Fisher

After testing the new engine at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, my team and I didn't feel quite as comfortable with the car as we would have liked. Since the Speedway at Indy isn't anything like the track we were racing Sunday, the only experience we had under our belt was the familiarity of my home track in Kentucky. We just haven't had enough time to work on the car setup, which was evident during the race.

Following the short test at Indianapolis, I drove to the Reds game in Cincinnati. We had an autograph session prior to the game at Newport on the Levee across the Ohio River in Kentucky. Before the game, I drove the official race track pace car over the bridge into Cincinnati and into the stadium. I rode behind Robbie Buhl and Scott Sharp who drove Indy Cars. You had to see the look on the faces of the other motorists when they saw Robbie and Scott's cars -- probably the last thing they expected to see during rush hour.

I was scheduled to throw out the first pitch that night, so before the game I practiced a little under the stands with some of my teammates. My first pitch was a little wild and luckily was caught by a cameraman who turned around in the nick of time to make a great catch.

Before I knew it, Friday was here. Luckily, my schedule only consisted of a few meetings for the day. My weekly meeting is with the people who help with my marketing and sponsorship deals. Obviously we're definitely working on sponsorships for next year -- I want to be sure that everything is in place for next season.

I usually have a meeting with my marketing team each week. We use this time to make plans and work on ways of reaching our goals. Since I'm working on my Mechanical Engineering degree, these meetings have been an excellent learning process for me. As the year has progressed, I've felt more empowered. These meetings are an integral part of the racing world.

Saturday consisted of a couple of practice sessions and qualifying. We learned how the new set up was going to work and made adjustments to the car. After lunch, I met with a group of Girl Scouts from two of the local councils. I really enjoy this part of my job. They had some great questions about racing and my car. When I meet people who love racing as much as I do, it just energizes me to do well.

Our team hadn't qualified in the top-10 since our No. 2 at Richmond. This all changed at Kentucky. We posted a real fast time of 217.911 for a ninth-place starting position. Of course the new engine helped out all the Chevy teams, as Chevy won its first pole of the year. Another first for the season was the 20-car field qualified with the closest margin this year.

We had an autograph session Saturday night at the Belterra Casino and the crowds were great as they braved the long lines. Later on we had a great dinner at the casino with some exciting live entertainment! It was a great opportunity to have some good quality bonding with the team off the track.

On Sunday, we had one more chance to put the finishing touches on the car before the race. But rain delayed our practice and cut our practice session short. The car was running better after the practice session, but we were still making the transition to the new setup. Following the practice session, I made an appearance at Raybestos' hospitality tent. By race time, the rain had disappeared and the conditions were perfect. At the start of the race, the car wasn't exactly perfect so we were quickly passed and fell out of the draft. The car had a heavy push, but my engineer, Mikey O'Gara, worked hard to correct the problem. During the second half of the race, we were able to finally pass cars and be competitive -- which is something we haven't been able to do for most of the season. We were even able to post the fastest lap of the race at 219.400.

When we pit stopped, we were still working to get back laps we lost at the beginning of the race. But it wasn't a perfect stop-- so we lost two positions. We managed to end up 14th, which was an improvement from previous races.

Congratulations are in order for Sam Hornish and Panther Racing on their first win of the season! The new engine is really making a difference and I don't think this is the last time you'll see a Chevy engine on Victory Lane.

A great part of the race was the chance to see all of my family at the race. My college friends were able to make the commute from Indianapolis and they always put me in a good mood! After the race, my family and I drove home and I was able to sleep in my own bed!

It was back to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday evening for the National Governors' Association meeting. I took some governors for a spin around the Speedway in a Chevy pace car. We only went about 130 MPH, but I think they thought it was still a little too fast.

On Tuesday, I had the day off so I went boating with friends. This past weekend, I was going 215-plus mph in my race car, but I don't think I was able to get the boat up to that speed.

Thursday was supposed to be my first day back at college, but I'll miss my classes because my flight for Nazareth leaves that morning. Last year at Nazareth I posted a fourth-place finish while substituting for injured driver Robbie Buhl. This was my first experience racing for The Dreyer & Reinbold Team. Nazareth is a difficult track to race on but with the new engine, new setup and a week behind us we hope to be better prepared.

As always I hope to see you out at the track for all the race weekend activities as we are still looking for our first win.

The race will be carried on ESPN or you can check us out for post-race results at AOL keyword: Sarah Fisher.

IRL IndyCar Series driver Sarah Fisher drives the Dreyer & Reinbold Racing No. 23 Dallara/Chevy. She is providing a diary to ESPN.com. For more on Sarah, go to www.sarahfisher.com.