~California Journal~

Hey Everyone! First off, I'm sorry for not getting my journal done earlier. I hope you didn't think that I had forgotten to write but it has been a real, real busy week coming off of the race in California and having dad's Charity Ride and all. I'm now in Richmond and ready to get back in something that has four wheels instead of two and hopefully have a real good top ten finish at a track that has been very good to our family. We had a really great qualifying effort in California. I won't lie I was definitely hoping for better than the seventh place starting spot because I knew that we had a car capable of sitting on the pole or the outside pole but seventh is definitely nothing to be ashamed of to say the least. The race started off good for us and we were running up in the top ten. I knew the car was a little loose but it was early in the race and I knew once I had a chance to get into the pits that we could make some adjustments to tighten everything up. Luckily for us we got a couple of early caution flags and were able to come in and pit to make some changes. Our first stop of the day was absolutely awesome to say the very least. I came in in tenth spot and went back out from the pits in fourth. Sometimes it really just amazes how me how good the guys are on pit stops. We went back out in fourth spot and took the restart and almost immediately went into the three-wide battle for the lead and eventually went four-wide when a lapped car joined us. I have to admit that I really, really wanted to lead that lap and when we came back across the start/finish I had the advantage. It's like I was telling my spotter, it doesn't just feel good to lead because you know that in first place but it feels good just to feel the air hitting the nose of my car. That was the only lap we lead but the five extra bonus points for leading a lap are definitely beneficial to us in the standings. We still needed to make changes to the car so we came back in for our second pit stop and I overshot my pit stall and it caused us to loose a lot of time on the track. By the time that we returned to the track we were on the end of the lead lap and within a couple of laps we were a lap down. I was really upset with myself for making a mistake in the pits and I felt like I had let my team and myself down. I realize though that there are days when everything just doesn't come together but I had to put it behind me and just get back out on the track and try to focus on moving back up to the front. The day didn't end like we had hoped for as we finished in the 27th spot but I had the Charity Ride to focus on and then needed to look to Richmond and get ready for that race. I always look forward to the Charity Ride because first off it is for a great cause and it gives me a little time to get away and relax and see really beautiful area of the country. I flew with my granddad from the track to Prescott, AZ and then road to Durango on Monday. On Tuesday, I spent most of the day riding in one of the support trailers with Terry Davis. The support vehicles are there for the riders so that in case anything happens to a rider or one of their bikes that there is help immediately there. Tuesday night we stayed in Amarillo, TX and then on Wednesday morning I climbed back on my Victory motorcycle and we headed into Tulsa where we visited the St. Christopher's Children's Hospital. Here my dad presented a check for $25,000 to the hospital and a portion of that money will help benefit the Starbright Foundation that is supported by Sprint. We flew out of Tulsa Wednesday night and didn't get into Richmond until around 11:00 pm so it was straight to bed for me so that I would be ready to head out and practice on Thursday. I took on double duties in Richmond for the first time last year running the truck race and Busch race and I believe that helped me learn more about this track. The top line worked well for me last year so Chris and I will definitely consider that when we are setting up the car. Hopefully we'll find the right setup for the No. 45 and have a repeat of our qualifying spot in California but not our race finish. After the race it's back to the Charity Ride with it ending at our farm in North Carolina for a big concert featuring Sawyer Brown and Toby Keith. The concert is always a lot of fun for my family and me and it seems that everyone who attends has a great time. It's great to see from the web site that a lot of you will be able to make it down for the concert. Be sure to have a very safe trip because I'm pretty sure that you're going to have a lot of fun. I'll talk to you after the concert and before we leave for Loudon. Until then y'all have a great weekend and be sure to tune in on Friday night for the race. God Bless and Thank You, Adam