Season Opener

Hi, I’m Adam Kraemer, the newest contributor. A few things I'm thinking about today:

NASCAR Drivers are eager to get back and we can’t wait either! You always know when the season’s about to start up because the sponsors kick it into high gear. Just look at Hershey’s Dale Sr. tribute, Ritz cracker’s partnership with Roush, the Gillette Young Guns thing, and – my personal favorite – Carl Edwards wearing the Claritin blues. (He’s actually an allergy sufferer, they say, and we're happy he's not driving drowsy. See pic above.)

Speaking of partnerships, contributor Lewis Franck has his own blog. Check it out here. Good luck with the blog, Lewis!

There's also a good discussion on ROWDY.com going on about who is your favorite driver. Who do you like in 2008? 

I’m also thinking about the so-called “Car of Tomorrow.” A few drivers said last year that their crews were stretched a little thin having to keep two separate cars in condition. This year, it’s all CoT all the time, so things might run a little smoother. Harvick – I’m lookin’ at you.

Speaking of the CoT - apparently now called the "winged car" or something - the Budweiser Shootout's tomorrow. Click here to see the lineup. I can't wait.

And for those of you who like non-American races, you’ll never guess who took the fastest F1 times in Bahrain (where the rain falls mainly on Spain). Okay, maybe you’ll guess. Of course you’ll guess - Kimi Raikkonen, testing out Ferrari’s latest, the cleverly named F2008.

Oh, and if any of you are in Pomona, Calif., right now, you’ve got a much better chance than the rest of us to see the National Hot Rod Association. I suggest you head over to the raceway. And send me some photos!

Nice meeting you. See ya’ next week.