Well, let's see -- Sunday is Mother's Day. I was wondering what I should write about this week. I guess it would be nice to talk with someone's mother. I have had the pleasure of meeting several women that have a son who drives in the Nextel Cup Series. All of them, the women that is, are amazing people. And while some show the nerves more than others, they are all very strong women.

They don't need me to remind them of the risk involved in racing. It's not something they speak about often. I have found most focus on the courage it takes to be a successful racer. When you talk with the mother of a racecar driver the conversation usually turns to family and children. Most like to talk about how lucky they are to have such a dedicated and determined son.

The best stories are the ones about when their son was a little boy, learning to race. Most of the moms will tell you they believed it was just a phase. Their son was going to be a businessman, a doctor, a salesman or whatever, but not a racer. Maybe they started on two wheels, maybe they started on four, but they all started the same way, dreaming of becoming a professional driver and someday winning the big race, like say the Daytona 500.

Of course, a few grew up dreaming of winning the Indianapolis 500. When you are born and raised in Indiana, that's to be expected. That was Tony Stewart's childhood dream. I think, somewhere, it still might be. But now he is a two-time Nextel Cup Series champion. He is a leader in the sport, a champion of charitable giving, and one of the most popular drivers in NASCAR history. Of course Tony also brings a lot of color with him to the track, and not all of it is orange.

So what is it like to be his mother?

"It depends on the day," said Pam Boas, Stewart's mom. "And it depends on what he has said on his radio show. Being a parent of Tony Stewart, you get to see a lot of the things you taught him coming back to you. We always taught him to be honest. We told our children that kids sometimes stretch the truth and they should not do that. We taught Tony that if you stretch the truth, it will come back to you, or us. And if it comes back to us, it's going to get to you."

See, talk to a mother, and sometimes you can understand her children a little bit better.

"Maybe that's why Tony is so brutally honest," Pam said. "That's the way he was raised, to tell the truth. Maybe we should have spent a little more time on tact.

"I think a lot of people appreciate his honesty. Sometimes it is just the way he says things. This is a man who has a heart for people, loves animals. He loves his racing. That is his heart. It is his passion. He has to do something that he loves. And if he wasn't so successful at it, what he says wouldn't be that important."

Pam Boas will be one of several moms on hand at Darlington on Saturday night to give the command to start engines. Imagine, even today, these mothers still telling their sons what to do.

"I think it's great what the people at Darlington are doing," Pam said. "I think it is very nice that they honor the mothers that brought these children into the world and supported these guys in all their racing endeavors from the time they were just little boys.

"This is the third year I'll be going down there and I always enjoy the time with the other mothers. It's really not a lot of time because everyone is so busy these days, and this year Tony is running both races. We share some stories. It's just nice to visit with someone who has a child in the same position as mine. And I think they probably feel the same way. This way they know they are not sitting out here alone knowing it is so dangerous sometimes. We all know this isn't a factory job."

Today Pam tries to help other mothers that work with their sons, whether it's the fan club, a foundation, whatever the role might be. Stewart's popularity in NASCAR really took off early in 1999.

"After he had a good run in the Daytona 500 in February, it was like the floodgates opened and in came all these people that wanted something and the requests to do things and the desires to purchase things, it was almost overwhelming. We started hiring extra people, the marketing people worked with us. It was a huge learning curve."

When people ask her, she is happy to try and help.

"Especially some of the younger mothers -- Pam Kahne, Marylou Hamlin, J.J. Yeley's mother-in-law. We can let them know what they are facing. We went into it blind with no one to mentor us, no one to lead us. You want to try to do the best you can to accommodate everyone. It's impossible. People ask 'How do you do this? How do you accommodate all the requests? Are we going to make someone mad?'

"I wish I had someone [to help when we started]. I've always told these gals I'm here. I can tell you what we've done and maybe help them not hit all those bumps."

And where will Pam watch the race from on Saturday night? Well, it is Mother's Day weekend isn't it? She should be able to watch her son work from wherever she likes.

"Always from pit road at Darlington. I think it's a great place to watch from the pits. I get to see the crew guys, visit with people."

But she will not be listening to the two-way chatter on the team radio.

"I don't listen to his radio show and I don't listen on the headsets at the track. There are some things this mother just doesn't want to know," she said with a laugh.

