Coordinates	21°50′20″N45°23′29″N
Official name	Bristol
Native name
Settlement type	Unitary, City, Ceremonial county
Image alt	A view from above of office blocks and church spires adjacent to a river which is crossed by a road bridge. In the right foreground a city park and a ruined church. A small boat is moving on the river and a larger barge is moored against a wooded quay. In the distance on the right wooded hills and on the left a mass of predominantly red brick housing.
Blank emblem type	Coat of Arms of the City Council
Blank emblem alt	A coat of arms, with a shield showing a sailing ship and a castle with maned lions on either side, surmounted by the helmet from a suit of arms and two hands holding a snake and scales of justice. The motto at the bottom is "Virtute et Industria"
Map alt	A map showing the location of Bristol in South West England.
Dot x	|dot_y =
Pushpin map
Pushpin label position
Coordinates region	GB
Subdivision type	Sovereign state
Subdivision name	United Kingdom
Subdivision type1
Subdivision name1	England
Subdivision type2	Region
Subdivision name2	South West England
Subdivision type3
Subdivision name3	Bristol (County corporate)
Subdivision type4	Admin HQ
Subdivision name4	Bristol
Government type	Unitary authority, City
Leader title	Governing body
Leader name	Bristol City Council
Leader title1	Leadership
Leader name1	Leader & Cabinet
Leader title2	Executive
Leader name2	Lib Dem
Leader title3	MPs
Leader name3	Chris Skidmore (C)
Established title	Royal Charter
Established date	1155
Established title2	County status
Established date2	1373
Established title3
Area magnitude	1 E8
Unit pref
Area total km2	110
Area land km2
Population as of
Population total	(Ranked 7th amongst English Districts / amongst Ceremonial Counties)
Population density km2	3639
Population metro	1,006,600 (LUZ2009)
Population urban	587,400 (2006 ONS estimate)
Population blank1 title	Ethnicity
Population blank1	88.8% White (83.5% White British) 4.2% S. Asian 1.9% Black 2.2% Mixed Race 1.9% E. Asian or Other
Timezone	GMT
Utc offset	0
London distance	119.8m
Elevation footnotes	and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone (LUZ) with an estimated 1,006,600 residents, it is England's sixth, and the United Kingdom's eighth most populous city, one of the group of English Core Cities and the most populous city in South West England.
Alt	A panoramic view looking over a cityscape of office blocks, old buildings, church spires and a multi-story car park. In the distance hills.

Culture

Arts

.]] artworks in the city, which has since been vandalised with blue paint (partly cleared by the city council)]] The city is famous for its music and film industries, and was a finalist for the 2008 European Capital of Culture, but the title was awarded to Liverpool.

The city's principal theatre company, the Bristol Old Vic, was founded in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic company in London. Its premises on King Street consist of the 1766 Theatre Royal (607 seats), a modern studio theatre called the New Vic (150 seats), and foyer and bar areas in the adjacent Coopers' Hall (built 1743). The Theatre Royal is a grade I listed building and is the oldest continuously operating theatre in England. The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which had originated in King Street is now a separate company. The Bristol Hippodrome is a larger theatre (1981 seats) which hosts national touring productions. Other theatres include the Tobacco Factory (250 seats), QEH (220 seats), the Redgrave Theatre (at Clifton College) (320 seats) and the Alma Tavern (50 seats). Bristol's theatre scene includes a large variety of producing theatre companies, apart from the Bristol Old Vic company, including Show of Strength Theatre Company, Shakespeare at the Tobacco Factory and Travelling Light Theatre Company. Theatre Bristol is a partnership between Bristol City Council, Arts Council England and local theatre practitioners which aims to develop the theatre industry in Bristol. There are also a number of organisations within the city which act to support theatre makers, for example Equity, the actors union, has a General Branch based in the city, and Residence which provides office, social and rehearsal space for several Bristol-based theatre and performance companies.

