Iowa defeats South Carolina in 2008 Outback Bowl

Well, I wrote a long blog entry and then got Vista lockup.  So, I will attempt to rewrite all of that again, but in smaller portions.  ughhh.

2008 New Years:  I spent New Years in Pinehurst at the resort and had a very good yet quiet time.  We went to dinner with Parker Williams and Tyler Hmiel at Elliotts on Linden and it was fantastic.  Both Renee and I were on medicine so we couldn't drink, but still had a fun time watching the other couples have fun.  We retired to the room to watch Dick Clark and not long after the ball dropped, so did my eyelids.

2009 New Years Day:  3 Wide Life went to Rockingham to cover the Polar Bear 150.  It was the world's largest street stock race and it was awesome.  My good friend Joey Meier, who is a pilot for DEI and spotter to Martin Truex, Jr. raced in it and finished 13th.  After covering the event, I am so building a car for next year.  Sponsorship needed!

2009 New Years Pt. 2: The highlight of the day.  My Iowa Hawkeyes kicked the visor out of South Carolian in the Outback Bowl.  I was the only member of the Rizzuti family not in attendance, but when I saw the score during a red flag at The Rock, I think I could hear my Dad shouting, "Give me an I!"  Take that Spurrier.

Facebook:  My wife dragged me kicking and screaming onto Facebook and boy am I glad she did.  I have had the chance to get back in touch with so many good friends that I thought were lost forever.  It is really cool.  I even have some photos from the Polar Bear on there.

Finally: I'm not sure this is exactly like the first one I wrote, but thanks to everyone for a great 2008.  I have a lot of things in the works for '09, both in racing and stick and ball sports.  Not everything will fall into place, but I feel good about my opportunities this year.  3 Wide Life is now available in 90 million homes, so that has been a great success and we are just getting started with what that show can be this year.  AND, I am going to switch this website over to a more dynamic HTML site with embedded video.  I hope to have that ready by Speedweeks.

Alright, I have to go edit some tape for 3WL.  See YA!

This is the now imfamous Jim Mora, Sr. who as coach of the Indianapolis Colts uddered the most replayable rant in NFL television history.  He also made famous the line, "We suck...we didn't do diddily pooh."  Check out the video here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qwq7BYOnDrM

I was praised last week for writing a positive piece amid the doom and gloom.  Unfortunately, its time to talk about that 800 lbs gorilla in the room. 

The off-season is now here and as most in the sport predicted, the slumping economy has hit the NASCAR teams.  We have seen several large layoffs (DEI, Hendrick), small layoffs (KHI, MWR) and teams close down (Bobby Hamilton Racing).  It's really sad, but as quickly as the sport grew, even without the DOW Dive, teams would probably be scaling back anyway.

I talked about this on Sirius Radio with Pat Patterson at Homestead-Miami.  A good majority of the crew members layed off will find work come February.  Every year I have worked in the sport we have had a meeting after the final checkered flag telling us we need to cut back.  So you make the needed changes and then comes Daytona, you realize you don't have enough people or things to get the job done correctly.  So you scramble to make things happen and worry about the budget... only you never hear about the budget again until November.  That is...if you have a sponsor.  

I'm not trying to make light of the situation.  There will be those that don't find work.  I know several 20-something crew members that make great money ($150,00 or more) and live like they are P-Diddy.  They have a big house, a truck, sports car, AND classic car.  They have dirt bikes, go-karts, and 60 inch HDTV's in every room.  They also have no college education and outside of the specialty that is NASCAR, have no real skill sets.  If they don't find work, the harsh realities of life will kick like a mule.

Let me clarify as well, that this is not just about crew guys.  There are marketing people, PR reps, show car drivers, accountants, pilots, motor coach drivers, ect..that are affected by this.  I know I am nervous about the whole situation myself.  I work in TV and radio.  I read where FOX and ESPN are looking at ways to cut costs so they can continue to bring the sport to the fans.  DirecTV has told us they are solid for another year of HotPass, but will fans be able to fork out the $100 - even with a product as good as what we deliver.  And with the XM merger, we have learned that the Michael Waltrip show I host will more than likely NOT be back.  Toyota was not able to come up with the sponsorship dollars for the show.  So that means that the drivers view of the world from Dale Jr., Tony Stewart and now MW, that the fans loved hearing, will not be coming to a radio near you (though as I type, Sirius is trying to find a way to keep Michael's show...but its 30-70 at best).

Its a scary time for everyone.  I always joked that if the TV deal didn't pan out, I would just go back to being a PR rep in the sport.  Uh...I'm not sure that position is going to be around in great numbers either.  Anyone got a contact at ESPN U or the Big Ten Network??? So when all else fails, I can go into retail.  Wait, stores are closing left and right.  I can't do that.  You see the issue here?  I have come to the conclusion that two jobs will survive if the economy goes plunk.  McDonalds because food is cheap and bartender, because people will want to forget.  (I wonder if Dale Jr. is hiring at Whisky River?) 

Hopefully, this will all pass like it does every year.  My hope is that we will show up at Daytona and the sun will shine as it typically does.  We will see our friends that we worried about in the off-season at The Oyster Bar and the Deck Down Under and we'll share a beer and say, "whew...that was close.  How's your car."  And if not, well I will be right here bloggin away on the seven different ways to cook Top Ramon noodles.  Maybe that will turn into a cooking show gig..."Now where are my tongs?"

