T'was the Night Before Christmas, Race Fan Style

Valerie Perkins, WhoWon.com and TwoGirlsGoneRacin.com

T'was the night before Christmas, and all through the land

Not a race track was open, only snow filled the stands.

The pit shacks were shuttered, front gates were secured

And over PA sysems, not one word was heard.

The flagstands were empty, there were no shouts or cheers

And no kids begged their parents for speedway souvenirs

PRI had just ended, Chili Bowl was two weeks away

No races were scheduled to run Christmas Day.

RVs and campers were winterized and parked

Musco lighting was turned off, scoring towers were dark.

And everywhere race fans were snug in their beds

While visions of close finishes danced in their heads.

But somewhere in Ohio, north of Rossburg town

If you listened real close, you could just hear the sound

Of an engine, a Chevy, a small block at that

At the wheel was a driver in a Schlitz Beer ball cap.

He was pushed by a truck, its driver in red

With a long white beard and a furry cap on his head

They moved through the infield, past an empty food stand

Their only witness, a reindeer, with stopwatch at hand.

They rolled out of the pits and down the front straight

Then the engine, it caught, and the car pulled away

Past the bleachers it rumbled, the midget so light

Broadsliding 'round turns on that cold winter night.

Just off the cushion, the driver he flew

Gaining speed as he rounded the corner in two.

He zipped down the backstretch, no fenders, no wings

Because many drivers have no need of such things.

As he circled the track, he laughed in delight

Engine roaring as dirt clods flew into the night,

Many ciruits he made in the snow and the cold

The speed and the skill were a sight to behold.

All too soon, in the east, shown the first light of sun

And alas, it was time to end all the fun.

He was heard to exclaim as he climbed from the car,

"Merry Christmas all race fans, wherever you are!"

Broken Bow Records is Primary Sponsor of the Three Race POWRi “DuQuoin Winter Series”

MILLSTADT, Ill. -- Three events each will make up the 2008 edition of the Broken Bow Records “DuQuoin Winter Series” for the O’Reilly POWRi National Midget and Micro-Sprint Series divisions, officials announced today.

Races at the DuQuoin (Ill.) Indoor Center, which features a temporary sixth-mile dirt track, will be run on Jan. 19, Feb. 16 and March 29 – all Saturdays. Thirty-lap features are scheduled for the National Midgets, who are debuting as part of the “DuQuoin Winter Series,” while the Micro-Sprints are scheduled to compete in 25-lap features.

Broken Bow Records, a country music record label, will be the presenting sponsor of the three-race series. Among those associated with BBR include band Crossin Dixon, which is currently featured on Country Music Television’s (CMT) Studio 330 Sessions. Crossin Dixon, which recently released its first two singles Guitar Slinger and Make You Mine, will play on Friday, March 28, the night before the final event.

The final event will be called the “Dean King Memorial” in honor of Dean King, whose Grandson Dereck King recently earned the 2007 POWRi Micro-Sprint championship. Dean King was avid in racing in many facets, and sadly passed away in 2006. Both the Micro-Sprint and Midget races are expected to award high winner’s shares.

Visit www.brokenbowrecords.com for more information on the record label and its musical artists.

Note from Val: Broken Bow Records is also the label for a 2GGR favorite, Jason Aldean!

Book Review: Hart’s Victory by Michele Dunaway

A few weeks back I received a much-anticipated package in the mail. It was the newest release in the Harlequin NASCAR series of books. The title is Hart’s Victory and it was written by my friend, Michele Dunaway, who teaches at our high school. She sent me the autographed copy of her book as her way of thanking me for helping her with the research that went into it, and even included me in the dedication, which is really cool because I have never seen my name in a book before!

It took me a while to find the time to sit down and read the book, but when I did, I found it to be worth the wait. It was interesting to me to see how Michele included her extensive research in the book, which revolves around a Mom who’s son is very sick and gets to spend a weekend at a Victory Junction-type camp. While at the camp, Mother and son meet their favorite NASCAR driver, and you can imagine where that leads.

It’s a great story with enough plotline to keep even a non-race fan interested. My Mom was the first person I shared it with, and she liked it as much as I did, even though she doesn’t follow NASCAR at all.

Michele did a great deal of research on the camp and the inner workings of NASCAR to make everything very realistic and believable. One of my favorite things is that this is the type of book anyone can read because it is very clean without the crutch of foul language or spicy sex scenes that tend to permeate the genre. As someone who reads a lot of Christian romance, I can recommend this read with a very clear conscience!

With believable and endearing characters, a fast-paced plot, and the excitement of NASCAR, Hart’s Victory deserves a winner’s trophy!

On a related note, if you happen to live in our area, Michele will be signing copies of Hart’s Victory and The Christmas Date this Saturday at Rose’s Bookhouse in O’Fallon, MO from noon to two. If you need directions, drop me a note.
For more information on Michele and her books please visit www.micheledunaway.blogspot.com or www.micheledunaway.com

Music Review: Relient K – Let It Snow Baby, Let it Reindeer!