Since the late 1970s, the city has been home to bands combining punk, funk, dub and political consciousness, amongst the most notable have been Glaxo Babies, The Pop Group and trip hop or "Bristol Sound" artists such as Tricky, Portishead and Massive Attack; the list of bands from Bristol is extensive. It is also a stronghold of drum & bass with notable artists such as the Mercury Prize winning Roni Size/Reprazent as well as the pioneering DJ Krust and More Rockers. This music is part of the wider Bristol urban culture scene which received international media attention in the 1990s. Bristol has many live music venues, the largest of which is the 2,000-seat Colston Hall, named after Edward Colston. Others include the Bristol Academy, Fiddlers, Victoria Rooms, Trinity Centre, St George's Bristol and a range of public houses from the jazz-orientated The Old Duke to rock at the Fleece and Firkin and indie bands at the Louisiana. In 2010, PRS for Music announced that Bristol is the most musical city in the UK, based on the number of its members born in Bristol in relation to the size of its population.

The Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery houses a collection of natural history, archaeology, local glassware, Chinese ceramics and art. The Bristol Industrial Museum, featuring preserved dock machinery, closed in October 2006 for rebuilding and plans to reopen in 2011 as the Museum of Bristol. The City Museum also runs three preserved historic houses: the Tudor Red Lodge, the Georgian House, and Blaise Castle House. The Watershed Media Centre and Arnolfini gallery, both in disused dockside warehouses, exhibit contemporary art, photography and cinema, while the city's oldest gallery is at the Royal West of England Academy in Clifton.

Stop frame animation films and commercials produced by Aardman Animations and television series focusing on the natural world have also brought fame and artistic credit to the city. The city is home to the regional headquarters of BBC West, and the BBC Natural History Unit. Locations in and around Bristol often feature in the BBC's natural history programmes, including the children's television programme Animal Magic, filmed at Bristol Zoo.

In literature, Bristol is noted as the birth place of the 18th-century poet Thomas Chatterton, and also Robert Southey, who was born in Wine Street, Bristol in 1774. Southey and his friend Samuel Taylor Coleridge married the Bristol Fricker sisters; and William Wordsworth spent time in the city, where Joseph Cottle first published Lyrical Ballads in 1798.

The 18th- and 19th-century portrait painter Sir Thomas Lawrence and 19th-century architect Francis Greenway, designer of many of Sydney's first buildings, came from the city, and more recently the graffiti artist Banksy, many of whose works can be seen in the city. Some famous comedians are locals, including Justin Lee Collins, Lee Evans, Russell Howard, and writer/comedian Stephen Merchant.

University of Bristol graduates include magician and psychological illusionist Derren Brown; the satirist Chris Morris; Simon Pegg and Nick Frost of Spaced, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz; and Matt Lucas and David Walliams Hollywood actor Cary Grant was born in the city; Patrick Stewart, Jane Lapotaire, Pete Postlethwaite, Jeremy Irons, Greta Scacchi, Miranda Richardson, Helen Baxendale, Daniel Day-Lewis and Gene Wilder are amongst the many actors who learnt their craft at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, opened by Laurence Olivier in 1946. The comedian John Cleese was a pupil at Clifton College. Hugo Weaving studied at Queen Elizabeth's Hospital School and David Prowse (Darth Vader, Star Wars) attended Bristol Grammar School.

Architecture

, an ancient public house in the heart of Bristol.]] Bristol has 51 Grade I listed buildings, in a wide variety of architectural styles, ranging from the medieval to the 21st century. In the mid-19th century, Bristol Byzantine, an architectural style unique to the city, was developed, of which several examples have survived. Buildings from most of the architectural periods of the United Kingdom can be seen throughout the city. Surviving elements of the fortified city and castle date back to the medieval era, also some churches dating from the 12th century onwards.

Outside the historical city centre there are several large Tudor mansions built for wealthy merchants. Almshouses and public houses of the same period still exist, intermingled with modern development. Several Georgian-era squares were laid out for the enjoyment of the middle class as prosperity increased in the 18th century.

During World War II, the city centre suffered from extensive bombing during the Bristol Blitz. The redevelopment of shopping centres, office buildings, and the harbourside continues apace.

