The Daytona Fi-Hunnerd

When I lived in Nascar country (North Carolina), you couldn't pay me to be interested. In high school and college, it was not even close to being a part of my world other than the opportunities to make fun of rednecks. In reality, I detested it in the way that a lot of the peeps here in Seattle do.

Fast-forward 10 years and here I am in Seattle, anxious to watch the Daytona 500 - the Superbowl of American racing. In fact, a week from today, I'll attend my first Nascar race in California. Nascar, quite surprisingly, has enabled me to get back to my southern roots from here in the Pacific Northwest. I can say that I now have a lot of respect for what those guys do on the track - it's not just turning left.

It all started from a fantasy Nascar league that is organized by some great guys in North Carolina who have a keen eye for southern kitsch. The league is in its 6th year, called "Moonshine and Horsepower" and uses a hand-built site for the week-to-week predictions of winners (and a loser). This will be my third year in the league and it has me looking forward to all the shit-talking and revelry that goes along with the racin'. My team is "Hammer Don't Hurt Em" and I'm competing against such characters as Baws Hawg, Sherman's Soldiers, Mr. Blonde (a rookie) who make up the northwest league office. I feel bad that I'm going to have to show my neighbors here how it's done.

Today, I'm picking Tony Stewart to win. Yaaaaa haaaawww.

Updated: Baws Hawg has stepped into the fray. Meanwhile, Tony Stewart crashed, taking my hopes of winning with him.