Every year I add at least one new CD to our Christmas collection. This year, my favorite choice by far is Relient K’s Christmas CD, cleverly entitled, Let It Snow Baby, Let it Reindeer!

Relient K has always been known for their clever lyrics and fun musical style, and this CD is no exception. It is a great mix of traditional Christmas carols and silly songs, as well as different twists to old favorites.

Their version of The Twelve Days of Christmas is a rowdy romp which is only outdone by I’m Getting’ Nuttin’ for Christmas and possibly, Santa Claus is Thumbin’ to Town. Each one will have you singing along and tapping your toes.

For the more sedate moments of Christmas, the Silent Night/Away in a Manger medley is a wonderful rendition which really gets down to the heart of what the season is all about.

With 17 tracks, the $10 price tag is a bargain. I absolutely love every single song on this CD and I highly recommend it. It has something for everyone, no matter their age or musical taste.

Here is a list of the titles on the CD:

Have Youself a Merry Little Christmas
Sleigh Ride
Merry Christmas, Here's to Many More
Angels We Have Heard on High
Deck the Halls
12 Days of Christmas
Silent Night/Away In A Manger
I Celebrate the Day
In Like a Lion (Always Winter
I'm Gettin' Nuttin' For Christmas
We Wish You a Merry Christmas
Santa Claus Is Thumbing To Town
Handel's Messiah
I Hate Christmas Parties
Boxing Day
Auld Lang Syne
Good King Wenceslas

Keeping the Lights On

Anyone who checks in here at the blog on a regular basis probably thinks I’ve fallen off the planet or something. I can’t believe how long it’s been since my last entry! Alas, the racing season came to an end, and I got totally wrapped up in my son’s marching band season and in getting through the first few months of having my daughter away at college. Now here it is December and the clock is ticking away the time until Christmas and a brand new year.

Beginning with this entry I plan to cover quite a few topics so I hope you have the patience to bear with me!

Right now I am sitting in a hotel room in Springfield, Missouri waiting for my daughter to finish her final final at Missouri State University so we can head back home. This is her last night in her dorm here because next semester she will be at Lindenwood University, which is right in our home town. I am very excited that she is coming back because the drive down here has gotten very old for everyone. She does it so much that it just seems kind of nuts for her to be so far from home.

We started our journey down here yesterday afternoon, waiting for the morning round of freezing rain to pass. We finally left around 2:00 and hoped to be here by 5:30 or so, driving past endless miles of frozen trees, grass and shrubbery. It was an eerie, yet beautiful sight. Unfortunately, by the time we got to the halfway point, a heavy fog had descended, rain was falling and the temperature was hovering just above freezing. We decided to stop for the night, and pulled into a McDonald’s with wi-fi so we could locate a reasonably priced room in the area. You gotta love technology!



After finding a room, we made a quick run to Wal-Mart because my daughter hadn’t planned on spending the night anywhere but her dorm and she had no clothes, toothbrush or other necessities. Finally, we got comfy at a Waffle House and dove into dinner.

Today we drove through the weirdest stretch of weather I have ever seen. Starting with temps in the sixties and a sunny sky, we got within forty miles of our destination and ran into this huge black wall of a cloud. It looked like the sandstorm scene from The Mummy and totally freaked us out. Within a half mile of entering this cloud, the temperature dropped at least 15 degrees and we were surrounded by gray cottony moisture. The saying here in Missouri is “If you don’t like the weather, wait a bit and it will change.” That was never proven more true to me than it was today!


We spent our day doing some Christmas shopping, eating and jus goofing off. It was a lot of fun getting to hang out with my girl. She is an awesome young lady and I love her to pieces. Tonight I took her and her room mate out to dinner at Lambert’s, famous for its “Throwed Rolls” (www.throwedrolls.com) which was very good. The only bad part is that this place doesn’t take credit/debit cards, and I never carry cash, so that meant a quick run to a local ATM to make a pricey withdrawal! I have to say that it was worth the effort though.

Tomorrow we head back home and I know the journey will be just as much fun on the return trip as it was on the way down, if not more. At least on this trip, there won’t be any studying going on!

So until tomorrow morning, I'm hanging out here in a room of my own, watching what I want to watch, snoring if I want to snore and going to bed whenever the notion strikes me. Heck, I even worked for a few hours! And speaking of working, this hotel is full up with electrical workers who are, I assume, here to repair all the area damage from the ice storms. I wish I had my camera to share a picture of the parking lot! Every space is full of white trucks, some with booms and baskets, some laden with other kinds of equipment. They are everywhere you look, even on the streets around the hotel. It looks like an electrical workers union convention or something! Actually, it reminds me a lot of my Dad who spent 37 years working for our local electic company. I have a soft spot in my heart for the guys here because I know they are going to put in some long hours if they haven't already.