She didn't always know her son would be a racer, but she always knew how competitive he was.

"Even when we were in go-karts I just figured we would race go-karts and that would be it," she said. "The day would come when Tony would get a real job and go on to have a normal life. I never could have dreamed it would all work out like this."

She says Tony shared his racing dreams with his father more than he did with her. But their time together was no less competitive.

"He always wanted to play a game," Pam said. "We played a lot of games when the kids were growing up. And everything was always a contest. Even when Tony was injured in an IRL race he came to stay with me and said 'Mom, play a game with me.'"

Shouldn't that be, please play a game with me?

When Tony was growing up, you know what the trend was, don't you?

"Tony played a lot of video games," Pam said. "I learned to play Donkey Kong because of him. One day he said let's play a video game. So I went in and it was Donkey Kong. Tony said he would go first and it was 30-45 minutes before I ever got a turn. I said OK, that's it, everybody up to bed. After everyone went to bed I sat there for four hours and learned to play that game."

I think I am beginning to see where some of that competitiveness comes from.

"The next time I went first and lasted probably only 10-15 minutes but it was better than I had even done before," Pam said. "Tony said 'Mom! When did you learn to do that?'"

By the way, here's a tip, be careful if you ever play Monopoly with Tony.

"He will never give up," Pam warns.

Pam talks about Tony's crazy schedule and his love for spending time at home in Indiana, his dogs, he has two new cats, even though he is allergic to cats. The cats Tony has are a special breed; they are Tonkinese and do not shed. I never pegged Tony as a cat guy.

"We had a cat when he was a boy and didn't realize right away how allergic Tony was to the cat," Pam said. "We had to get rid of the cat and that was tough."

Just this week, Mom got a rare call from her son.

"He called just the other day. I think he's done it maybe three or four times, ever. He just called to talk. It tickles me to death when he does. I think he does it when he just wants to relax and not talk about racing. I always try not to talk racing. I'm involved in the business of racing 100 percent of the time so I enjoy not having to talk about it. But if he wants to talk about it, I will."

Stewart's preparation and execution in 2007 have not been rewarded with the finishes he desires, or in some cases the finishes he deserves. It's kind of like landing on Marvin Gardens when you really want to land on Boardwalk. As for that phone call?

"I told him you're doing a good job," Pam said. "Being in the top 10 [in points] is really good at this point. He said 'You're right, mom.'"

Darlington has not been one of Stewart's best tracks. In the last six races there his best finish is 10th, on two occasions. His career best at Darlington is a fourth-place finish, in March of 2000 and September of 2001. In his 14 Nextel Cup races at Darlington he has led a total of just eight laps. He finished 12th in this race last year.

"I'm looking forward to Darlington," Pam said "We'll travel down there together and come back together. I enjoy being around him and not have to talk racing. It's such a nice break to get away and be with him."

What would it mean to this mom if her son could win the race where she gave the command?

"It would mean a lot to me this year," she said. "They have raced so well and there has been so much frustration. I think if he could get a win, it would really turn things around. Anytime you can get a win it really perks the guys up."

But this is one mom who doesn't count the wins before they happen.

"You're afraid to think too far ahead," she said. "I don't expect him to win. Even when he is running well late in a race, too many things can happen. When things don't go well, I'm always disappointed for him, not for me. So I have no expectations."

But she does have a ride home after the race.

"We'll fly back together Saturday night and we usually don't get home until 4:30 or 5 in the morning. My husband and I will go to church; we sing in the choir. Then we'll take my husband's mother out for dinner. Tony will probably spend the day at his house. I know how much he appreciates his time there.

"I'll have my time with Tony prior to Mother's Day. Three days together at Darlington. All I really want from him for Mother's Day is time together. He doesn't need to give me any other gift."

Pam Boas is proud of her son.

"He's is a fun-loving person," she said. "For the people that don't understand him, I wish they could walk in his shoes."

Maybe Tony and Pam will break out the video games this weekend. Maybe they'll just talk. Maybe Tony will give her a win.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention, Pam works for Tony. She is the administrator of the Tony Stewart Foundation.

"That's right," she said. "I have a lot of titles, but the first one is always Mom."

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.