Labonte

I remember writing in my very first diary, way back in February, the following words: "Thanks for the opportunity to share our experiences this season. Hopefully, it'll be an exciting ride for all of us."

I don't know about you. But the 2003 season certainly was an exciting ride for me, my family and everyone else on the Kellogg's / got milk? Racing Team. We had two main goals heading into this season: one, to win a race; and two, to finish 10th or better in the point standings. We met both goals, which is a great way to start building for 2004.

I used to think racing for a championship was tough, but the pressure we faced on the last day of this season battling Kurt Busch for a spot in the top 10 was just as intense. I haven't been on a roller coaster in three years but by the time we finished at Homestead (Fla.), I wasn't sure if I had just spent the day at a racetrack or an amusement park. The range of emotions we felt that day took us up … and down … through all 400 miles. I'm sure it was just as agonizing for him and Roush Racing.

But I didn't doubt for one minute that we would prevail because I know I've got one of the best teams in NASCAR behind me. We proved it all year long with some of the quickest work on pit road. We proved it in Atlanta, when they changed a radiator and lost only seven laps! And we proved it at Rockingham, where we beat the defending champions (Matt Kenseth's team) and finished second to Bill Elliott in the World Pit Crew Championships.

Crew chief Jim Long deserves a lot of credit for this. Since he rejoined Hendrick Motorsports two years ago, we're working harder and we're working smarter. The results speak for themselves.

	Terry Labonte hopes to wave more checkered flags in '04.

And we couldn't be successful in this business without the unwavering support of families and fans. To my wife Kim, our son Justin and daughter Kristy (more on them later), my mom and dad, and brother Bobby, I say -- "Thank you." Ditto for my fans.

In June, I wrote about Justin's late-model success on Saturday nights at Caraway Speedway in North Carolina. He'd just won his first race then, but a track championship seemed like only a dream at that point. Well, Justin kept winning throughout the summer and in December, I'm happy to write that my son is Caraway's newly crowned 2003 track champion.

By the way, my brother and I won't be the only Labontes racing during Speed Weeks 2004 next February. Justin plans to return to the NASCAR Busch Series and will be entered in the season-opener at Daytona Beach (Fla).

I've had a lot of fun working on this diary throughout the year … so much so that my daughter wanted to get in on the act after we won at Darlington (S.C.) on Labor Day weekend. Seriously, Kristy was with us that day and helped us celebrate in Victory Lane. Afterward, she asked if she could write the next diary. The staff at ESPN.com thought it was a good idea and after Kim and I read Kristy's take on that race, I had to agree.

While we were fortunate to reach a couple of our main goals in 2003, the challenge will be to continue to improve as we roll into next year. The team will be focused on maintaining its status in the top 10 and will keep a sharp eye trained on the top five. I know we can win more races and if things fall right early in the year, even challenge for a third championship.

One of the questions I get asked a lot is how I spend my free time in the offseason. My reply is, "What offseason?"

You know, I probably get more time for non-racing stuff during the actual racing year than I do in December and January. Right now, for instance, we're busy with photo shoots, the year-end awards banquet in New York, pre-season testing and the holidays … all squeezed into about six or seven weeks. You realize, don't you, that it's just a little more than two months before we leave for Daytona?

I did get the chance to visit the White House recently, last summer we went to Wrigley Field in Chicago and this year, we made it back to New York for the upcoming awards ceremony as part of NASCAR's Top 10.

What it all means to me is that it's still great to be a NASCAR driver. In closing this diary, and wrapping up the 2003 season, I'll go back to something I wrote earlier this year … just as I did to start this installment. In September, following our win at Darlington, the diary read as follows:

"I've never doubted that the No. 5 team is top-10 material. Maybe by the time I write my next diary, the standings will show it."

Well, the year is done and the standings do show it. For that, I am fiercely proud of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports team and can't wait for the new year to begin.

Thanks for sharing our 2003 season. Happy Holidays!

Terry Labonte drives the No. 5 Kellogg's / got milk? Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. He provided a diary to ESPN.com during the 2003 NASCAR season. Labonte's personal web site can be found at www.terrylabonte.net. Go to www.hendrickmotorsports.com or www.kelloggsracing.com for team information.