DaytonDailyNews.com

Mostly to help get myself out of bed, I keep telling myself spring is around the corner. I got another reminder on Saturday, Jan. 24.

I attended Eldora Speedway's awards banquet, so racing — and those warmer temperatures — can't be too far behind. Going to the banquet can be almost as fun as going to the races.

Where else can you hear a driver announce his wife is expecting by saying, "We have a crumb grabber on the way." It's fun meeting drivers in the pits and chatting. It's a blast seeing their personalities on stage.

I think Dayton's Mike Barr has a future in comedy if this driving thing doesn't work out. And Earl Baltes is always a treat, especially when telling people why he's bald.

I think his wife, Berneice, has heard it often enough she doesn't blush anymore.

Track owner Tony Stewart was there, too. Most days it would be fun to trade places with the NASCAR owner/driver. The end of the banquet wasn't one of them. Demands on his time prevented Stewart from staying after to sign autographs.

As he made his way to the door autograph seekers held out items and fans crowded around to snap photos. I've seen Stewart get comfy for a couple hours in a lawn chair after racing to sign for the hundred or so fans lined up in the pits, so you have to think he felt bad not being able to make them all happy.

He did though, hold up long enough for a quick question. Stewart said Eldora will look for ways to help racing teams and spectators during the rough economic times.

"We're going to do the best we can. We're going to try to think outside the box and think of more creative ways to try to help our racers and fans to be able to come to the race track," he said. "If you don't have fans in the stands and you don't have racers here to compete, it doesn't work for any of us."