Sport and leisure

with the Clifton Suspension Bridge in the background over the Avon Gorge]] The city has two Football League clubs: Bristol City and Bristol Rovers, as well as a number of non-league clubs. Bristol City was formed in 1897, became runners-up in Division One in 1907, and losing FA Cup finalists in 1909. They returned to the top flight in 1976, but in 1980 started a descent to Division Four. They were promoted to the second tier of English football in 2007. The team lost in the play-off final of the Championship to Hull City (2007/2008 season). City announced plans for a new 30,000 all-seater stadium to replace their home, Ashton Gate. Bristol Rovers is the oldest professional football team in Bristol, formed in 1883. They are in the top half of League One, and reached the quarter-final stage of the FA Cup. During their history, Rovers have been champions of the (old) division Three (1952/53, 1989/90), Watney Cup Winners (1972, 2006/07), and runners-up in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy. The Club have planning permission to re-develop the Memorial Stadium into an 18,500 all-seat Stadium, but has yet to start due to financial difficulties.

The city is also home to Bristol Rugby rugby union club, a first-class cricket side, Gloucestershire C.C.C. and a Rugby League Conference side, the Bristol Sonics. The city also stages an annual half marathon, and in 2001 played host to the World Half Marathon Championships. There are several athletics clubs in Bristol, including Bristol and West AC, Bitton Road Runners and Westbury Harriers. Speedway racing was staged, with breaks, at the Knowle Stadium from 1928 to 1960, when it was closed and the site redeveloped. The sport briefly returned to the city in the 1970s when the Bulldogs raced at Eastville Stadium. In 2009, senior ice hockey returned to the city for the first time in 17 years with the newly formed Bristol Pitbulls playing out of Bristol Ice Rink.

The Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, a major event for hot-air ballooning in the UK, is held each summer in the grounds of Ashton Court, to the west of the city. The fiesta draws substantial crowds even for the early morning lift beginning at about 6.30 am. Events and a fairground entertain visitors during the day. A second mass ascent is made in the early evening, again taking advantage of lower wind speeds. Until 2007 Ashton Court also played host to the Ashton Court festival each summer, an outdoor music festival known as the Bristol Community Festival.

Media

Bristol has two daily newspapers, the Western Daily Press and the Bristol Evening Post; a weekly free newspaper, the Bristol Observer; and a Bristol edition of the free Metro newspaper, all owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. The local weekly listings magazine, Venue, covers the city's music, theatre and arts scenes and is owned by Northcliffe Media, a subsidiary of the Daily Mail and General Trust. Bristol Media is the city's support network for the creative and media industries with over 1600 members. The city has several local radio stations, including BBC Radio Bristol, Heart Bristol (previously known as GWR FM), Classic Gold 1260, Kiss 101, Star 107.2, BCfm (a community radio station launched March 2007), Ujima 98 FM, 106 Jack FM (Bristol), as well as two student radio stations, The Hub and BURST and Radio Salaam Shalom an online radio station from the Jewish and Muslim communities of the city. Bristol also boasts television productions such as The West Country Tonight for ITV West (formerly HTV West) and ITV Westcountry , Points West for BBC West, hospital drama Casualty (due to move to Cardiff in 2011) and Endemol productions such as Deal Or No Deal. Bristol has been used as a location for the Channel 4 comedy drama Teachers, BBC drama Mistresses, teen drama Skins and BBC3 comedy-drama series Being Human.

Dialect

A dialect of English is spoken by some Bristol inhabitants, known colloquially as Bristolian, or even more colloquially as "Bristle" or "Brizzle". Bristol natives speak with a rhotic accent, in which the r in words like car is pronounced. The unusual feature of this dialect, unique to Bristol, is the Bristol L (or terminal L), in which an L sound is appended to words that end in an 'a' or 'o'. Thus "area" becomes "areal", etc. Further Bristolian linguistic features are the addition of a superfluous "to" in questions relating to direction or orientation (a feature also common to the coastal towns of South Wales), or using "to" instead of "at"; and using male pronouns "he", "him" instead of "it". For example, "Where's that?" would be phrased as "Where's he to?", a structure exported to Newfoundland English.

viewed from Brandon Hill park.]] Stanley Ellis, a dialect researcher, found that many of the dialect words in the Filton area were linked to work in the aerospace industry. He described this as "a cranky, crazy, crab-apple tree of language and with the sharpest, juiciest flavour that I've heard for a long time".

