Thanks, Terry

Photo courtesy of Babs at Mattit.
Terry Labonte ended his long and fruitful NASCAR Cup career Sunday, at the end of the race at Texas Motor Speedway. While his swan song wasn't as memorable as Michael Schumacher's, his career was. Twenty-two years ago, at the age of 28, he became the youngest NASCAR Cup champion at the time. His first victory at the Cup level was at the now discontinued Southern 500, and, fittingly, his last victory was at the 2004 final running of the Southern 500, at Darlington. He was truly a class act among the Cup drivers, cool and even tempered, earning the name "The Ice-Man." Texas Terry, as he is known, won his second championship in 1998, in a close points race with teammate Jeff Gordon. He is ranked 24th on the all-time NASCAR total wins list, but ranks eighth among all drivers in top-ten finishes. He also holds the record for most races started.
There is, at the very least, a feeling of melancholy whenever one of our racing icons retires. Every driver is a hero; living for the sensation of speed and fierce competition. Those of us who have been following NASCAR for a long time have seen a lot of our favorites ride off into the sunset. In the end, all we can do is tell our retiring heros, "Thanks for everything you have done for the fans."


Errata--A correction
The news item I used for reference when I posted my take on the Robby Gordon sanctions led me to believe that Robby had been fined $15,000 as a driver and $15,000 as an owner. After all, the article read that he recieved a "$15,000 fine and penalized fifty driver's points...and...a $15,000 fine and penalzed fifty owner's points."
That led me to believe that he had been fined $15,000 twice--as an owner and as a driver. That was not the case. In fact, the errant driver was fined only $15,000, and his crew chief was fined $10,000. My apologies for any misunderstandings. My error emphasizes my point, when I caution the reader to not place bets on what I post.