Chevy Rock 'N Roll 400, IRL Season Finale, 30th Birthday, San Diego

(This entry was previously posted on Yahoo!)

Well, it's been a while since I've written an entry. A lot has been going on lately.

On Saturday the 9th, I went to the Chevy Rock 'N Roll 400 at RIR. As usual, we stopped at Pierce's BBQ for lunch. It's in Williamsburg, and I highly recommend it. Usually Virgnia BBQ isn't very good, but this could make an Al-Qaida sleeper's mouth water. Mmmmm, forbidden meat. You can find them on the web here.

So we spent most of the day at the Catepillar hospitality tent, which was stocked with BBQ, hot dogs, brats, and plenty of booze. I asked where the PBR was, and I got strange looks. Hey, it's not NASCAR without PBR!

The weather was great, much cooler than the IRL race in June. I took the new firm beach bag that we were all given. I'm going to take it to all the races in the future. It has a see through mesh section that made it a breeze to show to security, plus it's not as bulky as my messenger bag.

We were "treated" to a concert by Barenaked Ladies. Last year, it was Trapt. I never got into BNL, and I was surprised that NASCAR will allow a Canadian band to sing the national anthem. Not that I have anything against Canada or Canadians...but the typical NASCAR fan would have been pissed had they known. I don't think they're core listeners of BNL, so a riot was averted.

The race was typical Richmond action. Denny Hamlin made a great start, only to fall apart towards the end. Kasey Kahne made the most impressive jump, leading and finally finishing third, earning his way into the Chase. The California boys, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon, got their usual abysmal reception, and both did poorly. When the driver introductions were taking place, a guy two rows down from us yelled "GO BACK TO CALIFORNIA!" at both of them. Kevin Harvick, one of the other California boys, ended up winning, a move that pushed him into the points lead over Johnson. I had a blast, and left Richmond a tired man.

That wasn't a good thing.

I mulled over packing for my trip to San Diego that morning, on the rationale that my clothes would be more wrinkled if they were packed for a whole day. I didn't plan on going to sleep that night, because my flight was at 6:30 the next morning. I got home about midnight, packing most of everything, and then falling asleep on the couch with ESPN still on. I woke up about 4:15, and got to the airport about 5:15. Everything went smooth, even though I got padded down by the TSA goons. After the London scare, I think it's justified. I did notice one thing that didn't sit well. I flew on Delta, and the flight to Cincinnati was a Comair flight-there was a crash there a few weeks back. I tried to sleep on the plane, but that seemed to stick with me the whole time. But we landed safe and sound, and I headed off to Starbucks for a well-earned caramel macchiato and apple danish. Those snacks on the plane don't do anything for me.

The flight to San Diego was pleasant. They showed X-Men: The Last Stand, but I opted out of the $2 headphones, because I already knew it sucked. I got some sleep on the plane, but once we begin the final descent, I like to see the surroundings and count down until the wheels hit the ground. I was totally surprised to find the airport so close to downtown. Once I checked into the hotel, I saw a commercial for a proposition to move the airport further into San Diego County. They have a proposition for everything in the People's Republic of California.

I was able to watch the IRL season finale. This has been the most exciting season since I started following the sport in 2001. Each lap finished meant a point earned for the top four, but even though Dan Wheldon won the race, Sam Hornish Jr. edged him out just barely for the championship. Dan, of course, was a gracious loser, just as Sam was a humble winner. I'm not a particular fan of Hornish or Team Penske, but I do respect Sam and the way he carries himself. There are very few American drivers in the IRL these days, but the ones we do have are class acts. I'm looking forward to next season already, keeping my fingers crossed that the series will return to RIR.

On Monday, the 11th, after observing the moments of silence and some introspection, I ventured out into San Diego. Like Norfolk, San Diego is a Navy town, and there are plenty of attractions that celebrate its maritime heritage. My first stop was the Maritime Museum, with two sailing ships and one retired Soviet Foxtrot-class diesel submarine. I have some great pictures of these ships on the Flickr photostream. One of the sailing ships turned out to be the HMS Surprise, which the 2003 file Master and Commander was filmed on. I had no idea any of this stuff was there, so it was a pleasant surprise.

The USS Midway Museum was a complete surprise too. Norfolk has the battleship USS Wisconsin as a floating museum, so San Diego got the aircraft carrier Midway. I got there too late in the afternoon to tour the island, but I got to see just about every other part of the ship. I have some pics taken from the outside on the Flickr page as well.

On Tuesday, our class started, with people from all over the country. There were three other CPAs there, and eight people from financial insitutions or data processors. The class was very interesting and held my attention. The food was wonderful, which was a shocker. I don't think I've ever eaten so well in my life. It's a good thing I did so much walking around to burn it all off.

No sooner did we get out of the class that everyone wanted to go out. Since I had the previous day to get familiar with the city I knew where a lot of the good places were. San Diego has a great trolley system that's clean and even goes all the way to Tiajuana. I expected it to get a little freaky at night (after all, it IS California), but there weren't any more weirdos than you'd see on the DC Metro, or the MARTA in Atlanta. We settled on a Hawaiian restaurant in the Gaslamp District, where I had my first mai tai. It was really good. I felt completely safe walking around San Diego at night, not to mention the gorgeous weather. 70 degrees, very little humidity, not a cloud in the sky. And it stayed that way just about all week.

Thursday was my birthday, and I decided to celebrate at Outback. That's exactly what I would have done if I were home. Friday we took our exam and got out of class early, so I decided to go to Coronado and check it out. The Hotel Del Coronado is a turn of the century hotel where the bellboys wear vests and bowlers just like they would have 100 years ago. There are all kinds of shops in the basement, and there is access to the beach facing San Diego Bay. I had a lovely salmon dinner with a gin and tonic, a perfect ending to a wonderful trip. I got back to the hotel and packed, because I needed to leave the hotel no later than 8 on Saturday. I decided to get breakfast in the room, figuring I wouldn't have a decent meal until I landed in Atlanta. And I was right-we got the same snacks we had on the flight to San Diego. I wonder if I'll ever have a decent meal on a flight again. They showed Poseidon as the in-flight movie, which I thought was poor judgment. Why would anyone in their right mind show a disaster movie on a flight? Why not show us United 93? I didn't watch it, instead I read one of the books I bought at the Maritime Museum. When we landed in Atlanta, I was greeted with 89 degrees and overpowering humidity. Welcome back to the East Coast. I had a great time in San Diego, and I'll definitely be back.