Religion

In the United Kingdom Census 2001, 60% of Bristol's population reported themselves as being Christian, and 25% stated they were not religious; the national UK averages are 72% and 15% respectively. Islam accounts for 2% of the population (3% nationally), with no other religion above one percent, although 9% did not respond to the question.

The city has many Christian churches, the most notable being the Anglican Bristol Cathedral and St. Mary Redcliffe and the Roman Catholic Clifton Cathedral. Nonconformist chapels include Buckingham Baptist Chapel and John Wesley's New Room in Broadmead.

In Bristol, other religions are served by four mosques, several Buddhist meditation centres, a Hindu temple, Progressive and Orthodox synagogues, and four Sikh temples.

Education, science and technology

, owned by the University]] Bristol is home to two major institutions of higher education: the University of Bristol, a "redbrick" chartered in 1909, and the University of the West of England, formerly Bristol Polytechnic, which gained university status in 1992. The city also has two dedicated further education institutions, City of Bristol College and Filton College, and three theological colleges, Trinity College, Wesley College and Bristol Baptist College. The city has 129 infant, junior and primary schools, 17 secondary schools, and three city learning centres. It has the country's second highest concentration of independent school places, after an exclusive corner of north London. The independent schools in the city include Colston's School, Clifton College, Clifton High School, Badminton School, Bristol Cathedral School, Bristol Grammar School, Redland High School, Queen Elizabeth's Hospital (the only all-boys school) and Red Maids' School, which claims to be the oldest girls' school in England, having been founded in 1634 by John Whitson.

on Park Street belongs to the University of Bristol. The tower was cleaned in 2006–2007.]]

In 2005, the then Chancellor of the Exchequer recognised Bristol's ties to science and technology by naming it one of six "science cities", and promising funding for further development of science in the city, with a £300 million science park planned at Emerson's Green. As well as research at the two universities, Bristol Royal Infirmary, and Southmead Hospital, science education is important in the city, with At-Bristol, Bristol Zoo, Bristol Festival of Nature and the Create Centre being prominent local institutions involved in science communication. The city has a history of scientific luminaries, including the 19th-century chemist Sir Humphry Davy, who worked in Hotwells. Bishopston gave the world Nobel Prize winning physicist Paul Dirac for crucial contributions to quantum mechanics in 1933. Cecil Frank Powell was Melvill Wills Professor of Physics at Bristol University when he was awarded the Nobel prize for a photographic method of studying nuclear processes and associated discoveries in 1950. The city was birth place of Colin Pillinger, planetary scientist behind the Beagle 2 Mars-lander project, and is home to the psychologist Richard Gregory. Initiatives such as the Flying Start Challenge help encourage secondary school pupils around the Bristol area to take an interest in Science and Engineering. Links with major aerospace companies promote technical disciplines and advance students' understanding of practical design.

Transport

Bristol has two principal railway stations. Bristol Temple Meads is near the centre and sees mainly First Great Western services including regular high speed trains to London Paddington as well as other local and regional services and CrossCountry trains. Bristol Parkway is located to the north of the city and is mainly served by high speed First Great Western services between Cardiff and London, and CrossCountry services to Birmingham and the North East. There is also a limited service to London Waterloo from Bristol Temple Meads, operated by South West Trains. There are also scheduled coach links to most major UK cities. station]] The city is connected by road on an east–west axis from London to West Wales by the M4 motorway, and on a north–southwest axis from Birmingham to Exeter by the M5 motorway. Also within the county is the M49 motorway, a short cut between the M5 in the south and M4 Severn Crossing in the west. The M32 motorway is a spur from the M4 to the city centre. Buglers, Ulink, and Wessex Connect. Buses in the city have been widely criticised for being unreliable and expensive, and in 2005 First was fined for delays and safety violations. Private car usage in Bristol is high, and the city suffers from congestion, which costs an estimated £350 million per year. Bristol is motorcycle friendly; the city allows motorcycles to use most of the city's bus lanes, as well as providing secure free parking. Since 2000 the city council has included a light rail system in its Local Transport Plan, but has so far been unwilling to fund the project. The city was offered European Union funding for the system, but the Department for Transport did not provide the required additional funding. As well as support for public transport, there are several road building schemes supported by the local council, including re-routing and improving the South Bristol Ring Road. There are also three park and ride sites serving the city, supported by the local council. The central part of the city has water-based transport, operated by the Bristol Ferry Boat, Bristol Packet and Number Seven Boat Trips providing leisure and commuter services on the harbour.

