Bags are packed, laptop synched, race notes printed out, weather forecast checked ... everything is good to go for this weekend’s Commonwealth 100 at Virginia Motor Speedway.

This is the time of year that I get a little antsy from being cooped up inside through much of the winter. Yes, I’ve already been to several races, but the first TV race always gives me a rush of anticipation. I can understand why people who have worked in the profession have a hard time staying close to the sport when MORE

The spacious black mat lies on the ground, ostensibly to keep Josh McGuire out of the mud. But the mat is now covered with dirt, and as McGuire crawls under the car he seems oblivious as his shoulders stir up dust as he works. It is a warm March afternoon at Brownstown Speedway, and the pit area is filled with a colorful array of race cars. The weather is eerily mild for late March, and there is a hint of summer in the air. But the stately trees ringing the pit area stand barren and asleep, MORE

As the March chill fades and the Midwestern season gets rolling in earnest, a familiar face will be missing from the pit area on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series this year.

After several years following the national circuit, Steve Casebolt has no plans of competing — at any level — in 2012. While he has not made definitive plans to permanently quit, he has sold his two race cars and has no plans of buying replacements.

“I knew at the end of last year that I wasn’t going to race the way MORE