Country Thunder For Sure!!

Country Thunder again earned it's name this year. We arrived on Tues afternoon and set up camp in the "preferred" campground. It is actually a hay field that by Tues evening had dust blowing everywhere because of the traffic. Well that didn't last long! Stacey and Brian arrived shortly after we did and we arranged our site...after a couple of cold ones, of course! Tom and Sandy arrived later after I sent them on a wild goose chase to meet Jami and pick up his 10x20 shelter thingy. We then sat around and had a few more beverages and cooked some Brats for dinner. The dust keeps getting worse as more and more campers arrive.

Wed arrives and it's hotter than h3$4. About noon we all (6) pile in the Jeep and go to a local watering hole for a burger. Back to Country Thunder where the entertainment starts @ 4 and the VIP buffet opens at 5. After eating ...again.....we are entertained by Joe Nichols, Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood.

Thursday again brings hot (90+) and humid weather with a chance of thunderstorms. The lunch buffet opens at 11 and entertainment begins at noon. Today's headliners are Emerson Drive, Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley......awesome shows.

Friday comes and it seems Pat has contracted the Avian Flu. The same weather forecast for today...only this time the thunderstorm part comes true. At least it waits until we have seen Randy Owen, Clay Walker and Sugarland. But then it dumps on us.

Saturday and finally there is no dust today....just a light drizzle.....and mud.....lot's of it. Actually the campground is closed to all traffic because of the muddy conditions. But that doesn't stop some of the "red necks" in their jacked up pickups from slinging mud everywhere. Nor does it deter the mud slide activities! Oh to be young again!

Entertainment today is, amongst others, Kellie Pickler, Jessica Simpson and Sara Evans.

Saturday night brings another thunderstorm giving us about 2" of rain over the last couple of days. Only Brian and Stacey would sit by the campfire, under an umbrella, in the pouring rain, drinking beer! Gotta lov em!

The hayfield has now turned into a swamp!

Sunday morning ( go home day) comes with overcast sky's that quickly clear. The entertainment today is provided by everyone attempting to pack up and leave. 2 big farm tractors are making the rounds pulling pickups, trailers and motor homes thru the mud to the road. We wait until about noon, for things to dry up, to give it a try and move about 3 feet before calling in the tractor! Once safely on the hard road the rest of the trip home is uneventful!

WOW.....what a weekend!

Off to Country Thunder!

Well, NASCAR weekend was a success, with the weather co-operating....... for the most part. A strong thunderstorm blew thru Thursday night right before Gretchen Wilson was scheduled to perform a free concert. Eventually the show was cancelled and moved to Fri afternoon. Good thing we were hunkered down in the "safety" of the Miller Lite Tent!

The night races were a different atmosphere this year and seemed to draw larger crowds than usual. We had a nice visits with old friends and met some new ones. Friday night I visited Speedway Ridge for the Nationwide race, compliments of Tommy D.

Sunday the weather was beautiful as we packed up and headed for home, only to get ready for Country Thunder!

Nascar Weekend

Well it's just about time for the BLue Bus to roll again. It is NASCAR weekend in Chicago and we're off to the races, so to speak. We dry camp in a farmers field named Prairie View Campground, which is about a mile walk from the actual track. Again this year we will be joined by "The Brews", Judy and Bart Pfanenstiel and Doug. Wes, the owner, has done a nice job of accommodating us and put us along the fence row with 3 spots all together. The festivities start tonight with a free concert followed by the Nationwide race tomorrow and finally the Cup race on Sat night. This is the first year of the Saturday night format and there seems to be a lot of excitement. Nothing to do all weekend but eat, drink and of course watch some rubbin and racin! Ohhhh..........Doug just called, he has scored tickets for us to the Miller Beer corporate tent and the Miller Party deck on turn four......awesome!
BUT FIRST..............the chassis batteries are dead...again. Guess it's time to replace them with four fresh Interstate 31-MHD's. Lot's of lead in these babys and boy are they heavy!
The weather looks beautiful all weekend, and the long range forecast is for good weather next week when we head to Country Thunder for another four days of rockin country music with some of the biggest names in the business.
Stay tuned!