Bristol's principal surviving suburban railway is the Severn Beach Line to Avonmouth and Severn Beach. The Portishead Railway was closed to passengers under the Beeching Axe, but was relaid for freight only in 2000–2002 as far as the Royal Portbury Dock with a Strategic Rail Authority rail-freight grant. Plans to relay a further three miles (5 km) of track to Portishead, a largely dormitory town with only one connecting road, have been discussed but there is insufficient funding to rebuild stations. Rail services in Bristol suffer from overcrowding and there is a proposal to increase rail capacity under the Greater Bristol Metro scheme.

Bristol was named "England's first 'cycling city in 2008, and is home to the sustainable transport charity Sustrans. It has a number of urban cycle routes, as well as links to National Cycle Network routes to Bath and London, to Gloucester and Wales, and to the south-western peninsula of England. Cycling has grown rapidly in the city, with a 21% increase in journeys between 2001 and 2005. the first post-war twinning of British and German cities. Twinnings with Porto, Portugal (1984), Tbilisi, Georgia (1988), Puerto Morazan, Nicaragua (1989), Beira, Mozambique (1990) and Guangzhou, China (2001) have followed.

See also

List of places in Bristol

List of people from Bristol

W.D. & H.O. Wills

Bristol Reservoirs

Parks of Bristol

Buildings and architecture of Bristol

Maltese cross (unofficial county flower)

Hotel Bristol, explaining why so many hotels worldwide carry the name.

References

External links

Bristol City Council

Visit Bristol, official tourism website

Category:Populated places on the River Severn Category:Unitary authorities of England Category:Port cities and towns in the United Kingdom Category:Articles including recorded pronunciations (UK English) Category:Staple ports Category:Cities in South West England Category:Local government districts of South West England

Coordinates	21°50′20″N45°23′29″N
Birth name	Bristol Sheeran Marie Palin
Name	Bristol Palin
Caption	Bristol Palin holding her brother Trig, August 2008.
Birth date	October 18, 1990 Wasilla, Alaska, U.S.
Residence	Anchorage, Alaska, U.S.
Parents	Sarah Palin Todd Palin
Relatives	4 siblings
Partner	Levi Johnston (2005–2009, 2010)
Children	Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston (b. 2008)
Alma mater	Juneau-Douglas High School West Anchorage High School Wasilla High School - (High school diploma, 2009)
Occupation	Spokesperson, professional speaker Her parents chose the name "Bristol" after the Bristol Inn where her mother had been employed; Bristol, Connecticut, the headquarters city of ESPN, where her mother had hoped to work as a sportscaster; and the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, where her father grew up.
Years	Season 11 (Fall 2010 with Mark Ballas) |after= current}}

Category:1990 births Category:Living people Category:American people of Native American descent Category:People from Wasilla, Alaska Category:American evangelicals Category:People associated with the United States presidential election, 2008 Category:Palin family Category:Sarah Palin Category:Dancing with the Stars (US TV series) participants

Mike Harmon (born January 24, 1958) is an American race car driver. Currently, he drives the #89 Lafferty Motorsports Ford in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. In the past, he drove in the NASCAR Slim Jim All Pro Series, finishing 8th in points in 1997. He has also racked up 300 feature wins in short-track competition during his racing career.

NASCAR career

Harmon made his NASCAR debut in 1996 driving the #24 MedPartners Chevrolet at South Boston Speedway, where he finished 31st after a transmission failure. He ran seven more races in the car that season, with a best finish of 23rd, but a sponsorship struggle caused his team to close down. He was scheduled to return to NASCAR in 1999, when he signed with Donlavey Racing to compete for NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year honors with Big Daddy's BBQ Sauce sponsoring. Unfortunately, Big Daddy's never paid, and Harmon was reportedly fired from the team during preparation for that year's Daytona 500 when he refused to let another driver try to get more speed out of the car.

