What Have We Missed?

How have things been? The last blog was about the awards banquet in Ohio and when we left it was snowing. As I write this, their is snow left on the ground from the snow storm we got yesterday. Very nice but I am ready for Spring.

Since last December my family and I had a wonderful Christmas and New Year. Sandy also got everything he asked for. He is especially fond of the 60 lb. bag of twenty dollar bills. But seriously, Sandy has been busy building engines and trying to get his car looking normal. Thanks to Chuck Chapman, that has been accomplished. More on that later. On the engine building side, I know he has built engines for Brian Williams, Josh Miller's cars, the champ Steve Corker and many more. While he has been staying busy, one always can stand a little more business.


The most exiting thing that has happened this winter is the birth of Lowman Elizabeth Wilson. This is Sandy's new little niece. She was born on December 9th, 2008 @ 12:39 am and weighed 7 lb 7 oz and was 20.5 inches long. In this photo she is two months old and is being held by her big brother, the King, Mr. Banks. Freda and Lucien are overwhelmed and very proud as well as mom Elise and dad Joel.

If you remember, Sandy's car did not win best appearing at the Rockingham fall race. That was when his car was given the nickname "Wilkemon." You know, it had the John Montecalvo front end on it. It was an ugly winner's circle pic, but it was a winner. Some people told Sandy he was crazy for painting a car that had just won a race. "You don't want to change your luck" they said. Well, I believe it was a winner when it looked good, so I will go with the fresh paint. It has a few tweaks to the paint scheme and I think it looks cleaner, shinier and meaner. It's just plain Hot!!!! Chuck Chapman does an awesome job.

As you know the Rockingham race was rained out this past weekend. Sandy was going to test on Friday for the first time this year and then go racing. Now this gives him another week on the car and I believe testing we be this Saturday at Mooresville Dragway. From there he will head to Farmington for the next divisional race on March 13-15. Hopefully it will be sunny and mildly warm for March. At least we will have the extra hour of day light from the time change.

Sandy has added a few things to the car that will make the 2009 even stronger. You can ask Sandy about that. Like most racers Sandy is trying to keep enough cash flow going so he can race all year. With the economy down, racing closer to home makes common $ents. Hopefully, Sandy can continue the momentum from last year and get one of the spots for the championship shootout at the final race of the year in Rockingham. All you have to do is Win! Sounds easy, right?

Don

Awards Banquet !!

Hello to everyone and Happy Post Thanksgiving. I hope all is well.

As most of you know, the IHRA Awards Banquet was held a couple of weeks ago. It was in Mason, Ohio, about 20 minutes north east of Cincinnati. Teresa and I left out Friday morning while Sandy and his family came up that night. We all finally got together around 10 pm and hung out with our sportsman friends. They are always a rowdy crowd.

Saturday we woke up to a cold and rainy day. But we were staying at the Great Wolf Lodge which has a huge indoor water park. A lot of the people brought their children and that is where most spent their day. The kid came out in Sandy as he spent a few hours in the water with Case Stott. Teresa and I on the other hand left our kids in NC and went to downtown Cincinnati and had lunch at a fancy smancy restaurant. We all hooked back up that evening for the big show and enjoyed an excellent meal with our friends. Our table consisted of Sandy & Emily Stott, Lucien & Freda Wilkins, Tracy & Jennifer Robbins and Mr. and Mrs. Billy Wilson.

As you can see in the pic, Sandy was all smiles after receiving his second place trophy. To finish #2 after the year he has been through is really satisfying. This was the most wins in a season for Sandy. Let's recap! Rockingham National, spring and fall. The Maryland National. The Piedmont divisional win on Sunday and the bracket race win the night before. Pretty stellar year, only to be slightly tarnished with the crash in Pittsburgh.

While we all had a good time supporting Sandy, we watched as Steve Corker gave an outstanding speech after he received his Championship Trophy. Steve did not have the fastest car this year, but he raced smart and covered a lot of territory to win and will always be your 2009 Top Sportsman World Champion. Congratulations to him and Brenda and it was also nice of him to say thank you to Sandy during his speech.

Sunday morning we woke up to a light snow and decided North Carolina was where we needed to be. We said our goodbyes and headed south, arriving home around 5 pm. What do I remember most about the banquent weekend? 1. Sandy's mom looked like a hot rock star Saturday night, 2. Herb Jr. is constantly promoting/talking, 3. Linda Butcher was not happy with the bar closing down at midnight, 4. The way Allison Hall passed me on interstate, well, she may need to drive the vette.

Don

Post Rockingham

Hey guys,

Talked with the Sandflea today and he is still jacked up from the win at the Rock. The downside is he is not feeling to well. It seems he has been under the weather for about a month. He was feeling his best when he was at Rockingham. What does that tell you. The race track, plus a win, does wonders for the body. I asked about the car and he says it is still in the trailer. He is giving the car a break while he works on customers engines. He did tell me that he has us rooms for the banquet next month in Ohio. And believe it or not, I think my wife is going with me. Our ten year anniversary is next month. Do you think I can get by with taking her to the awards banquet only?

I posted the final qualifying sheet from Rockingham. Sandy qualified 31st with the smallest engine in the field. Our other small block pal Stacy Hall was 1st alternate and would have qualified deep in the field, but I think he had a some clutch issues. He got in as an alternate, but shook and lost first round. If you are having trouble seeing the pic, click to enlarge it.

On a side note, Teresa and I went to the Patton High football game and watched our niece become crowned the new homecoming queen. She is a beautiful girl with the sweetest personality. Very deserving of her title. The funny thing is that her name is Sandy. When I tell my boys that I talked to Sandy, they ask if I talked to the boy Sandy or the girl Sandy. Funny!!!

Don