Following the snowstorm last week, we went into a DEEP FREEZE! Having Monday and Tuesday off, I didn’t have to deal with the falling snow, but when I went back to work Wednesday evening, the bottom fell out of the thermometer. Of course, it could have been worse as it “only” dropped to -14 here. Thursday night it was about 0 when I went home shortly after 2 AM.
My nephew, Charlie, is a Marine Staff Sergeant stationed at Camp Lejeune, N.C. He posted a comment on his face book page about the bad weather they were having, with rain and weather in the 60’s. I told him I’d gladly trade places with him as long as there wasn’t a hurricane. He did not give me an answer.
In the world of NASCAR, IndyCar driver Danica Patrick has finally signed a two year contract with JR Motorsports to drive in select Nationwide series races in 2010 and 2011. The races she will drive in have not been announced yet, but it is anticipated that she will be scheduled around her IndyCar season. Patrick admits that she will have a steep learning curve, but hopes to be competitive in the GoDaddy.com #7. Patrick will be testing an ARCA car at Daytona later this month.
On the local racing scene, The Junction Motor Speedway held their annual awards banquet on December 12th. Their tentative schedule shows the annual USMTS Spring Thaw race will be Friday and Saturday March 5th & 6th, 2010. Support classes will be open stock cars and 2-preson cruisers. Junction Motor Speedway is also planning to add limited modifieds to the schedule, but officials are still working on rules for the class. The regular season opener is scheduled for Saturday, April 17th, 2010. I’m really hoping the weather for the USMTS show is nice, as it will fall on my weekend off and I’d like to go race that weekend. However, with the snow and nasty weather we’re having now, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was still snow on the ground that first weekend of March.
Over $20,000 in track and NASCAR money was presented to the drivers in the top 10 in points in each class. I got my first ever (and probably my only) NASCAR trophy for our 10th place points finish. With fog and light freezing drizzle in the evening, our decision to stay overnight was a good one. We slept in on Sunday, then had a good breakfast and hot coffee before heading back to Beatrice.
Since the murders of four Lakewood, Washington Police Officers two weeks ago, at least 6 more officers have died in the line of duty. Two were the result of traffic accidents and four were from gunfire. I’ve mentioned this before and I can’t stress it enough, most fatal line of duty traffic accidents CAN BE AVOIDED!! For those officers reading this, PLEASE USE YOUR SEATBELTS!! The other thing I would urge is to SLOW DOWN a little. On December 3rd, Osage County, Oklahoma Deputy Sheriff Michael Mehagan, 26, was responding to back up another officer on a call when he lost control of his patrol car on an S-curve and rolled twice. Deputy Mehagan was ejected from the vehicle and sustained fatal injuries. He is survived by his wife and 11 month old daughter.
On Friday December 11th, Jefferson County, Indiana Deputy Sheriff Roy Sutton, Jr, 33, was killed while responding to a domestic disturbance call involving weapons at about 11:30 PM. Deputy Sutton met a vehicle on a hilly, winding section of road when his patrol car ran off the right side of the road and down a steep embankment. His patrol car went airborne and hit a tree on the drivers’ side of the car. Deputy Sutton was wearing a seatbelt and suffered severe head trauma and was pronounced dead at the scene.
On December 3rd, Pelham, Alabama Police Officer Phillip Davis, 33, was killed while making a traffic stop when the suspect opened fire and fled the scene. On December 6th, Penn Hills Police Officer Michael Crawshaw, 32, was shot and killed in an ambush while responding to a call. He parked several houses away from the call, then reported that he heard shots fired. The suspect exited the house and shot Officer Crawshaw several times as he sat in his car before he was able to get out. The suspect had shot and killed the resident of the house over a drug debt. On December 8th, Martin County North Carolina Sheriff’s Deputy Charlie Brown, 38, was shot and killed as he and other officers responded to a call of a man walking on a street and firing a long gun. Officers located the man and confronted him, telling him to put the gun down. Instead, he fired and killed Deputy Brown. Other officers on the scene returned fire, killing the suspect. Finally, on December 13th, Henderson, Tennessee Police Captain Dennis Cagle, 56, died from a gunshot wound he suffered three days earlier when he responded to a robbery call at a local grocery store. Captain Cagle was the first officer on the scene and was shot once when he entered the store. He returned fire and wounded the suspect, who was taken into custody at the scene.
It would appear that in addition to our military fighting wars overseas, our police officers are fighting a war in the United States. Three of the above suspects were captured and the fourth was killed. I would hope that none of the three is ever released from jail. Please, officers out there, don’t take any chances and come home at the end of your shift! Non-law enforcement reading this, if you are contacted by law enforcement, use common sense and everything will be OK. We are all in a heightened state of awareness, so if at times we seem short or terse with you, please understand.
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