Congrats to Jimmie Johnson on winning his third straight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship.

What an amazing feat for J.J. and Chad.  Its seems almost surreal that Jimmie is the one to tie Cale's amazing record.  I have known Jimmie since his ASA days and always wished the best for him.  After his crash at Watkins Glen in 2001, I feared that his highlight of climbing out of the destroyed No. 92 with hands raised, would be his 15 minutes of fame...ever to be repeated on Crashes, Spills and Thrills on ESPN2 at 2am.  Boy was I wrong.

But who really knew back then that this was the future of Cup racing?  Certainly his resume on asphalt up to that point wasn't a sign.  He was a good ASA driver, but he was far from Mark Martin, Dick Trickle, or even Johnny Benson.  In Busch, he was a 10th place car at best in most races (though he did score a win with Rambo as the crew chief).  But those inside the ropes knew Jimmie was a favorite of Chevrolet.  The folks in Detroit saw the potential in the El Cajon native from the very start.

I remember my good friend Sue Seaglund, who headed GMSPO motorpsorts, always talking about how JJ was the one.  Even as Goodwrench and ACDelco sponsored winning drivers Kevin Harvick and Ron Hornaday, Sue would always talk about Jimmie.  And that feeling about what he could do both inside the car and maybe more importantly at that time, outside the car, was extremely strong.

I have been fortunate to spend some time with Jimmie in my career.  There have only been three drivers to ever come over to my home - Kevin Harvick, Ron Hornaday and Jimmie Johnson.  For Jimmie, it was after the January Busch Series preview.  We had left the event and grabbed dinner.  I asked if he wanted to come by and try a new NASCAR sim game called NASCAR 3.  He followed me back to the house and he raced that game for a couple of hours.  I laughed at how bad he was at IRP.  He even joked, "I never could race this track."  Of course this all took place when we had nothing better to do (some say I still don't).  I also remember during that time that his little brother used to like to sneak attack me like Kato in the Pink Panther, jumping on my back and trying to take me down. 

A year ago, my wife and I moved to South Charlotte.  It is miles from the daily racing encounters of Lake Norman and Race City USA.  This area is more about golf and fashion.  It is closer to my wifes work and for me, closer to the airport.  We have a favorite italian spot where we like to eat dinner on the South side.  It's called Il Posto and it is a very typical Osteria in Italy.  We know the owner and it feels like Cheers when we stop in.  It is also a favorite of Jimmie and his wife. 

One night we had finished up dinner and were leaving, saying our thanks to Augusto, Manny, and at that time Sante, who ran Il Posto.  We were with another couple and my friend Dr. Belgrave said, "somebody keeps throwing things at you.  I think they want your attention."  I turned to look and it was Jimmie Johnson.  He said, "What's the deal Rizzuti?  Were you just going to walk by and say nothing?"  This was two-time champion Jimmie Johnson.  I never saw him.  He blends into life, like Joe the plumber (bad analogy).  We exchanged hello's and went on our way.  Since that day, we have shared Preseco with the Johnson's several times and I look forward to toasting him once again this year.

I mention on my bio page that my biggest weakness is that I rarely enjoy the moment.  Here I have one of the greatest jobs in the world...one I have wanted and worked for all of my life.  Yet, I can only think of a handful of times when I left the track happy and satisfied with what I had said or done.  It goes the same with people.  Thinking back to those early days with Jimmie put a smile on my face and a warmth in my heart.  This blog allows me to relive my experiences that I hope you find fun to read.  But for me its an outlet to "enjoy the moments".  I consider Jimmie to be a good friend.  I wish he wasn't as busy, so we could play golf or eat together more often.  But I cherish the time we have had and I couldn't be happier with his success.  So I raise a glass to Jimmie Johnson...Three-Time Champ and good friend.  Cheers!

PS - On a side note, but still relative to this blog.  I reached out last week to my college (UCF) roommate whom I hadn't seen or spoken to in 13 years.  It was hard to intially pick up the phone.  I felt guilty for not keeping in touch.  But I am so glad I did.  I can't stress to everyone how important your friends and family are.  In this Holiday season, please enjoy the moments.  If you have someone from your past that you haven't talked to in a while, pick up the phone and call.  Yes its awkward, and maybe they do owe you the call...but just reach out and say hello.  Trust me, the happiness it brings will make everything look, feel and taste better.

Phoenix International Raceway (courtesy of RacingOne.com)

Just got back from Arizona after three strange days in the desert.  How strange you ask?

Day One - Friday

The fact that Ron Hornaday, Jr. crashed his truck racing Kyle Busch on lap one as if it was Lap 150, shouldn't have suprised anyone.  That's what you get with Ron.  And you all know he is one of my best friends and I think he is the best racer I have ever seen.  But, he goes 110% from the drop of the green and that sometimes leads to what we saw Friday.

Where it gets strange is the fact that not only Chevy, but Ford and Dodge teams helped the 33 team get that truck back in the race.  It was either Help-A-Veteran Day or what classicly (is that even a word) looked to be Team USA vs. Japan.  For the record, I don't have any issues with Toyota.  They sponsor my former employer and they also make it possible for Mikey and I to do a radio show on Sirius XM that we absolutely love.  You all know that.  I am a confessed Chevy guy, that has been noted as well. 

