My favorite time of the year

This is my favorite time of the year. Not so much for the holidays, or even the cold weather (which I hate). I love this time of year for all the great rumors and other stories that come out when everyone is locked up in their houses.

Now some of these stories are true. As a HUGE Brady Smith fan, it pains me to see Amsoil walk away from the 2 car. Hopefully all goes well for "the Prodigy" and he is able to find some kind of suitable sponsor. Many people on various sites want to tear Brady down for whatever reason. But the deuce will be back, better than ever. Brady has expressed an interest in running for the World of Outlaws Late Model Rookie of the Year in 2009. Have to see what the rule makers say on that.

Shannon Babb is no longer with Clint Bowyer Racing, in favor of starting his own team through a partnership with Sheltra Motorsports. This one kind of surprised me, but the more I hear about Babb the more it makes sense. Shannon seems to be a very humble, down to earth person, who enjoys being home, or at least somewhere close to Moweaqua, IL. It sounds like CBR was looking for a driver to go all over creation chasing a points title. **Rumors have Dale McDowell in the CBR car in 2009**

The other big story that has been confirmed to be true is Wes Steidinger closing up shop. I personally have only seen Steidinger race a few times, but by all accounts he is a great driver, and also a great person. The press release states a reason for the closing as: “There are several factors but the two major ones are the current state of the economy, spending more time and looking out for the well being of my family. I would love to keep racing, it's in my blood hopefully a situation presents itself and someone will give me a chance to continue my career! We just can't do it with our budget anymore.” Many times we fans can forget that these racers are men with families and responsibilities outside the realm of stock car racing. I think it is a true sign of Wes Steidinger the man to be able to walk away from a passion for the betterment of his family. Wes, best of luck, and hope to see you elbows up on the wheel again someday.

True stories are one thing, but the rumors always seem to put a smile on my face. They always range from "driver a to the Nationwide series," or "driver b is teaming up with driver c." So far the ones I have been enjoying most are the Bloomquist to asphalt rumors...again. The aforementioned McDowell to CBR, John Gill in the Mastersbilt house car, Jimmy Owens to Rocket. Always fun, and 99% of the time completely false. Well, at least the races at Golden Isle are getting close, so we can see all the new looks for 2009, and get something else to talk about.