I guess it was just one of the days where the stars all lined up and we couldn’t seem to do anything wrong. In the interview after the race I told everyone that I felt like I had a lot of help in the cockpit for that final round, I am very sure that I did and with a .018 light I have the time slip to justify it. It was sure an emotional day and I would like to thank everyone who helped to make it possible and everyone that called and congratulated me for the win; thank you all very much it means the world to me.

Before the race we all took an extra day in the Norwalk/Sandusky area and made the trek to Cedar Point amusement park. What a great place! My favorite ride has to be Top Thrill Dragster; this ride takes you from zero to 120 mph in just a few seconds and then straight up a 420-foot vertical incline, loops around and then straight down. Wow, what a ride! Jessie loved it and so did I. Madeline (Jessie’s nanny and my son Jon’s close friend and classmate) was able to join us and that was really special, too. Jessie always wanted to sit next to Ginger just so she could see the expressions on her face when she was scared to death! I don’t know what it is but Jessie seems to be a bit like her dad when it comes to scary rides; they don’t seem to be very scary they just seem to be a lot of fun!

We had a great 4th of July party at the house. It was great fun, Jessie and some of her friends came over to celebrate as well as a bunch of my friends. My buddy Bob went down to South Carolina and brought back some great fireworks, too! We had a great time! It was kind of like we had a party to celebrate winning the race last week and the whole country joined us, it was great! Needless to say we spent some fun time on the lake and in the pool with a bunch of great friends and everyone took turns getting a picture with the Norwalk “Wally”!

On Saturday my friends Greg and John helped me put a small marker monument at the site on Jetton Road where I drive by every day when I go to or from my house and where my boys James and Jon had the accident on Jan. 26. It is a small marker but it sure means a lot to me and as we were digging the hole and putting down the concrete I realized from all the passersbye that it was not just me that thought about the boys every time I drove by; plenty of people stopped by to see what we were doing and told us they thought it was great and we even shared a few tears. I am pretty sure that everyone in the community where we live drives by that spot every day and thinks about Jon and James. It is amazing to me that over six months after the accident the skid marks and pieces of the car are still there at the accident site. I know that the boys would be happy to see us out there putting that marker up and I am sure that having it there may make some young drivers think twice before they speed down Jetton road. I really feel like their spirits were there with us on Jetton that day as well as at the Norwalk race. I don’t know how to explain it but I know it sure makes me feel good.

The B.R.A.K.E.S. foundation continues to build up momentum. I would like to once again thank Connie Kalitta and the entire Kalitta race team for supporting B.R.A.K.E.S. and thanks to all of the generous donations that have been received in memory of our great friend Scott Kalitta. These donations will go to great use, we have the new website getting up and going very soon along with a bunch of great information that will help prevent the deaths of other drivers. I will continue to devote myself to this cause and together we will be able to save a bunch of people. I have already received letters from parents of some of the teen agers that I have talked to and they are saying that their children’s driving habits have changed because of BRAKES and what I have been talking about. That makes it all worthwhile.

Thanks again to everyone for supporting our team. Now its time to get ready for the Western Swing. Hope to check back in soon … maybe with another win!