My point is that regardless of the fact that the Toyota Tundra is manufactured in the USA, supporting thousands of jobs, it was clear that the Big 3 and their NCTS teams, will do anything to keep a Toyo from winning the title.  That has to be the case, because Johnny Benson and Bill Davis have about the least amount of enemies in the garage area, from what I have witnessed.

I could be wrong and this was all just brother helping brother, but what's that old saying?  If it looks like a duck...

Oh and HotPass producer John Morris showed off his dance moves in an Irish bar, only to be pulled away by some guy who kept asking him if he remembered Ronald Reagan.  Note to J-Mo, after the first hour of 80's Reganomics, I would have gone to the restroom and snuck out the back or just told him I was a Walter Mondale guy.  You all remember Mondale right?  Well, at least all of you in Minnesota do (the lone blue state in a see of red).

Day Two - Saturday

Okay, it really wasn't that strange of a day in general.  The Nationwide race saw a giant pileup on a restart that just about took Clint Bowyer out of title contention.  Carl Edwards got the win, holding off Denny Hamlin. 

But then (note to racing only people, this will NOT be about cars going left.  Please proceed to Day three), my Iowa Hawkeyes take down Penn State, ruining Old Man Joe Pa's chance at a National Title.  How bout them Hawks!!!! (I hope that didn't just cost me my Yuengling beer from my Pennsylvania friends)

Unfortunately, the excitement from that big win was smothered like a plate of Waffle House hash browns when my school, UCF, lost their homecoming game to So. Miss.  The Knights offense is now ranked 119th of 119 Div 1 schools.  Nice George O'Leary.  Real nice!  If your goal was to turn UCF into the Notre Dame of the South, well, Sir, you are succeeding.

Here's a thought Mr. O'Leary...Try actually recruiting some talent instead of blaming the kids you have.  Which, by the way, are YOUR kids, YOU recruited.  This is year five!!!  Shouldn't this be your best team based on how recruiting works?  Also, Conference USA isn't the NFL.  It is impossible to think that college kids who are only good enough to play at a mid-major, would be able to run a single back, pro style offense.  Look at Florida, FSU and So. Florida in your own state.  Hell, look at your old school Georgia Tech.  They run a spread formation, semi hybrid version of the old Bobby Bowden West Virgina Veer (with more passing of course).  The only schools running your offense are in the Big Ten (11).  And outside of Ohio State and PSU, how's that working out.  In fact, with Pryor at QB, the Buckeyes spread the ball now too.  Now that I really think about it, no one runs it except for Iowa and Wisconsin.  Come on, coach.  Get with the program! 

On a happier note, the apple martini's at Merc Bar in Scottsdale are very good and the atmosphere is pretty close to perfect.  Took in the spot with my Hot Pass producer Tony "T-Bone" Marshall and we enjoyed the subdued lighting and modern jazz mix.  The whole experience was easy on the eyes if you catch my drift.  BTW, Bone likes to just introduce himself to everyone like he was in Animal House.  "Hi, Tony Marshall.  Damn glad to meet you."  Yo Bone, when did you become a Scorpio?  (Fred Wagonahls of the old Action Performance is still trying to figure out who you are.)

Day Three- Sunday

Do I really need to go here.  Lets see...Rain fell out of nowhere.  We had a red flag for cars stacking up in turn three - LITERALLY!  There was more banging going on than a Jenna Jamison film (not sure what that means, but she is from Phoenix).  Then ABC goes faral and disappears into the ESPN2 night.  For the record, Tom Bergeron (Funniest Video's, Dancing w/ Stars) is the best live host in TV today.  Ryan Seacrest coming in second in my informal exit poll.  And speaking of that, did you notice on Hot Pass when I declared that DirecTV Hot Pass was ready to now project Jimmie Johnson as winning the bonus award for leading the most laps?  Just curious, cause nobody working on my channel got it.  Who are you people??

Oh and since a lot of you frequent other blogs.  The DirecTV issue that David Poole for one keeps talking about...it had to do with our SuperChannel apparently.  LA was slow to move to the duece on that channel only.  The driver channels we had, that the majority of people watch, had no issues.  In fact, our viewers never had to switch anything.  Our subscribers received..

1. In-depth coverage of the two drivers fighting for the title.  Sure ABC checked in with Carl Edwards a couple times.  We rode with him all day baby!  Not to mention we covered the 48 of Jimmie Johnson after JG fell out. (Oh and Junior Nation...'nuff said))

2. Picture in Picture coverage of the race during commercials, with the option to not even listen to the spot and keep hearing the driver and team.

3.  No switching, no guessing, no "now my DVR is recording the wrong show because I'm stuck at Bed, Bath and Beyond with the Mrs. No "Heidi" moment of rage or frustration. Nope none of that.  (Call 1-800-GET SPORTS in 2009...that's all I have to say about that).

And I am starting my campaign for 2009 NASCAR's 60 Most Beautiful People.  I have nothing to do with taxes, I have been known to not only reach across the aisle, but the dinner table as well.  And the only state I can see from my backyard is the state of confusion.  Root for Zoot in 2009!

Wow...I'm worn out.  Have a nice day and I look forward to your replies.

