You know it is a fabulous day when you can shake hands with Richard "The King" and Kyle Petty, hang out at Ryan Newman's coach with Ryan and Krissie, attend the Driver/Crew Chief meeting, meet Tony Stewart, joke with Sterling Marlin, greet Bootie Barker, stand on pit road next to the 12 car with Ryan and Krissie for the National Anthem while the jets fly over, feel the roar of the cars at the green flag standing just behind the inside retaining wall, watch a pit stop from inside the pit, pop up to the luxury suite for a bit, and then return to the pits to watch the race from the top of the pit box with the crew chief. Unreal. I still can't believe it all happened in one day....and to me!

Many of you know my cousin, Two Foot Fred. He was able to get John and I hot passes for the Bristol night race this past weekend. It was like walking around with a rock star. It was great to see the way folks-tons of them-would stop to chat with him. I thought I knew alot of folks, but Fred certainly beat me here!

Gordon's car as it waits for inspection.

Seriously...Jamie Little and Fred are friends!

Us and the 24 car.

The Driver/Crew Chief meeting was packed. They meet before each race to review track rules and give guidelines for the race. All drivers are required to attend, so no matter which way I looked, there was someone I recognized. (Thanks, Dad, for the years of racing-I was well prepared to name anyone coming in.) I felt like a kid in a candy store-all these drivers I have followed for so long, all in one room---with me! Pretty cool.

Jeff Gordon and his crew chief.

Bill Elliott- the classy veteran.

The ever fabulous Michael Waltrip.

Tony "Smoke" Stewart and Fred share a laugh following the Drivers' meeting.

There were tons of others-I was trying to stay cool and not be a touristy camera girl, but it was hard. Jimmie Johnson, Earnhardt Jr., the Busch brothers, Greg Biffle, Elliott Sadler, Carl Edwards- they were all right there. It was fun trying to name them all- in my head, of course. I was really trying to be classy, remember?

John grabbed this shot of me doing my favorite thing on pit road just before the National Anthem. Standing next to the cars, drivers, and pit crews while the kids sang the song gave me the chills. What an incredible moment. Awesome.

Cars on pit road hooked to generators to get the oil warmed up.

Fred and Ryan show off their best looks! ;) What amazes me is that Ryan is about to go to work in a 3400 lb. piece of machinery for 500 laps, and he can still relax like this. His focus must be amazing! It is so obvious he loves what he does. He will be teammates with Tony Stewart next year. That ought to be very interesting to say the least.

John and I with Ryan next to his car. I can't believe the pressure these guys are under before the race...and he looks (and acts) so very calm. Grace under pressure for sure.

Still cutting up as he is strapping in!!!! We really enjoyed spending time with him and his wife, Krissie.

A view of David Reutimann's pit.

A helmet left by a pit crew member sits on pit wall. You can see Newman's car buzzing by the start/finish line. I am diggin' the hand of the crew guy on the right.

One of Ryan's pit crew members watches him drive away.

A view from the luxury suite! It sure pays to know people! That half mile track was PACKED!

John got a snap of me sitting atop Ryan's pit box.

This was my view to to my right down the row of pit boxes.

Below is a shot of the pit next to us from my seat on the box. I love that the one tire carrier is the only thing in focus. You should see those guys really move it during those stops!

Ryan on the move. He finished 6th. We were really hoping for victory lane to celebrate, but a top 10 finish at Bristol is pretty darn good.

Carl Edwards won the race after a little run in with Kyle Busch- the crowd really went crazy booing and cheering when the replay was shown on the jumbotron. That place was SOOO loud.

Below you can see Carl doing his backflip off the side of the car at the start/finish line. I put an arrow to help you see where he is.

Gordon climbed out of his car and was grabbed by the media for a post-race interview.

Our last look at pit road as we left the track.

We had an absolute ball hanging out at the track. It was certainly a once in a lifetime feeling, but I hope we get to do it again sometime!
Thanks for visiting!
Cheers!