Matt Yocum's Mailbag (cont'd)

Q: Matt, I have been trying to find out whether any of you think that NASCAR will give the Chicagoland Speedway another race at some point in time, either a earlier spring race or later fall race before it get's to cool around here. I have written to Marty Snider, Darrell Waltrip, Jeff Hammond and was going to call in on Benny Parsons' show before he died to ask him his thoughts on this? Maybe you can shed some light on this.
-- Tom from Illinois

Yocum: Tom, I think the folks at Chicagoland Speedway do a fantastic job. They take care of the fans, more importantly, they get the fans in and out of the track quickly. If any track with a single date deserves a second date, Chicagoland has to be on the short list. The problem? You've got Michigan International Speedway and Indy in the same region. I think that makes it a long shot for adding a second date. That said, you never say never in this sport.

• Send Matt your questions

Q: Several of the ladies chatting on one of our sites (www.wireclub.com/Clubs/Club+Tony) have decided to do their own "shaving strike" until Tony wins. None are going to shave their legs until he wins, so please, please encourage him to win. We were thinking we'd help donate more to get him shaved, any suggestions on how we can tie the two together?
-- Julie

Yocum: Hmmm, Julie, I don't know what to tell you about your strike. I probably would have looked at his stats before jumping into that challenge. You do realize that only four times in his career, Tony's won before mid-June? I just hope for your sake the 20 guys don't wait until September to win like in 1999. In all seriousness, I think it's great that you guys have passion for the sport.

As far as the bet between Kevin Harvick and Stewart, I hear rumors that more will be coming soon about the waxing/shaving date.

P.S.: I bet your boyfriends are hoping you switch to one of the Gillette Young guns.

Q: I'm a big fan of yours and a fellow FSU alumnus. I seem to remember you mentioning the FSU weather casting class a time or two during race broadcasts, particularly during rain delays, and I have always been curious to know if you actually took the class. I'd love to hear from you and if you did take the weather casting class, hear some stories on your experience with it. I've been to every Atlanta race since 1985, and have seen you a couple of times in the garage there, but didn't want to bother you while you were working. I came across this e-mail address, and if you get a chance, I'd love to hear back from you. And, if we're ever caught in one of those storms at AMS, you've got a meteorologist to turn to in the Turn 3 infield!
-- Mike Fuori, weekend meteorologist from Savannah, Ga.

Yocum: Yep, I took weather casting for a semester in probably the Spring '91. My roommate in the Sig-Ep house, Joe Benson, was a major weather junkie. So we took it together. The biggest thing I remember about the class was the fun. We had some great times.

Especially this year, weather has played a major factor with the Nextel Cup Series with two Saturday night races moved to Sunday, and one Sunday postponed until Monday. What do we do to pass the time? We usually end up having a movie night. FYI ... we watched that Leonardo DiCaprio movie, The Departed, in Dover.

A couple of weeks ago, I received some serious grief for reading a new book on weather. They just don't know what they are missing ... storms can be cool! Check out a close friend of mine's storm chaser Web site -- www.coloradostormchaser.com

And if you make it back to another race at Atlanta. Stop me to say hi. You are Garnet and Gold my man. We all have to stick together.

Q: I couldn't believe it. I went to the NASCAR.COM site this morning, reading the latest news and your "mailbag," and there was the Ryerson in that picture of you. (read more) Amazing. I have been a boatnerd since the 1960s when I was a little girl. I knew you and Capt. Treece are friends and you ride the boat with him when you can. When you take that ride and go past De Tour Village, Mich., have Eric give an extra blow. He knows who I am. I just hope I can get down to the shore in time.
-- Jill Lucy from De Tour Village

Yocum: Hi Jill. Yep, I'm counting the days until I get back on the Queen of the Lakes. At this point, it's looking like some time in early August to mid-August. It's five days of total decompression. Some guys go hunting, to the islands, golfing on their vacation. I go for a boat ride. It's great to hang with Roger from Know Your Ships (www.knowyourships.com).

I'll post a little blog of my five days on her for those who care. FYI ... my second favorite web site is www.boatnerd.com .

P.S: I'll tell E.T. to blow you a great salute when we get to De Tour.

Q: I'm a big NASCAR fan and love your work. Just wondering how you got involved with the lake freighters. Are you a fan of the boats or just the Ryerson? Capt. Treece gave us a three long and two short ... and whew, I was hooked! Smooth sailin' to you!
-- Linda Seabold (Seadog on boatnerd.com) on the Black River in Lorain, Ohio

Yocum: Linda, when I was 6, my mom took me on a trip to the U.P. [Upper Peninsula of Michigan], visiting Mackinac Island and the Sault Ste. Marie locks. I've been a fan of the big boats ever since watching a few lock through the Soo. I love all the boats, but the Ryerson is my favorite. Three long and two short ... for your e-mail.