What a beautiful day in Avondale, Arizona today.  Sunny skies and temps in the low to mid 70's.  Now I understand why people from Canada and "Up North" head to the Phoenix area in the winter to live.  It is absolutely perfect so far this weekend.

I am always amazed by how much fun Phoenix is.  If you are in the age group of 18-40-ish, there are great bars, clubs and eating establishments.  And according to the single guys on our DirecTV crew, it is packed with the best looking females on the circuit.  Being a married man myself, I haven't noticed .

I will be covering Carl Edwards on NASCAR HotPass this weekend.  Carl didn't have a very good qualifying effort 15th, when compared to Jimmie Johnson who won the Coors Light Pole Award.  But, the 99 has been fast and steady in both practices, so I hope we can see a good battle on Sunday.  I still feel like Jimmie has enough of a lead and such a great team behind him, that he will be crowned as a three-time NASCAR Champion.

While most are concentrating on the Chase for th Championship, the best battle in the garage is for the top-35 in points.  Those teams at the back really need to be locked in when the checkered flag waves at Homestead-Miami.  I have been part of a program that had to go to Daytona and qualify their way into the sports biggest race, the Daytona 500.  It isn't a fun experience and their is so much pressure that even if you do get it, it seems the year is off to an edgy start.

Webster's Dictionary:  Empty Seats - (See Atlanta Motor Speedway)

Okay, this wasn't a live shot of the turn three grandstand at Atlanta, but you if you saw the race, you get the point.  It is very discouraging to see the lack of attendance from the fans in Georgia.  AMS has a spot in the Chase and typically sees some of the most exciting finishes in the entire year.  However, it also sees some of the worst weather and traffic.  It was cold and rainy again this time.  The race will move to Labor Day night race next year, hopefully that will help.  If not, its off to Kentucky or Vegas with the date. 

It was easy to see given the state of the economy, the racing in the spring event and the weather why some fans would say, "I think I will skip this one, and hope I don't miss anything."  Well, you didn't miss much.  Outside of Jimmie Johnson's heroic charge on the final two restarts, it was a rather boring race to watch. 

Now you can't tell any of the drivers it was boring, because from the shots of them in the car, they had to bring their A-Game.  The video of eventual winner Carl Edwards fighting his car, lap after lap, was incredible.  And with that, I think we can now safely say to those who feel if we took the spoilers and ground effects off the cars, we would see a better race, it doesn't work.  It is very clear that the racing is best when everyone has grip.  Slipping and sliding at 185 mph does not make for good racing.  It makes hero's like Dale Earnhardt, but it doesn't make the show any better - at least at Atlanta Motor Speedway.  (Now if you want to take all that off and slow them down to about 165-170, maybe you have something there.)

It was a fun day on Hot Pass as we covered the exploits of Edwards.  He had a good day for the most part.  The car was on rails early, then they had a slow stop on pit road that cost them track position and the 99 was stuck in fourth for most of the middle stages.  Bob Osbourne really cracked the whip on the crew to watch the replay of the stop and figure out what they did to lose the @%$#ing lead.  But Carl was able to take advantage of Denny spinning his tires and won the race.  And Denny did spin the tires prior to Carl getting into him.  We replayed it a couple times and that was obvious.  Denny didn't like so, but it was a fair play by Carl.

Victory Lane is always a great spot.  I think that was my fourth or fifth win on Hot Pass.  (Note to drivers: I have the highest winning percentage of any Hot Pass announcer.  You might want to request my services.)  Carl did a good interview.  We brought up the young boy named Dalton who Carl met at the Aflac Cancer Center in Atlanta.  He gave Carl his courage necklace and said it would bring good luck.  Carl actually did wear the necklace, which most drivers don't, and it was a cool story.  I thought we had a great show, given such a lackluster event.

After the race, I decided to skip my Monday morning flight back to Charlotte and instead chose to ride home with Hot Pass colleage Randy Pemberton.  What transpired was a four-hour version of Speed's Trading Paint right there in his SUV.  We both threw out our ideas on the sport.  From my view that we need a totally new tire that is bigger and wider, to Randy's thought that NASCAR's lineup be picked at random with lottery balls.  We didn't always agree but it was fun.  I wish I had recorded it, because there were some great ideas that came from the discussion.  At some point I may try to think back and write them down and post them.  I am planning on doing a first edition of my NASCAR State of the Sport at the end of the reason, where I break down what went right and wrong and how IMHO, they can fix it.  Stayed tuned for that at years end.

Well, I'm off to Raceworld USA for another edition of Michael Waltrip Outloud!  The double nickel had a great race going until hitting the wall.  He then went from hero to zero.  I'm curious to hear what he has to say.

C-Ya

PS- To all the rockers out there...I am really liking the new GnR track that I posted.  Its starting to get some airplay.  In fact, I learned it on my Les Paul.  I almost have the effects right as well.  Its a good jam!  Hearing mixed reviews about the CD.  I think most want that Appetite sound, which was long gone on Use your Illusion 1 and 2.  It won't be GnR from 20 years ago, but I can't wait.  The music biz is a little flat unless you're 15 and into Miley, Jonas, or High School 3.  It could use a little hard rock about now.  Oh, and AC/DC has new record out.  Gonna pick that up today. 

http://web.gunsnroses.com/splash.jsp

The Countdown to Chinese Democracy. 

