Waltrip’s book is a must-read for NASCAR fans

Michael Waltrip’s tell-all book In the Blink of an Eye: Dale, Daytona, and the Day that Changed Everything, is a must-read for all NASCAR fans who lived through the tragic death of Dale Earnhardt Sr. on Feb. 18, 2001. Waltrip starts by detailing how he got the point where he was driving Dale Earnhardt’s car on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. It was entertaining (but really, when is Mikey not entertaining?) to read how he persuaded Mr. and Mrs. Waltrip to let him travel to his brother’s town in Tennessee to go go-kart racing. And Michael Waltrip’s humorous side is evident all throughout the book. In fact, as I started reading it I thought, “This is exactly how Mikey is…kind of scatterbrained, but at the same time, it all made sense. And it was funny. You couldn’t ask for a better spokesperson.” At one point in the book he mentioned a family trip he took with his mom and dad and wife Buffy to Hawaii in 1998. He wrote, “Who doesn’t love love?” That my friends, is why I love Michael Waltrip. He was able to slip the best reference from a Toyota commercial from last year into his book. Beautiful marketing. But the book is also a must read because after Dale’s death Michael really details how he felt. Little did many of us who follow NASCAR really notice how rough it was on Michael. He took a lot of the blame personally for Earnhardt’s death. But his humor still shone through. When he was accused of cheating by putting jet fuel in his engine before the 2007 season his thought in the book were hilarious. He said, “[NASCAR] informed us and the whole world our gas had rocket fuel in it. Really? Rocket fuel? How do you even get rocket fuel?” Later on he mentioned the car didn’t pass technical inspection, “Obviously with the addition of space-shuttle fuel, that didn’t happen.” Only a guy like Michael Waltrip could turn something so devastating into a humorous incident. And Michael’s book was definitely geared toward the NASCAR fan, but he also made a funny comment when he talked about his car in the 2001 Daytona 500. The car wasn’t handling correctly. It was loose. “My car wasn’t handling exactly like I wanted. It was loose. If you’re a race person, you know what I mean by that. And if you’re not, it’s funny that you’re reading my book,” he wrote. I’d suggest Michael’s book as good reading for everyone, NASCAR fans or not. I have always liked Michael Waltrip, but I have a new-found respect for him after reading his book. He had the right amount of comedy and seriousness in it. Go out and get yourself a copy if you haven’t already. It’s well worth your time.