Labor Day: Odds and Ends

Originally Posted on Foxsports on August 29, 2007.



Ah, Labor Day.  The final fling of summer.  So many things to do each summer, so little time left to do them.  Here are a few of the end of summer traditions I like to take part in...

Kruse Auctions holds its annual bash in conjunction with the Auborn (Indiana) Duesenberg Days during the Labor Day weekend.  If it has wheels, it will be sold here.  Pick a year, a manufacturer and a color.  They have it.  Want a car owned by AJ Foyt, Carroll Shelby, Elvis? Get the garage ready.  Want your own Mark Martin Cup car?  Franchitti IndyCar?  Transfer money to the checking account.  I love going to the auction to see cars and manufacturers I've never heard of, along with everything I have heard of.  Plus, where else are you going to get a look at a million dollar tour bus?  Oh, yeah, they have a parade of Duesenbergs through town too, which is worth the trip by itself.

Local track racing.  It is the end of the season for many of the local tracks.  Despite weeks of racing, most tracks have points races close enough to make one race determine the winner.  That will happen near you this weekend.

IMCA Boone SuperNationals.  SuperNationals, sanctioned by IMCA, begin on Monday at Boone Speedway.  Several hundred teams (yes, you read that right) will sign in for the chance to become SuperNational Champion.  It will take all week, Monday through Saturday night, to qualify cars and run the final races in each of six different divisions.

The Southern 500.  Oops, forgot we modified this to California because the racing's better there.  No, that's not right.  The crowd is a sell-out.  No, no.  Californians dig stock car racing way more than South Carolinians.  Hmm...maybe not.   Well, for whatever reason, Nascar decided it would be better.  Parade starts sometime Sunday afternoon and may end under the lights.   Wake me if something exciting happens.

Labor Day signals the start of the college football season.  And tomorrow night, the Iowa State Cyclones take on the Kent State Golden Flashes.  I plan to be there.  Let the tailgating begin.

NFL seasons officially start immediately following Labor Day.  The placeholders can now sit the bench while starters like LaDainian Tomlinson take the field.  The Quest for Super Bowl Championship begins.