It’s 8:11 on a Friday night and the usual suspects are doing their usual routines in the press box at Silver Dollar Speedway. It’s a good thing everybody is pleasant and gets along, because otherwise it could turn into disaster.
You see, us people up here have to share a small amount of space. And we have to make it work. So while track announcer Troy Hennig has his laptop, walkie talkie and cell phone going, I am sitting in the middle typing blogs and agate files. And then there’s Gary Thomas, who stays in the press box as research for his promotions gig with the Golden State Challenge-King of California series.
Us three fellas clean up our language and our act when Beth Miller comes up to sing the national anthem, of course, but other than that it’s more like three friends goofing off while at the same time working hard.

I always wonder what the people in the crowd think about of us people here in the ivory tower. I mean, press box. Are they jealous? Does my seat up here in the box make me a VIP? Do they know we have a swamp cooler here?

That last question doesn’t mean a ton on a day like today, where it was 100 degrees when I showed up at the track around 7 p.m.

We get to look down upon all the action and all the fans from up here, and while I have a general stand-offish nature with press boxes, the one at Silver Dollar is one of my favorites.

I would say come up and say hi, but we have plenty enough distractions. So just wave.