Busy Couple of Days

It has been a busy couple of days since I last updated this. Last weekend I attended a work function in Charlotte, N.C. and planned to stay there because of meeting I had planned later in the week. That all changed when we found out there was a local family in Loris S.C. that was being featured on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

The Suggs family - Derrick, Amanda, James, Jacob, Jordan, Walker and Mason - lived in a house that had been given to them by Derrick's grandfather shortly after they were married. They soon took in Amanda's three teenage brothers to stop them from being separated in foster care and were all living in the 1,000 square-foot house that was beginning to fall apart.

After hearing the family's story Extreme Makeover: Home Edition stepped in to provide the family with a new home to raise their family in. As an extra special surprise, NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon was brought in as the celebrity builder on the project.

When found out what was going on with the project at Darlington Raceway we wanted to come up with something that we could donate to such a deserving family. We thought long and hard about what the perfect gift could be for this family and on Tuesday afternoon we finally had the opportunity to present our gift to the family.

The press conference took place in front of the Suggs' new home, which is beautiful, but that goes without saying. There was plenty of media on-hand for the event and we got to hear from the builders that oversaw the project as well as the family prior to donations being given. Our track President, Chris Browning, was the first to present to the family. Chris was called to the front and made a brief statement and then presented the family with a piece of start/finish line asphalt, a VIP experience at the 2010 Southern 500 and lifetime tickets to the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. It was a really special event to be a part of and seeing the reaction from the family made it GREAT! You could tell the experience was incredibly overwhelming, as I'm sure it would be for anyone, but you could also tell how truly grateful they were for all of the support that they had received from members of the community.

The other day a friend and I were chatting and talking about how we have been fortunate to take part in some pretty special events because of our jobs. I never would have thought that being a part of this press conference would be at the top of the list for me but after being there on Tuesday afternoon I can honestly say it is. Hands down, one of the neatest things I have been able to do while working in motorsports.

In other news, and I apologize this is a long entry; Darlington Raceway was awarded a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race today. The Too Tough To Tame 200 will take place on Saturday, August 14 and will be a "one-day show" which means everything will take place in one day; practice, qualifying and the race.

A truck race is something I have really wanted to get at Darlington since I got here a couple of years ago. Truck races are a homerun with the core NASCAR fan. They feature throwback drivers who aren't afraid to mix it up and the trucks are known for producing incredibly close finishes. Couple that with the hallowed ground of Darlington Raceway and the fierce competition that the track induces and you will have one of the best truck races on the schedule. Everyone at the track is really looking forward to hosting this event.

That is all for now. Tomorrow and Friday are full of PR meetings for me and then Friday night it's off to see Jerry Seinfeld before finally getting back home for a week. Then it's on to Daytona for Speedweeks!