Last weekend, Terry Labonte was on the road.

He wasn't headed to another race or appearance, like he'd been for months on end for the better part of the past 30 years. Terry Labonte was on a motorcycle, heading his annual "Roam For a Home" ride to benefit his hometown Corpus Christi, Texas, Ronald McDonald House and various other charities located in the Coastal Bend of the Lone Star State.

For six years now, Labonte and a group of bikers have made the trip on its traditional Easter weekend. In its first five editions, the ride generated more than $500,000 for the Ronald McDonald House, which provides housing for families of hospitalized children. This year's trek involved 220 or so participants, who cruised a total of maybe 750 miles beginning in and then returning to Corpus Christi.

No longer does Terry Labonte live his life by someone else's schedule, one set for him by the whims of the NASCAR calendar and an array of sponsor responsibilities. His was always one of the most laid-back personalities in the garage, but if it's possible, Labonte is today even more relaxed.

This wasn't the first time Labonte has been on his Easter bike ride, but it was the first on his own time.

"It's been kinda nice not to have a hectic schedule, as far as not having to be somewhere at a certain time and doing certain things," Labonte said. "We're out here in Texas, doing a charity ride. We were looking at the weather, and I thought, 'Oh well ... what the heck. If the weather's bad, we can stay an extra day or two. It doesn't matter.'

"I never had that option in the past."

After a 36th-place finish at Texas in November, Labonte hung up his helmet for good. Retirement hasn't necessarily been better or worse than he expected. Heck, he didn't know what to expect after having raced for so long.

The call of the road, though, hasn't left him entirely. Not yet.

"It's been OK," Labonte said of retirement in his typical understated manner. "I've been kinda busy doing a bunch of stuff, going back and forth to Texas a lot. It's been good.

"I guess one thing I've discovered is I still can't stay at home very much. I'm so used to going somewhere all the time. I'm home for two or three days, and I'm ready to go somewhere else. It's been good." (Continued)