Sterling Marlin was born on June 30, 1957, in Columbia, TN.  He was the 1980-1982 Nashville Speedway USA Track Champion.  He was a 1994 and 1995 Daytona 500 Winner.  He was also the 1983 NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year.  Being a "good ole boy" from TN and a basketball and football player, he was the 1995 and 1996 Tennessee Professional Athlete of the Year and 2002 Tennessee Professional Athlete of the Year Nominee.

No, Sterling never won a Cup Championship, but he has won the hearts of many fans.  He is a down to Earth type of guy and has a wonderful personality and sense of humor.  Of course, one of the many reasons I love him so much is because he is as big of a TN Volunteer fan as I am.

You can look up all of his racing stats if you are interested.  What I really want to tell you about is, Sterling, the man away from the track.  I have been fortunate enough to meet and talk with him twice.  I've also been able to meet Bobby Hamilton, Jr., and listen to him talk about Sterling.

Sterling was raised on a farm and he is no stranger to hard, dirty work.  Once, Sterling was helping his dad brand and delouse cows on his dad's farm.  They had herded a bunch of cattle into the chutes and Sterling was pouring a liquid on them to kill lice while his dad was branding them.  Neither one of them read the directions and didn't know the liquid was flammable.  As Sterling poured the lice killer on the back of one cow his dad stuck her with the branding iron...poof!  She burst into flames and they had to put dirt on her to put the flames out.  She was singed a little but not badly hurt.  That was almost instant BBQ for them!  (If you were raised on a farm as Wrench Wizard and I were you have an idea about how this is really not an issue so don't be worried.)

Another time, Sterling talked about having fun on the farm even though it was hard work.  Sterling caught a "big old blacksnake" in the hayfield and playfully slung it at one of his hay-hauling pals.  "It wrapped around his neck and like to have scared him to death," says Sterling, chuckling at the memory.  "He was afraid of snakes, and we thought he was gonna die before he could get that thing off him."  (I'll admit to picking up a blacksnake and throwing it at my husband while baling hay.LOL)

Another time Sterling was in the motor home lot at a Cup race.  (I'm sorry because I've forgotten which track and whose motor home.)  Sterling threw a small stick of lit dynamite under the motor home.  Everyone in it came running out.  Once they found out what Sterling had done they were ready to kill him.  Dale Sr., thought it was one of the funniest things he had ever seen.  (Probably because it wasn't his motor home!)

Yet, there was another time that Sterling was at a New Year party at the farm of Bobby Hamilton, Jr.  Sterling and Bobby threw a small stick of lit dynamite into a fire barrel.  They were both knocked to the ground and the field all around them was set on fire.  The barrel was blown off the ground.  Talk about fireworks!  (Everyone was fine.)

Anyway, you see what I mean by his sense of humor.  Again, he is just a good guy and a lot of fun.  He is a fellow VOL and someone I enjoy very much.

I hope you enjoyed reading about some of the off track antics of Sterling Marlin.  I sure would love to party with him!  Have a great and safe race this week.  Good luck to all of you.  Vol

Credit to: Larry Woody (one of my favorite authors), Sterling Marlin, Bobby Hamilton, Jr., and My Feeble Memory

I'm just trying to see if I can actually post a blog.  I hope everyone is doing well and finding your way around the site.  This has been somewhat unusual.

I really don't care about Rankings, that is for our servicemen and women.  I don't really care about Titles, that is for people that want to feel important.  I sure don't care about points, because that is like Chutes and Ladders.  I do care about sports and finding my friends that feel the same way.

Anyway, I will delete this after I see that it works because I don't want to take up more space with useless garbage. 

Well, as many of you already know, I absolutely love FUZZBOSS.  He has been a mentor to me on this site for almost four years now.  Fuzz and I are friends and we respect one another.  Fuzz and I e-mail one another. 

However, Fuzz is a STEELER fan!  (I'll have to wash my fingers after typing that.)  I am a COLTS fan.  (As disgusting as it may be, my Hubby is a Steeler fan and a Fuzz fan.  SIGH!)

Well, FUZZBOSS, guess where ole volfan will be Thursday, September 10, 2009.  Well, I'm waiting.  Fuzz, where do you think I will be?  Come on Fuzz, where do you think I will be?

Thursday, 9-10-09!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Where will vol be?

LOL!  It doesn't have anything to do with the COLTS, Fuzz! 

How many of you are as old as I am?  Do any of you remember the "good old days" when Jokerswild would post a blog about the NASCAR race winner?  At first he actually gave his opinion of who would win the race.  As his blogs progressed, he would give the name of a driver that he would put a "hex" on so that his driver would win.  It was always entertaining and lots of fun.

