Greetings,

Since my last entry I have clocked 2,300 miles, and driven through seven states. Keep in mind that 2,200 of those miles were on one highway, Interstate 40. While this wasn't the adventurous road trip I took last year, it was still fun. The reason for such a trek was to relocate to Knoxville Tennessee. I accepted a position with the Star's parent company, EW Scripps. It's a very exciting move both for work and for life.

This change gave way to share my gearhead experiences in another region of the country. Gone are the days of traffic jams on 101, or drivers too busy to have time for blinkers. Nay, people still respect many rules of the roads in the Southeast. My favorite is the utilization of the fast lane as a fast lane! It's true; people pass on the left here.

Deals Gap, a stop on "The Dragon"

I will be sharing the car and cycle culture here first hand. I'll also give insight on the area's destinations, suchas the famous Tail of the Dragon, or "The Dragon" as the locals call it. This is an 11 mile stretch of highway containing 318 turns, and starts at the bottom of the Smokey Mountains national Park. People travel from around the country, and the world to have a go at this stretch of Hwy 129.

Bowman Gray Raceway

My coverage won't stop at the state-line. I'll be visiting the famed Bowman Gray stadium in Winston-Salem North Carolina. This is setting of where History Channel's Madhouse show is filmed. Now even if I'm not much of a circle-track fan, respectfully this is the oldest sanctioned NASCAR track in existence. My plans also include visiting the Virginia International Raceway (aka VIR). Recently covered in Road & Track magazine, this is one of the best road-race tracks on the East coast.

All this and more to come, from beautiful Knoxville Tennessee!

Motor On,

Lance