1on1: Eddie Gossage (cont'd)

Q: How close did you come to hitting Bruton's ceiling in those negotiations?

Gossage: Oh, not even close. Not even close. We got a heck of a deal. I know we bought the land from Ross for less than what he paid for it, how's that? And Ross, to his defense, because this worked out extremely well for him, saw it as kind of a loss leader. We're at the north end of a monstrous development called the Alliance development, which includes a free-trade airport. I mean, we're talking warehouse and distribution centers that are a half-million to a million square feet. So these are monstrously huge facilities.

And he viewed Texas Motor Speedway as an anchor tenant for the northern edge of the Alliance development. Kind of like a shopping mall has anchor tenants, it's the same concept he used here. It has worked well for both of us. They have done extremely well, and Ross is a good friend of ours.

Q: You recently were rumored as a possible future candidate for commissioner of the National Hockey League. Is it true that your son Dustin's reaction to that was, 'Dad, they must not have seen you skate?'

Gossage: Yes, my son, who played hockey for 12 years and whom I coached for many years, made a comment to that effect. He's an adult now, but your kids are always going to try to find some way to point out your weaknesses. So his comeback was, 'Well, they must not have seen your skating skills.'

That was a real honor to be considered, but it just wasn't for me. Without the conversations going very far, I just told them I didn't have any interest.

Q: How did that make you feel to have your name even come up as a possibility?

Gossage: To be considered for such a position was certainly an honor. To be the commissioner of any major sports league is an honor.

Q: Do you have any aspirations to pursue such positions down the road, should the opportunity arise?

Gossage: Well, I'm 49 and I imagine I'll retire here at Texas Motor Speedway. Unfortunately, the commissioner of the National Football League is younger than me. So I don't guess I'll go for that gig anytime soon.

I'll take life as it comes, but I really enjoy where I'm at. I'm looking out the window at a speedway that seats almost 160,000 people. You can fit eight Texas Stadiums in the infield. Now I can tell you that I had a hand in birthing this baby -- and that's not something that many people can tell you, that they played such a role. So that's something that no one can ever take away from me -- my sense of ownership of this place. It's more than just the fact that I'm the president of this place. I saw it from the first spade of dirt being turned to it becoming one of the four big speedways in this country today. So there is an ownership that I have of it that is very important to me. It would be hard to pry me away from here.

Having said that, you never know for sure what is going to come. But I can't see myself doing anything else but this for the rest of my professional career.

Q: Do you have anything special planned for this weekend?

Gossage: Absolutely.

Q: Anything you can reveal?

Gossage: We always have some fun things, and we always have some surprises. And people always want to know ahead of time, 'Well, tell us what surprises you have?' But if I tell you, then they're not surprises.

We stunned everybody a few years ago when I introduced President Bush on the big screen to give the command to start the engines. And everybody said, 'Why didn't you tell us?' And I said, 'We like surprises here.' You need to know that you never know what's going to happen when you come to this place.

Q: So what can you tell us -- aside from the surprises -- that is going to be on tap at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend?

Gossage: Obviously it's a big doubleheader (of racing). That in itself is all you need. The biggest stars that are going to be here are the drivers of these racecars. Everyone else pales in comparison.

But on Friday, we've got Dallas Morning News qualifying day. For $25 you can see all the NASCAR stars practice and then qualify. And then right after that we're going to roll the big stage out ... and we'll open with Cowboy Troy, the king of 'hick-hop' who is from right here in Dallas, and then Big & Rich will hit the stage. Big & Rich are only doing six or eight concerts this year. That's a $25 ticket, but if you clip a coupon out of the Dallas Morning News, it's only $15. Qualifying alone is worth $15. A Big & Rich concert alone is worth $100.

But I'm not going to tell you that Big & Rich are as big as stars as Dale Jr. and Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart and on and on. ... And then on Sunday, you've got to have something else going on. Our headliner is the Doobie Brothers. To me, getting to see the Doobie Brothers is a cool thing.

And then we're going to drop the green flag and go racin'. Fans are going to get their money's worth even before it starts. But I just want to have fun and entertain these folks -- and I'll bet we're going to entertain a bunch of folks this weekend.

Q: Tell us one thing that people don't really know about you?

Gossage: I'm a horribly boring person who really would probably go through the day without saying much at all, were it not what I do professionally. Personally, I get great, great pleasure out of just being with my wife and not necessarily doing something. She doesn't talk to the media, but she would tell you, 'He never says anything. He's just quiet.'

Q: That's hard to believe ...

Gossage: I know it is for a lot of people. But it's true. I'm shy. You'd be surprised by how many things I won't do. That's the truth: I'm a quiet, boring person.