East Alabama Motor Speedway National 100. These six words send chills down my spine. I got all antsy for the State Race back in September but this race, there are no words to describe this race for me. We are talking four days of the best racing that there is. We have a range of guys from the ones who struggle to get to the track and then the guys who bring the BIG haulers and big names who travel to races each week. There's definitely a diverse group of guys and gals at this race. Everyone going for the big win and when they hit the track it no longer will matter who struggled or had the biggest hauler. The only thing that will matter is who did their homework, who put their heart into everything they had, and who is the most driven. No egos on the track, just hard-nosed racers with one thing in mind. To be crowned a National 100 Champion.
Drivers from all over the United States will converge into Phenix City and the smell of rubber and gas will be in the air. It's a comforting kind of thing to me. I know when I pull into the track I'll feel at home and that I am about to see and be a part of something great. My love for this track and appreciation for the Thomas family grows every time I come here. Thursday will start and it will be nonstop until Sunday evening. Gates open on Thursday at noon and the weekend finally begins. Practice will be at 6pm that day and since it'll be Halloween, all drivers have been asked if they bring candy for all the kids, to be on the front stretch at 8pm for the kids to do some trick or treating and also a costume contest. It will be a weekend for kids and adults alike.
Friday will bring heat races for the modifieds, mini stocks, and cruisers and the Race of Champions presented by Zaxby's, in which all the past late model National 100 winners will race against each other. Saturday, the racing will begin at noon and will bring qualifying for crates, sportsman, and super late models and heat races in hobby, bomber, superstreets, and super late models. Last chance and feature races will be in the modifieds, mini stock, and bomber. Speaking of the super late model drivers, the list of drivers coming reads like a who's who in the racing world. Bloomquist, McDowell, Madden, Davenport, and Eckert are just some of the names that are out there and fans will be there to love or love to hate these drivers.
Just like the state race, Sunday will be the conclusion to our racing weekend with last chance races starting at 10am and features at 12 noon. They will have to take time before the big super late model race to work the race track but come 6 o'clock it will be do or die time for these drivers. With $20,000 on the line plus the chance of winning an extra $5000, it will be a major payday to one of these guys. If you love racing, this HAS to be a race weekend you can not miss. I've said it before and I'll say it again, you need to be a part of this. If you do go you also need to remember that clocks will need to be set back an hour Sunday morning or late Saturday night. I don't know if you'll want to miss your extra hour of sleep but I plan to relish in it if I can sleep at all from anticipation. I want to see everyone there, with sleepy eyes, bright eyes, hungover eyes, all of them. Come out and see what I have been trying to tell everyone about and when the weekend is over and you've experienced it, you can thank me. I hope to see you all there!