The new album from Guns N Roses, the most dangerous band...ever!  13 years in the making.

The most expensive collection of songs ever produced in music history. 

It's good to be The King!  (Here rubbing lotion on Brooke Burke...yes that Brooke Burke). 

After a two week break, I am back at the track once again.  And its about time.  I hate sitting at home when everyone else is at the track.  I feel like I am so far behind in what's going on inside the garage.  But that is how it goes when you cut back from five channels to four on Hot Pass.  We all need our air time.

The fall foilage in the mountains was pretty cool.  I like the trees that turn flourescent orange/pink.  Those are my favorites.  We went to Grandfather Mountain and Blowing Rock.  BR is a cool little town.  The people were friendly and the food was great.  Still, it was good to get back to home.  When you travel as much as I do, there is no place like home.

So whats new in my world.  Its been hard to blog, when there hasn't been much going on.  The Dodgers lost since we last spoke and I was very upset about that.  I'm not a huge baseball guy, but I was really into it with the LA success.  Now, I could care less, though my folks live in Tampa, so I guess Go Rays.

The Carolina Panthers have looked good and I got to check out the game last week with Doug Rice.  On the other side, the Cowboys look like a team ready to implode.  Golf is winding down, but hoops are just around the corner.  Hopefully my Tar Heels can take care of business this year.  They came so close last season and most of the team is back.  On the NBA side, I'm not sure what will happen with the Bobcats.  Larry Brown is a great addition, but this team has a ton a gaps and are winless so far in the preseason.

Its going to be cold in Atlanta, but I don't think that will cool Jimmie Johnson from continuing his pursuit of the tittle.  I am covering Carl Edwards on Hot Pass and I think he will win the race, but Jimmie gets a top-five, so no big gain for Cuz Carl.  Look for Michael Waltrip to continue to improve as he will get another top-20 at AMS.

Oh yeah...I saw Body of Lies this week with Leo DiCaprio.  Great movie.  But the best part, at the end during the credits, they played a new Guns N Roses song.  "If the World". Very cool!

Everybody take care and catch you on the flip side.

My favorite athlete Paula Creamer won the LPGA event at Half Moon Bay, California (home of Mavericks) on Sunday.  My wife called to tell me my "girlfriend" won.  Like I didn't know...

Back to the blog!  After a nice week of rest, I am back blogging with you on tonyrizzuti.com.

Talladega...I just got back to Charlotte from Birmingham.  It is funny when you get to the terminal every week and the flight is 95% NASCAR media or sponsors.  Its like a reunion every Monday morning.  "How was your race?  Fine, how was your's".  And then when the gate attendant calls for US Airways status members to board and the entire gate gets up..classic.  Today the attendant repeated herself as if we all misunderstood.  Note to those working the gate, we travel 36 weekends a year.  We are all preferred!

As for the race, I guess NASCAR got it right giving Stewart the victory.  I didn't think so at first, because Jimmie Johnson had said via the radio during HotPass that they were told if you can see the flagstand, coming to the checkered, everything was legal.  That statement apparently came from NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Posten following the Daytona Truck Series race.  I really like Mr. Posten.  He is one of my favorite people in the sport and if he said that in February, then that is how it was explained to him.  However, Jim Hunter of NASCAR, who trumps Ramsey in these matters, says that was never the case.  To be honest, it really doesn't matter.  If Tony had known that it would have been legal to go below the yellow line, he would have never left that open for Regan Smith.  So I think Tony wins in that scenario.

Now, Regan Smith admitted he could have wrecked Stewart for the win.  Good choice not to Mr. Smith.  Brian Vickers popularity hasn't recovered since his run in at Talladega that led to the win.  Now that one involved Junior, but still, he would have been hammered by fans and media.  My only thought is that NASCAR shouldn't have penalized Smith back to 18th.  I think he should have been droppped back to second.  Again, coming to the checkered, the fine doesn't fit the crime.

I thought the crowd was good considering the economy and the gas crisis in the Southeast.  I was able to find gas this morning by the airport, but only regular.  Near my home in South Charlotte, nothing, zip, nada.  My wife has to use premium and is down to 50 miles to empty.  Looks like I am landlocked this week.  I have a feeling my truck will be in her control.  By the way, I have a bad feeling that if you look up empty stands in the dictionary after next Saturday night, you will see a photo of Lowe's Motor Speedway.  I hope not, but...

It was interesting doing HotPass this week.  We had a great lineup with Doug Rice in the booth and TV Tim Deroin (High Home camera for the Red Sox) producing.  I missed my usual crew of John (find my families names on the 88 car) Morris and T-Bone Tony (yes, sir Mr. Perry) Marshall, but Timmy did a great job with the show.  I really like working with Doug.  I think we have the best chemistry together.  He is a real pro and a great guy.  With that said, covering a driver riding in the back single file can get a bit trying.  I thought we did a good job of keeping the show entertaining.  I hated seeing our guy Carl in the crash at the end.  He admitted fault, but its a shame because he had a great car.  One I think could have won the race.

Bob Dillner snaked me on the interview with Carl which didn't leave me, my producer, or Randy Fuller of Roush-Fenway very happy.  But thats how it goes in the trenches.  A little communication goes a long way though.  When we switched to Jimmie at the end, I got that interview first.  I worked with ESPN's Mike Massaro and we agreed to let me go first.  Bob was there as well and we both made him wait.  Its NASCAR's policy to have live TV go before taped shows.  With the Jimmy interview it worked.

