Back in 2005 the stars aligned for me and I was in Florida for a photo convention during the 2005 Daytona 500… I was already a huge NASCAR fan and a HUGE Jeff Gordon fan so the opportunity to see him race on a track I dearly love was just too good of an opportunity to pass up… and with very short notice I called to see if they had a ticket…. A single ticket, come to find out was simple to get, if I had wanted two or more, together, there was no chance, but a single ticket, no problem! Could it get better? Yes! Yes it did! He WON!!! Right there before my eyes… and yes, I had my camera and this was the single shot that I wanted to get.. and yes, it took me some time to get it but I’ll forever cherish it.
Today marks the end of Jeff Gordon’s on track career and I just want to extend my own thank you. Whether you like NASCAR, Jeff Gordon or anything about racing or not, there’s no doubt he’s been a true professional and for that he will always be (and has always been) my favorite NASCAR driver. I’ve been busy lately and haven’t had much opportunity to watch much NASCAR anymore but I always keep tabs on how he’s doing in the championship and for each race… I’m going to miss that…
For being the fantastic professional that you have, Thank You Jeff Gordon! I hope you win today and ride off into the sunset with your 5th Championship!
#24ever