I grew up in a family that most might consider a bit opposite from the norm. Though my dad liked cars, mom was the “car guy” in our family (right down to the repair work that she often did herself). She instilled that love for all things automotive in me and, for that, I will be forever grateful.
I couldn’t tell you when I first started watching NASCAR races except to say I was in my single digits. I recall many Sunday afternoons watching the likes of Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt adding to their already storied careers with many a checkered flag. Back then, I didn’t really have a favorite driver – I just loved watching them race.
Nowadays, I spend my Sundays cheering on my favorite – none other than Kyle “Rowdy” Busch – battling with names like Earnhardt, Gordon, Stewart, Keselowski, and many more. If I’m at home, you’ll find me glued to my TV with Kyle’s in-car scanner streaming on the net while I scroll twitter for the latest updates on how that 18’s looking. If I’m at the track, you’ll often find me on (or very near) pit road watching that outrageously dependable 18 crew doing work. (Sponsor reference! Ha! See what I did there?)
In my day job, I am a quality engineer for a Tier 1 automotive supplier. This often means that I am traveling to various customer plants while communicating with our manufacturing facilities to make sure that our parts are the best that they can be. For a car girl like me, this is great work.
However… If you talk to just about anyone on the Joe Gibbs Racing pit crews, you will quickly learn that I am known as the “cookie girl”. I wear this title with pride, as I consider it high praise. Long story short, I bring trays full of several dozen cookies trackside any time I attend a Cup race. It started with my 18 bunch back in 2010, but has expanded to the 11s and the 20s as well. This has become quite a tradition. I’m honestly not sure what those boys would do if I ever showed up empty-handed!
Over the years, I’ve gotten to know these guys and have been blessed with several friendships. I affectionately call them my track family. Though I freely admit I am biased, I would challenge anyone to find a better group of men on pit road.
That said, I’m looking forward to what this new season will bring and I enthusiastically accept the challenge to provide you with some great insight on this “track family” of mine. Go Rowdy!!!