Something else that works...Dreamland BBQ in Birmingham.  It was so good after the race.  We had a combination of ribs, sausage, chicken, mac n cheese, beans, and potato salad.  I drank a Yuengling (great Pennyslvania beer).  And banana pudding to die for.  A woman sitting next to us, asked me about my DirecTV HotPass logo on my shirt.  Tim says we are with a TV network and covered the NASCAR race.  She asked me if I was a Grip or Key Grip.  I told her I was a fluffer.  Three tables within earshot busted out laughing.  I think I missed my calling.  AS A COMEDIAN...I know what you were thinking...

Speaking of humor... I don't do a lot of lists but here were some of the highlights from our broadcast with a comment or two that bring it all full circle.

* Doug Rice - "Carl Edwards is the lead surfer in this wave of cars" - Doug knows I'm a surfing guy and tossed me a bone.  I followed with "If this is surfing, than the site is Waimea Bay on the North Show of Oahu and the waves are 60 foot and growing"  Later in the race, Carl fell to the back, but the three wide-racing continued up front.  I brought back the surfing analogy with "Up front the field is being spit out the tube at Teahpou in Tahiti..back here we're riding ripples at Sebastian Inlet."  Nobody watching except Kelly Slater and the Iron's brothers got it, but I said it anyway.  (If you just wondered who Slater and Iron's are, you didn't get it either).

* Carl came over the radio after the wreck on the front stretch and said "I didn't hit anything, but I smell grass".  I wanted so badly to say, "yep, so did everyone in the infield last night"  But I thought better of it.  (In fact, I'm laughing again at the pot reference I held back on).  I then tried to get Tim Derion to bring us out of commercial with "That Smell" by Skynard.  Again a no go.

* We showed a shot of a wagon in the grass in turn two that had a satellite dish attached to it and the people were watching the race on DirecTV.  It was a red wagon, with big off road tires and a dish!  You know me, I can't resist.  "If your red wagon in the infield at Talladega has a satellite dish attached to it...you might be a redneck! - So far, no hate mail.  I'm glad I resisted calling it a typical Alabama family room.  I'm kidding!!!  Honk, honk, wink, wink.  I'm a funny guy.  Look I was born in Arkansas, start... jokes...now.

* When Jeff Gordon came back out of the garage, 30 plus laps down, Doug said his chances of winning were long gone.  I got in my only Dodgers reference of the show with "Doug, would you say his chances are the same as the Chicago Cubs against my Dodgers?" - Doug - "Tony that series is over and the Cubs lost" - Me, "Exactly my point".  Anyone have game one or two tickets in Philly?

* More drivers came back out and Doug listed them all and how many laps they were down.  I so wanted to say, "And David Pearson has emerged from the garage area 22 years down." - I know it wasn't funny then either.

* And finally...This one from the What you didn't see on HotPass that really happened file.  At the end of my pre-race interview with Carl Edwards, I spewed this brilliant comment - "That's Carl Edwards and we will be riding with him all afterloon long on HotPass."  After what??  Loon?  Thanks for the edit Tim and Dane!!!

I first saw Newman in person at Road America sometime around 1982 or so.  He was racing his Nissan 280 ZX in the Trans Am race.  My family was racing as well that weekend and the fact that he was in the same garage was a truly exciting.  My Mom was able to snap of photo of him in his firesuit after one of the practices. 

While most thought at that time this was nothing more than a rich celebrity pretending to be someone else, Newman proved to be as passionate about motorsports as anyone who strapped into a race car.  He continued to race into this year and he will be dearly missed.

In other news here at Kansas Speedway, David Reutimann was forced to change engines during the first practice.  He will have to move to the back...oh wait, he already starts there.  It figures the weekend I predict he will run in the top-10, that team struggles.  That is the whole reason I don't play fantasy sports.

Kyle Busch, whom I am covering on NASCAR Hot Pass, didn't qualify very well, but it seems like that team is starting to catch up a little.  In fact, none of the JGR cars qualified very well - including "Slice Bread" who qualified right next to Rowdy Busch.  Not sure what driver I am going to get down on pit road.  Hopefully, one that wants to talk to DirecTV.  Tune in to find out.  Adam Alexander will be my partner on channel 795.

For those that have asked when the new season of Three Wide Life will debut, it is sometime in early October.  Fox Sports Net has picked up the entire season and the producers have just cleared MASN as well for those of you in the Mid Atlantic.  My segments will be The Tech Zone presented by Circle Track Magazine.  Supposedly, they will have a similiar segment in the magazine.

How about Michael's good run at Dover?  It hasn't been one of his better tracks of late, but the 55 got up there and mixed it up with the Chasers.  Way to go Mikey.  And Reutimann grabbed another top-20 despite having a few issues.  That 44 team looks to be a top-15 car every week and I hope they can keep that team together for next year.  I don't think we can say enough about how brilliant Ryan Pemberton has been.  And don't think the rest of the garage hasn't noticed as well.  It is going to take a lot for MWR to retain this guy.  I hope they can make that happen.

