Hello race fans!

Well, here we are getting ready to start the Chase for the Sprint Cup! I can't believe there are only ten races left in the season! The last blog I wrote, I was saying how there were two races left till the Chase, now here we are, ready to go!

First off, I must say that I was so disappointed in Atlanta when Denny Hamlin was leading and blew his motor. I guess I can be thankful it was that race and not one in the Chase. Having said that, way to go Tony Stewart for winning the Atlanta race! He was overdue and now he is one to watch in the Chase for the Sprint Cup! And of course, you all know I was exstatic when Denny won in Richmond last weekend! My husband and I were there with a group from Lynch Tours & More and it was so exciting to see Denny win at his home track and hopefully carry that momentum over to this weekend in Louden! Way to go Denny, you rock !!!

Now that the Chase is officially beginning this weekend at Louden, New Hampshire, I'm not sure who is the clear favorite to win this race. Many of the drivers in the Chase have won at this track including Hamlin, Jeff Burton, Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, just to name a few. So, it should be an exciting race! And, we certainly can't count out other drivers that are not in the Chase. They have nothing to lose and will be looking for wins to finish the year out. I look for drivers like Mark Martin, Juan Pablo Montoya and Jamie McMurray to have strong runs there. I will be watching on Sunday to see how the drama plays out! Can't wait!!!

So, I want to know who you think will win the Chase! I know I made a prediction last year who I thought would win it and I didn't do a very good job! I think I said Tony Stewart would win and Jimmie Johnspn wasn't going to win four in a row! As you can tell, I'm not very good at making predictions. However, if I was going to pick somebody, you all know who I am going to pick! Yes, Denny Hamlin! He has about as good a shot as he's ever had to win it! He has gotten alot better at the mile and a half race tracks and of course, there are several tracks in the final ten races that he's won at, including Martinsville and Homestead-Miami. The biggest problem tracks that I see for him are Dover and Talledega. He did finish fourth at Dover in May, but he usually is not very good there. He is a very good restrictor plate racer, but his finishes do not show for it. So, if he can get a good finish at those two tracks, he might just have a chance at the Championship! My second picks if Denny doesn't win it, would have to be Kevin Harvik or Jeff Gordon. Harvick has been so consistent all season and has lead the points for a long time until now. Jeff also has been consistent, but has yet to pull off a win this year. My fear is that once Jeff starts winning, he may not stop! So, there you have it, those are my picks for this years Championship!

Lastly, I want to wish all of the drivers in the Chase, the best of luck these next ten races. It is sure to be one of the most exciting ones yet! I do think though, that it will come down to more than one or two drivers at Homestead. I'm thinking there could be four or five with a legitimate shot at the tile when we get to the last race! Wouldn't that be cool?!!! I hope that is the case, NASCAR could really use that right now! So, everyone be safe this weekend and as always, I'll see you at the races!

Hello race fans!

Well, after an exciting week in Bristol, Tennessee, I am back and getting geared up for that final push to the Chase! First off, I must congratulate Kyle Busch on his trifecta at Bristol Motor Speedway. I was fortunate (or not!) to witness history with Kyle taking wins in all three series, Truck, Nationwide and Sprint Cup. I have to give him credit though, to accomplish that, is quite a feat and he deserves alot of credit for pulling it off! Way to go Kyle! I also had a great group of people with Lynch Tours & More! The weather was great, we had a super tailgate party and the racing was fantastic! It doesn't get much better than that! Thanks everyone for making another race trip a great one!

Now, after a week off, it is down to crunch time for several of the driver's trying to make the Chase! With only two races left, it looks like it's going to come down to Clint Bowyer and Jamie McMurray for that last spot in the Chase. I really like Jamie and would love to see him make the Chase, but it's going to be very hard for him to make up 100 points in that short amount of time. Alot of the drivers will be able to lock themselves in after Atlanta, but there are a few that will be holding their breath until after Richmond. One of them being Jimmie Johnson. He better hope he does well these next two races and doesn't have any mechanical issues. Wouldn't that be something if he didn't make the Chase!!! Not likely to happen, but you never know! Stay tuned!

Who's everyone's pick to win at Atlanta this weekend? You know who I'm rooting for! Denny Hamlin of course! He has the pole for Sunday's race and I would love to see him win there! He's gotten alot better at the mile and a half tracks so hopefully he can pull off a good finish, maybe even a win, to lock himself into the Chase! GO DENNY!!!

Lynch Tours & More is off to Richmond, Virginia next weekend for the Virginia 529 College Savings 250 Nationwide race on Friday night and the Air Guard 400 Sprint Cup race on Saturday night ! We will have one bus there on Friday night and two buses there on Saturday night. I will be there for the Cup race only and will be looking forward to seeing if Denny can win again at his home track! Can't wait! Stop by and say hi if you get a chance. The bus parking lot is near the Chevy Fan Fest building, I will be on Bus #2, just look for our Lynch Tours sign in the bus window!

In the meantime, I want to wish everyone a very happy and safe Labor Day weekend! I will be spending it with family and friends! So until next time, I'll see you at the races!