If you have not heard a NAPA sponsored monster truck performing stunts in front of an auto parts store veered into a crowd of about 100 spectators Thursday, injuring at least nine people before breaking through a wooden fence and stopping on nearby railroad tracks. You can read about it here.

Also, not too long ago and Funny Car ran into a crowd of people.

I have been involved with many Car and Truck events over the years and the first and foremost object is to keep everyone safe.

I have worked with Robosaurus, Monster Truck Shows, Jet Cars, Top Fuel and even Rock Concerts.
Every time we plan an event we work with a company that knows how to plan the event correctly and put safety first. This means that even if the show could be more exciting, if it’s not safe it doesn’t happen.

If you watch the video you will see there is really nothing between the NAPA truck and the spectators. This should have never happened.

Unfortunaly Monster trucks go out of control, pieces of cars and truck can be flying around and you never know what may happen. I have never had one person get hurt. This is because whatever the cost, safety always comes first.

NAPA will probably get sued and I wouldn’t doubt that laws may be put into affect to stop these kind of “backyard” shows. Unfortunately it will probably affect folks like us, that put on a good show and use the proper safety precautions.

In fact just recently I had Robosaurus in the parking lot of a store, doing a demonstration. There we no less than 5 people dedicated on maintaining safety at all times. We did not have him burn anything because it was not safe to do so there. Ya, it would have been cool, but again, safety first!

You can see the Monster truck news video here.

Jerry Nix, a spokesman for NAPA’s parent company, Genuine Parts Co., said he could not comment.
The city of DeKalb gave the store permission to close the street for the demonstration. DeKalb police would not immediately comment either. I am sure they all are lawyering up!

For those that don’t know it Charles Barkley played for the Phoenix Suns for some time. When he left the Suns on not that good of terms he really hasn’t said a good word about them.
Well, finally Gambo and Ash came up with something that gives a little back to the Chuckster.

You gotta hear it! It’s a great parody!
Click here to Listen

You know how I roll. I always want the best. “I am sitting on 22’s, looking real cool!”

This is a great funny commercial! Press Play!

NHRA driver Eric Medlen died Friday, five days after sustaining a severe head injury in a crash during a test session at Gainesville Raceway in Florida.The 33-year-old from Oakdale, who drove for John Force Racing, never regained consciousness after crashing his Funny Car into a guardrail on Monday at the Florida track.

This is a sad day for drag racing. If you follow the NHRA, I am sure you already heard about it.

But, last month, I had the chance to have breakfast with Eric. This was one of those setup breakfasts that the drivers do before a race to interact with their fans.
He took the time to not only answer our questions, but to pose for any photos and stay as long as he needed, so we all got a chance to talk to him.

Like many drivers Eric Medlen always had time for a fan. Whether it be a young child or a veteran fan, he always made the time.
He will be sorely missed. He definetly was one of the “good guys” that make the NHRA and drag racing a special sport.

“Eric Medlen was the son I never had,” said team owner John Force. “He was the leader of my next generation of drivers.”

You can read more about Eric at NHRA.COM’s special section.

For Sports reviews, news, and more, the The BC Blog is your source!

If you have been following my blog on the NHRA race in Phoenix you probably figured out that Tire Pros was one of the sponsors of the event. One of the things we do is host a suite in the tower and host special guests.

But I came across something that was totally unexpected or encouraged. I saw a great letter to Rob Geiger regarding the special people, racers and fans at an NHRA event.

Here is his note to Rob: Read the rest of this post

Today I had to go to Firebird Raceway and pick up our Tire Pros trailer. What to my surprise, the top fuel guys were staying an extra day to do a bit of testing.

Melanie Troxel and the Force team must have decided they needed to do a bit of testing and tuning. It was great! Best of all it was free!
No one was in a hurry and rushing around. John Force and the whole Force team were out, Melanie Troxel and a few others were testing too.
It was just a lazy warm day in Phoenix, where you could get the pros to stop and talk, take a few photos and talk “shop” with just about anyone.
Some of them were just testing 1/8 mile runs, others were going full out! This is also the best time to get a chance to stand on the starting line. If you have never been on the starting line when a Top Fuel Dragster or Funny Car runs, you just haven’t lived!
Nothing like feeling the earth shake when a Fueler hits the gas!

If you ever get a chance to have a NHRA race in your town or somewhere close. Don’t forget to check if they are staying an extra day to test and tune. If so, you will never get a better chance to get up close and personal with the folks that handle the fastest cars on the planet!

Nothing wrong with getting up close and personal with Ashley Force either!

So take an extra day off and go to the track the day after Race Day!
read more | digg story

The headline reads…Fuller repeats in Top Fuel, T. Pedregon sweeps near max points, KJ wins 36th
Check it out. It was a very exciting race. But of course the main excitement was in the midway.

Naturally we are working hard.

click on photo to enlarge.

I am the guy with the hat on…