Oh and for those of you who think I know everything about MWR...I had no clue about the Formula 1 guy coming.  To be honest, if it doesn't have to do with our radio show, Michael doesn't tell me anything.  I guess that makes sense with my TV job.  But I would have loved to break that piece of news.  Come on Mikey...Toss me a frickin' bone (Dr.Evil voice).

The Ryder Cup is over and I have to admit, I watched nearly every single minute of it.  What an event!  The USA won for the first time in nine years and to see these guys play with so much emotion is great.  It's alot like the USA mens basketball team.  When they play for country, the pride really comes out and its wonderful.  Keeping on the golf tip, I had a chance to break 80 yesterday and finished bogey, bogey, triple bogey, double bogey to shoot 82.  Talk about choking!

Speaking of choking...The Carolina Panthers dropped an egg yesterday, but my Dallas Cowboys won.  So for the weekend my teams sucked...UCF, Iowa, North Carolina, Carolina Panthers all lost.  Add to that my Dodgers recent struggles in San Fran and it was a tough weekend for my teams.  But, its 75 degrees and sunny here in Charlotte, so with weather like this, all is forgotten. 

Los Angeles Dodgers Magic Number is...5

One more thing...I am thinking about planning a January trip to Cabo.  Has anyone ever been?  And if so, any ideas on great places to stay and things to do?  I know nothing of the place, but have two other couples going and I was told Warm weather, sun (beach and pools) and golf were the requirements.  Currently inquiring about The Dreams. Drop me an email at tony@tonyrizzuti.com with your travel tips.  Maybe there is another place I should be looking?  We are open to suggestions.  But keep it close.  Don't want to go overseas for another year or so.

The first race of the Chase was what it was.  I'm not jumping on any bandwagon after one race, but I will say this and the stats back me up, Biffle is very good at Dover.  He has won there in the Nationwide Series and is very strong in Cup.  He had one of the fastest cars in the spring before an engine issue hurt his power, yet he still finished third.  AND, he won at Kansas last year.  So, IF, he can top-five at both tracks, he may be in a really good position to have a shot come Homstead.  I think Greg is a championship caliber driver.  Not that sold on his crew chief or team yet, but time will tell.

No hurricanes this week.  That is good news, though after three in a row, seems weird not to be watching The Weather Channel.  By the way or BTW, as the kids would text, the weather here in Charlotte is amazing.  Sunny "Carolina Blue" skies with just a few whispy white clouds.  76 degrees with a very light breeze.  In my world, it doesn't get any better.  If you know of a place that is like this nearly every single day please comment or email me, 'cause I will pick up roots and move there.  (And don't say San Diego or San Francisco..I know about those and I don't want a west coast commute.) 

So check out the new After Show tonight.  We talk about Michael's drag racing adventure and the usual stuff, including MW's shorts.  Don't ask, just listen.  Oh, the Drew Carrey interview photo is now in the gallery.  Not sure if I had mentioned that, but people had emailed me about it.

My thoughts are with everyone in the path of Ike.  It looks like a big storm.  I have family in the Houston area and friends in Dallas, so hunker down and be safe.  Kudos again to DirecTV for adding channel 361 which s local Houston coverage.  I can't say it enough, Eric Shanks and all the folks at DirecTV get it and are always quick to react to viewers needs.  Something that cable hasn't been able to do.

I hated to see my good friend Ron Hornaday get run through the coals over this "steriod" deal.  Ron is the best guy in the NASCAR garage and I was with him full time in 2004, one of the years in question in the ESPN story.  Ron indeed looked very sick and lost a ton of weight.  He said he felt fine, but couldn't keep weight on.  He was really scared to be honest, because the doctors didn't know what was wrong.  It turned out to be a hyperactive thyroid.  And since being properly treated, Ron has looked like himself again.

Now I never saw Ron use any cream or take anything when I was around him.  Obviously, he admitted to using the prescription.  But I don't think it affects him behind the wheel of a truck and I will explain why I think that.

First. the race trucks these guys run have power steering, so they aren't muscled around like they used to be in the late 1970's and early 80's.  If strength were a big key, you would have never seen guys like Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, etc.. be able to handle them.  They have quick reflexes and a ton of talent, but they aren't winning any weight lifting contests.  Now Carl Edwards, thats another story - but he isn't winning every single race.

Second, the races are very short for this series.  They are basically about 50 miles more than a regional late model race.  200 - 250 miles...come on.  Those are sprint races.  So, I don't feel you can make the case that he has better stamina than the other drivers.  Now, could you say he has more stamina than other 50 year olds?  Probably.  And if that was who he was racing with exclusively in say a Seniors circuit - then you may, "may", have a case.  But I think its a mute point.  The good news is Ron is healthy and as concluded by NASCAR, was using the prescriptions for the purpose of getting healthy- not beating the system.

Finally, our apologies to those that turned in for a new episode of Michael Waltrip Outloud! on Thursday.  I have no clue what happened and apparently XM didn't either.  However it was brought to their attention and it was supposed to be changed for the 10pm broadcast and the Friday/weekend updates.  I guess someone just played the wrong tape.  That happened alot to me last week.  Hummm.  Maybe someone is out to get me.  As W. Axl Rose would say in the song "Out to get me" (without the cursing) I'm innocent...Take that one to heart! 