Well, I don't know if JW has gotten lazy or if he just doesn't care anymore.  However, I want to say that DALE EARNHARDT JR. will win the race this weekend.  (This is in honor of Jokerswild.  DE Jr is not a fav of mine.  I'll have to wash my fingers after typing this blog.LOL) 

Let's have fun with this in honor of Jokerswild!  Let's all pick a race winner and a dark horse.  (Everyone had better  choose JUUUNNNIOOORRR as the winner for JW and then choose your actual winner and dark horse.)

Thanks if you have time to participate in this fun.  (I haven't been around much lately because...well, let's just have fun, okay?)

I leave all of you home alone a couple of weeks and...well, just look at this mess!

B@O, my blog hubby, I missed you and your words of wisdom.  Did you run away from home?  Just look at what has happened here.

Bozo, I told you to not clown around.  Now look at what you've done.  All the neighbors are talking.

NBAOutlaw, you're sorry?  Sorry doesn't cut it with me, young man.  I told you to make sure that Stevo didn't pass gas in the house.  You encouraged it?  No Bball for a week!

Stevo, it stinks in this place.  I told you to take that outside.  Yes, I can!  I can whack you upside the head.

Sadie and SpeedBeagle--out in the yard!  Who let them inside?  Jokers??

BTW, Jokers...I told you to stop chasing the girls.  You've been with Pebbles and Sally?  BuckeyeSweetie is going to put a bambam on you, Son.

klvalus, it was your job to make certain everyone stays healthy.  You let Athens get sick twice?  Those lugnuts are gone for one full week, young lady.

Athens, do we need to have "the talk" again?  Stay away from the boys or you'll go blind.  Go to your room!

Downs, come here!  I get a call from the FBI about you trying to contact the President?  No computer time for a week.

TheSizzel, I have told you time and again to stop telling lies.  Kobe!! is not the new leader of the free world.  Go stand in the corner.

DaveinIndy left the house without permission?  He'll think he is sleepless in Seattle when I get my hands on him.

DFman, you're admitting you would copy your work from the others?  I'm having a conference with your teacher.

HR1313, you are stuttering again.  Take your meds!

Blood, I left you in charge of keeping the bathrooms clean.  So Wrench, Pete, G13, Bleed, and Gout left the ring up?  Did they get put in timeout?  Everyone should "aim to please" in this house.  What a mess this floor is!

Fuzz, stop throwing that football and yelling Steelers in this house right this minute.

Lori and Moseby, if I've told you once I've told you both 100 times to stop talking to each other like that.  I'm washing your mouths out with soap.

Hanahan, have you written the answers to all of those questions?  Tell me you haven't been back on Copperhead Road with "those friends" of yours.

BN, have you worked on changing that negative attitude of yours?  I'll show you a google, young man.  No Frothy's for a week for you.

jon_464, I have told you a million times to stop throwing things under the bus.  You'll be walking from now on--no more bus riding for you.

slshusker, have you been playing with the guns again?  Where are you?

NBAworst, I have a few words for you also.  (Is that you?)

degraff, give that ugly dog a bath.  What did you do with YeeMum?  I will find out.

BB21, are you the one that allowed all of "those kids" is this house?

Forensic, stop drawing pictures of cars and concentrate on your work.

photogr, did you get pictures of this mess for me.  They will show me who did what.

3fan, I told you to stop spending money on all of that foreign made junk!  Take it all back.

IowaGirl, are you still reading other people's mail?  You're in trouble!

Where are Pop and Noah?  Did they take those flags outside again?

gonger, thanks for trying to keep everyone on track.  It's just too much responsibility isn't it!

xbulrdr8, I've told you that you need to be in the house more often.  I can't do this all by myself.

JayJayDean, stop trying to confuse everyone using common sense and reason.  What's wrong with you?

What happened to the little kid, Aero13?

Did Dwindy1 blow away?

Marty Walker, are you still hunting?  Get back here and help clean this up right now.

I've got to go to the store.  Everyone of you get this place spotless while I am gone.  We're having company.

Kellyscott, watch the SB game here with us at the zoo, I mean the house.

Ed, I don't want to have to tell you again:  To Thine Own Self Be True, leave everyone else the hell alone.

LisaH, next time you're in charge of the gang while I'm pulling night duty.  (Does that make me a lady of the evening?)

Next time I have to leave for a while and I call home, someone had better answer the damn phone!

I MISSED ALL OF YOU!  (I have a headache.)