Some Fishing Advice to Dale Jr.

NASCAR's most popular driver could learn a thing or two from the biggest fish in the pond. Don't take the bait! No matter how delicious the opportunity think for a second about the hook which is dangling the worm. Unless Dale Earnhardt, Jr., starts thinking before he opens his mouth, he's going to get hooked every time.

The fact is the media often cries over their constant coverage of "Junior" often declaring they would love to cover something else instead. They "tire" of all Junior all the time. Yet, those same journalist are more than willing to troll for opportunities to snag Junior on their line.

A recent example is the misunderstanding generated during the Media Tour hosted by Lowe's Motor Speedway. A stop at DEI, the former home of Dale Jr., left many wondering where were the trophies and cars and other fan junk chronicling the years when DEI and Dale Jr were one and the same. When the tour reached Hendrick Motorsports, the new home of Dale Jr. out came the questions. Where were the cars, the trophies, the collection of accolades earned during his stint at DEI?

There it was, the hook and worm and like the young naive big mouth bass Junior bit was all his might. He decried the actions in no uncertain terms.

The smarter fish would have looked at the worm, huffed and said, "My future is at Hendrick Motorsports. I am here to do the best job I can for Rick and Amp and the National Guard. My job is to help Mr. Hendrick continue to fill his showroom with the trophies won by winners and champions. That is my job now."

With those words the story would have passed and those reporters begging to write about something, anything, other than Dale, Jr., would have been forced to use their creative minds in a productive manner.

Dale, Jr., is refreshing as an individual because he is more often to speak his mind than hide behind some corporate shell. If only he would engage the mind before engaging the mouth. He'd find himself hooked a few less times.