It's not true that when Jeff Gordon won at Texas Motor Speedway recently, it marked the first time in 48 races that he had visited Victory Lane.

Victory Lane at a real track, sure.

But he's been the center of attention in many virtual Victory Lanes in the last year or so. Gordon admits that he has an affection -- prior to becoming a father, he might even have called it an addiction -- for video games. He talked about his passion for Rock Band and other games recently.

Q: So how serious did you get about playing Rock Band?

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I always wanted to play the drums, man. But it just never happened. I was never very good at any kind of instrument. I think that's a very good bucket list item -- to learn to play the drums.

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JEFF GORDON, on "Rock Band"

Gordon: Definitely when I had time to myself on the bus during the weekends, I was doing Rock Band. This year I've kind of moved on to Wii. And it's really cool, the technology that they have. I still love Rock Band. I just haven't had the time. Honestly, over the offseason, I didn't play one single video game because I was just being Dad.

Q: So being a father has changed your video gaming habits?

Gordon: The only time I ever play is in the bus, and that's because they [wife Ingrid and daughter Ella] don't come until Sunday to most of the races. So if I have a spare hour or two, that's when I do that.

But I also like to cook my own dinner and grill out and all that, so these days, the way the schedule is working out, there is very little time for video games.

Q: You can start playing them and get lost for a couple of hours real quick, can't you?

Gordon: I understand why so many parents kind of frown on them -- because it's so easy to get addicted and spend hours and hours that probably could be used in some better ways. So I try to limit myself on how much I play. But I usually will stick with one type of game until I have either mastered it or gotten all my fun out of it.

Q: What drew you to Rock Band?

Gordon: I like the drums, so I play Rock Band. I always wanted to play the drums, man. I actually had a drum set when I was younger, and always wanted to take lessons and everything. But it just never happened. I was never very good at any kind of instrument.

I think that's a very good bucket list item -- to learn to play the drums. It's amazing what you can do with anything when you practice it. I might be able to play them if I had the time to practice.

Q: So what games on the Wii have you been playing most recently?

Gordon: Tennis is probably the one I have played the most. To me, it's the one you can pick up fairly quickly. Like I played some of the war games or whatever, and I started getting dizzy because I've got the gun moving here and I'm trying to move over there and all that. So I'm more into the sports ones.

Q: What about racing games?

Gordon: I've played the NASCAR karting as well as the Mario karting. And that's what I played the last time -- the Mario karting -- and I liked that real well. ... They just recently came out with the NASCAR one, which is cool because they're like these full-bodied go-karts that look like our race cars. They're pretty sharp-looking.

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Q: When you do that are you always yourself, or do you like to play Jimmie Johnson or someone else for a day?

Gordon: If I had my choice, I'd want to create a whole different thing. But the time I did that recently, I was myself.

Q: How did you do?

Gordon: I won a few races. I guess, to me, the NASCAR one seemed a little too easy -- as well as it has this team thing, where you have to draft off a teammate that you pick. I didn't like that. I don't mind teammates, but I just wanted to go out there and race and not worry about what happens to him. In the Mario game, I was just Mario.

Q: Any others? What about the Tiger Woods golf game?

Gordon: I do have it. But with my back, that swinging motion isn't the best thing for it. I've gotten to where with tennis, I can just flick it with my wrist. I played a little bit of the golf, though, and I did like it.

Q: Some drivers have talked about using video games or simulators to help them prepare for certain race tracks. Do you believe that?

Gordon: I think they're great; I love 'em. I think they're great for hand-eye coordination. But I don't think they teach you anything about racing most places. I could see maybe a road course that you had never been to. I guess I can see how maybe [Denny] Hamlin when he was talking about having never gone to Pocono before, and using it to help get him ready for that -- because Pocono is so big and has three different corners where you have to halfway treat it like a road course. You need to get visual points of where to drive in. But they just don't give you anything about the grip, or the bumps. Those are the only things the video games have missed so far. They've got all the visuals down; they're unbelievable with that. I guess what I'm saying, though, is that I really can't see how it could help you.

Q: Of course a guy like Hamlin isn't married, so he can sit down and play that stuff for hours on end, right?

Gordon: That's for sure.

Q: So when you're in the bus alone, do you have a routine where you have a certain amount of time set aside to play?

Gordon: These days I'm spending a whole lot more time stretching and doing exercises for my back, and getting myself prepared for the race. That takes up a lot of time. Then fixing dinner takes me about an hour from start to finish. But if I have time and there's nothing good on TV, sure, I make the time for it.

Q: Did you play video games as a kid?

Gordon: I used have an Atari. I used to tear it up. Asteroids ... Defender. I tell you what, they used to have poker on there way back when, too. ... They had football, too. That was a lot of fun, and it wasn't as complicated as it is now.

Q: Didn't Dale Earnhardt give you a hard time about playing video games when you first arrived in NASCAR?

Gordon: He gave me a hard time about anything kid-related that he thought I was doing. I mean, I wasn't drinking milk -- but he thought I was. So he gave me a hard time about that and everything else.