie and Olivia play pretty rough together. Somehow Jessie managed to hit one of the posts on the beach while she was riding a wave into the shore. She is one tough chick!

On the way back home from the coast we went by to see my sister. She is in the Army and stationed at Ft. Bragg so it was on the way as we drove home. Heather has really been there to support me this year. Her and her husband Mike came up for my birthday, and James’ birthday, a few weeks ago with baby Andrew. They came out to the first BRAKES driving school and that meant a lot to me.

That reminds me, we’re having another BRAKES Teen Pro-Active Driving School here in Charlotte next weekend, on Nov. 8. It’s at zMAX Dragway and there are two sessions, one at 8:00am and one at 12:00 noon. If you live anywhere near Charlotte you should come out for it! The hands-on experience is great for teenagers. You can register on the BRAKES website, www.putonthebrakes.com or by calling (866) 968-2725.

I’m off to Vegas and looking forward to it. We’ve had two weekends off, and I really enjoyed them because I got to spend so much time with Jessie, but now it’s time to get back to the track! It looks like we can move up in the points with a good performance at these last two races.