Everywhere I looked there was three-wide life.  The hornets nest from 12th on back was as good as anything at Talladega.  The fact that we came within one caution of the record (15) didn't suprise me at all.  The drivers were getting with the program yesterday and it was fun to witness.

We also saw that the problem with passing isn't with the CoT.  Drivers could pass high, low and whenever they wanted at Richmond.   We saw a tremendous side-by-side battle between Johnson and Stewart in the closing laps.  I think next year when the teams are allowed to test more at the tracks we will race on, the car will just get better and better.  By the way, I caught a glimpse of the Nationwide Series version of the CoT.  It looks the same, except it has a spoiler on the back and not the wing.  I assume it has a shorter wheelbase, but couldn't really tell.  I don't have an issue with the wing, but the spoiler looked cool.

If you watched my channel of HotPass you saw several things I would like to discuss.  First, our pre-race show.  It was decided that since there was so much hype around this final race to the Chase, that we should do an extended pre-race with all of the channels checking in.  I thought that went okay, except it put our channel in a situation where when we finally got our chance to interview Tony Stewart for the actual show, our resources were tied up with the Chase show.  So, no Stewart. 

That one miscue cost us dearly when the actual Stewart channel went to air.  It threw our planned format off, which led me to scramble and setup a JD Gibbs interview instead.  And here is where it went bad.  I had recorded a taped piece about Tony announcing Grubb as his crew chief, the Nationwide Series probation being lifted and that Logano will have to wait to make his debut because of weather.  We did this probably an hour before actual air time.  So on the first take, we had a graphics issues and had to re-record the piece.  On the second, I said "golf course" instead of "gulf coast".  Those that know we could understand the Freudien slip.  So I stopped and said, lets do it one more time.  On the third, we nailed it.  It was a great piece.

So, in the new format, which we were doing on the fly, I setup for my JD interview.  Jeff Hammond tosses it to me about JGR in the garage.  I think this is for my interview.  So I start talking, setting up JD and while I do, I hear my voice like an echo.  This is LIVE!!!  So, I quickly think it is an audio feedback problem and keep talking.  But now I can here that it is the taped piece running, so I stop and let it play.  Okay, that was bad, but we could probably live with it.  However to compound the issue, our EVS or tape guy, rolled the second take recorded piece where I say golf course and stop.  Uggghh.  Hammond does a great job of saying we are having technical difficulties.  Which I guess we did since the wrong taped was rolled.  

It was embarrassing and in my entire life of TV, I have never had that happen.  I'm sure people at home were thinking, who is this idiot.  (I would've had I been watching).  The group at DirecTV is the best I have ever been around and fortunately, this is the only issue we have ever had on my channels.  I haven't watched it back on my DVR.  I'm afraid too.  I'm sure its worse than I experienced LIVE.

I hope people stuck with us after that because I thought Jeff and I had one of our best shows.  The conversation level was great.  We played off each other well and had good input for the viewers.  Tony Stewart had a good run, finishing second.  It was very apparent from the team audio that Smoke wasn't happy and his exchange with Zippy made it even more clear.  So I made the decision to skip any Zippy interview and make sure we got in line for Tony at the car.  We had been told by NASCAR that there would be a ton of media at each car and that we would get our interview when instructed. 

So I get to the car and there is no media there and Stewart is sitting on the wall.  So again, knowing he isn't happy, we stretched our post race show to give him time.  We weren't required to do so, but felt it would be best.  I spoke about the fact that the fans needed to leave and then come back in for the Nationwide race, etc...  So I see Winston Kelly from MRN make his way to Smoke and we get positioned.  Tony does a quick interview with radio.  The NASCAR rep tells us we are next.  If this wasn't a pay per view channel, I would NOT have done the interview.  But when you are paying extra to watch one guy, I think you deserve as much as possible. These drivers when they climb out are hot, their ears are ringing.  I truly believe they are somewhat poinsoned from the Carbon Monoxide and when they are iritated above that, you really won't get anything worth the time.

So I know going in that we are going to get very little.  So I ask about only needing 36th or better to get in Chase, but a good run finishing second.  Tony doesn't say much but he answers the question.  At  this point I should have said back to you Jeff.  But again, people pay for HotPass and so I asked another simple question about Johsnon moving to the high groove in three and four and having to much momentum.  Again Tony doesn't say much, but answers the question. 

As a viewer, I think while he didn't say much, he said alot.  In my opinion, it spoke volumes about his desire to win races.  It also showed his frustration in not winning this year (40 races since he last won at Watkins Glen in 2007).  I received several emails about the interview and all of them blasted Tony.  Look, I have done this a long time.  As a reporter, you know its going to be a blast to interview a winner and no fun at all talking to the disappointed.  Sure, some guys handle losing better than others.  But passion and getting a chance to see what burns in a driver is something the fans don't see because they aren't there everyday.  I saw that passion in Tony Stewart yesterday, the same as I did in Victory Lane at Indianapolis when I interviewed him.

When things calm down around Tuesday or Wednesday this week, one thing will be clear.  The 12 drivers going for the Sprint Cup Championship will be closer in points than they have all season.  And I believe it is wide open for every single one of them, with Jimmie Johnson being the early favorite.  If Stewart sticks with his guys and they stick with him, the 20 car could be a factor to win it's third and final championship with Smoke as the driver for Joe Gibbs Racing.