In 2001, Harmon returned to the Busch Series, driving fourteen races for Mixon Motorsports in the #44 Pontiac Grand Prix. Driving mostly with sponsorship from Pegasus and Reliance Tool, his best finish was a 28th at Indianapolis Raceway Park, the only race he finished that year. He made an additional start for Moy Racing at Talladega Superspeedway, finishing 35th, and competed in two Craftsman Truck races for MB Motorsports and Troxell Racing, respectively. He made 25 starts for Mixon in 2002, with a best finish of 22nd at Daytona. The following season, he competed in a career-high total of 32 races, and finished seventeen of them. With a new team partner in Global Industrial Contractors and picking up sponsorship from The FanZ Car later in the season, Harmon had his first career top-twenty finish at IRP and finished 23rd in points.

GIC-Mixon switched to the #24 in 2004 and after the Aaron's 312, he was released from the team and replaced by Shane Hmiel. He made two more starts that season, his best finish being 33rd at Memphis Motorsports Park for Oostlander Racing. In 2005, Harmon and Oostlander purchased part of the assets of Innovative Motorsports and ran the first four races of the season in the #21 Global Pigeon Supply Chevrolet Silverado, before focusing mainly on ARCA racing. Harmon attempted a Busch Series race later in the year at Memphis for Bobby Norfleet, but did not qualify. Harmon returned to NASCAR in 2007, driving the #44/#48 car for Richardson-Netzloff Racing in the Busch Series. He made seven races with a best finish of 38th before handing the ride off to Jennifer Jo Cobb late in the season. He attempted a full season in the #84 Chevrolet fielded by the new Elite 2 Racing team in 2008. Harmon posted his best finish in the Nationwide Series to date, finishing 17th at the Aaron's 312. In 2009, Harmon started racing in his own #84 car and then took over the #07 Chevrolet for SK Motorsports. He would also start and park in his own #24 in four Camping World Truck Series races. For 2010, Harmon has run part-time in the Truck Series for both Lafferty Motorsports and Daisy Ramirez Motorsports.

Bristol Crash

Harmon is also famous for an incident at Bristol Motor Speedway in August 2002. Harmon was practicing his #44 car, when he crashed into the track's infield entry gate in Turn 2. The gate was improperly secured and swung open when Harmon crashed into it. Harmon's car then impacted the end of the concrete wall head-on. The impact was so violent, the car literally split in half. The remnants of the vehicle were then struck lightly by the car of Johnny Sauter, but he hit the half that Harmon was not sitting in. Harmon later walked away from the crash unharmed.

References

External links

arcaracing.com profile

Mike Harmon Racing Home Page

Category:1958 births Category:American racecar drivers Category:ARCA drivers Category:Living people Category:NASCAR drivers Category:NASCAR owners Category:People from Jefferson County, Alabama

Michael Curtis Waltrip (born April 30, 1963) is a semi-former professional race car driver and co owner of Michael Waltrip Racing. He is the younger brother of Darrell Waltrip, a three-time NASCAR champion, who is now retired. Waltrip is the winner of the 2001 Daytona 500 and the 2003 Daytona 500; he currently drives the 51 NAPA Toyota Camry, and the 55 Aaron's Toyota on a part time basis. He is also a commentator for SPEED TV's coverage of the Camping World Truck Series and is an analyst on the Showtime series "Inside NASCAR" along with Chris Myers, Brad Daugherty and Randy Pemberton.

Waltrip was born in Owensboro, Kentucky. He currently lives in Sherrills Ford, North Carolina. In the past, he has also raced in the Boston Marathon.

He appeared on the two-part April 30, 2009/May 7, 2009 episode of My Name is Earl entitled "Inside Probe."

Early racing career

Waltrip's stock-car career got off the ground in 1981, when he captured the Mini-Modified division track championship at Kentucky Motor Speedway. A year later, Waltrip entered the Goody's Dash Series, where he won the series championship in 1983 and was voted the circuit's most popular driver in 1983 and 1984.

Waltrip made his Cup debut in 1985 in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte driving for Dick Bahre. He finished 28th in that race and finished 57th in the series standings after just five starts.

