Brian Vickers Diary: Lovin' Atlanta

Considering the success the 25 team has had at Atlanta in the past, and my personal affection for the track, I couldn't be more excited about going there to race this weekend.

We can't take anything for granted, the competition's awfully tough these days, but the 25 team has performed well at Atlanta and it's one of my better and favorite racetracks, so I'm really looking forward to that combination.

But we need to keep in mind that we're still building a team. If we can win the race, we're going to go out there and try to do that. But this team is about long-term goals, not short-term goals.

	The No. 25 Chevrolet has a winning history at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Credit: Autostock

Atlanta's the fastest racetrack we go to. It's amazing. Without restrictor plates these cars are hauling the mail, man, over 200 mph. We average almost 200 mph. Think about that!

You're on the edge of out-of-control. Seriously, you're turning left and right going through the corner if you want to qualify well. You're crossing your fingers and holding your breath just about the whole lap, and especially through the corners. It's really an amazing experience and a great challenge.

That is what fun is for me. Absolutely, that's my idea of fun. Adrenaline's pumping, breath's taken, high speeds and life on the edge. I love it. That's what I enjoy about racing.

Atlanta's one of the more challenging racetracks we go to, as well. That's another big reason why I like it so much. I love that challenge. As far as the driver's guts go, it's probably at the top of the list. That's one of the tracks where you're, as a driver, going to have to have guts. If you don't, you won't go fast.

It's also a track -- when it comes to driving a Nextel Cup car nearly out of control at very high speeds -- that sets drivers apart. Now, when it comes to setting drivers apart, as a whole, as far as driving ability, patience, tire management, taking care of a racecar and being there at the end of the race, Darlington is the place.

That's the most challenging track we go to, but Atlanta is definitely on that list, too. Atlanta holds a special place in my heart, because Atlanta is where Ricky (Hendrick) decided he wanted me to drive his car. Atlanta was where Rick Hendrick picked Jeff Gordon to drive the 24 car.

BRIAN VICKERS  •  Driver Page  •  Diary: Learning so much from the Hendricks  •  Diary: First Daytona an experience to remember  •  Hangin' with Vickers on the set of TRL  •  Hendrick team not resting on laurels for '04

We hope to continue our success there this weekend. I think we can. I'm awfully proud of the guys. We've done really well in qualifying, and hopefully we can continue that. And we've consistently improved our race packages.

At the end of the races, we're usually pretty quick compared to the other cars, but we just get a little behind at the beginning because we're not quite as close setup-wise at the beginning of the race. If we can do that, man, we'll be in great shape.

It's like last year, and I've said this before, we didn't set the world on fire right out of the box. We built the team from the ground up. We had patience. We built a championship block-by-block, not a wall at a time. That paid off.

We didn't win or finish second in races at first. We had a wreck and Daytona and were way down in the points for a long time. But we stuck together and came back to win races and a championship. I think this team can do that, too.

Brian Vickers' Diary appears periodically on NASCAR.COM.