1980s

sponsored Busch Series car after his accident at Bristol.]] In 1986, driving the #23 Hawaiian Punch car for Bahari Racing, Waltrip finished second in the Cup rookie of the year race to Alan Kulwicki on the strength of a pair of 11th-place finishes at Martinsville and Pocono. The following season, he posted his first career top-ten finish when he ended up tenth in the spring race at Martinsville Speedway. In 1988, Waltrip began running Busch Series events, making five starts for his brother Darrell's team. He took the checkered flag for the first time at Dover in his fourth start. In 1989, he had his first top-five finish in the #30 Country Time Lemonade/Kool Aid Pontiac.

Crash at Bristol Motor Speedway

For Waltrip, 1990 was memorable for a horrific crash at Bristol in the spring where he destroyed his Busch Series Pontiac. Waltrip, after making contact with Steve Grissom, hit the wall head on and the car collapsed into itself and disintegrated. Waltrip only suffered bruises in the incident. The accident was referenced in a 2008 NAPA Auto Parts commercial. Waltrip was signing die-cast replica cars when a fan showed up with pieces of the 1990 car crashed for Waltrip to sign.

1991–2000

In early race lineups he was referred to as "Mike Waltrip" or Darrell's little brother, it wasn't until 1991 that he began being referred to in racing lineups as Michael.

In 1991, he gained new sponsorship from Pennzoil and won the Winston Open, as well as his first two career pole positions. He came close to winning the 1991 Transouth 500 with the team but had an incident that put him out of the running. Waltrip would have to wait 10 more years to get his first win. He stayed with the Bahari team until the end of 1995, when he was replaced by rookie Johnny Benson. He joined Wood Brothers Racing to drive their #21 Citgo Ford. He won the 1996 edition of The Winston after capturing the last transfer spot in The Winston Open. After posting one top-five finish over a period of three years, and missing his first race since 1986 at the 1998 Dura Lube/Kmart 500, Waltrip departed the Woods at the end of 1998 to drive the #7 Philips Chevrolet for Mattei Motorsports, posting three top-ten finishes and ending that season 29th in points. The next season, Nations Rent replaced Philips as the sponsor & he moved up to twenty seventh in points but finished in the top-five once, causing him and the team to part ways at the end of the season.

Daytona 500 Winner

Waltrip was hired by Dale Earnhardt, Inc. to drive their new #15 NAPA Chevy entry. In his first race with the team, the 2001 Daytona 500, Waltrip broke a streak of 462 consecutive Cup races without a victory and won his first career points-paying Cup race. After the death of his boss Dale Earnhardt in a crash on the final lap of the aforementioned race, he did not have another top-ten finish until returning to Daytona for the Pepsi 400 (which was won by Dale Earnhardt Jr.), and finished 24th in the standings. The next season, he picked up his second career win at the Pepsi 400 at Daytona and moved up to fourteenth in the standings. Throughout 2003, he won a career-high two races including his second career Daytona 500, and ran in the top-five for most of the season before falling back to 15th in points. Of trivial note, Michael Waltrip won the first three races at Daytona on Fox (2001, 2003 Daytona 500; 2002 Pepsi 400) with Waltrip's brother Darrell in the broadcast booth.

In 2004, Waltrip went winless and dropped five spots in the standings. Despite one pole and seven top-tens in 2005, Waltrip announced he and sponsor NAPA would depart DEI to drive the #55 Dodge Charger for Bill Davis Racing. After the former #77 Jasper Motorsports team closed its doors at the end of 2005, Waltrip split unofficially from Davis and assumed the former Jasper team's owner's points in order to be guaranteed a spot in the first five races for the season. Running under the banner, Waltrip-Jasper Racing, the team would be used to set up Waltrip's new Toyota operation in 2007. Waltrip failed to qualify for the first time since 1998 at the Coca-Cola 600. He bought a slot from the #74 McGlynn Racing Dodge from Derrike Cope to drive in the race and to keep his streak of 262 consecutive races. Waltrip ended up missing three races total in 2006 and did not have a top-ten finish.

Driver/owner

Waltrip moved his NASCAR Nationwide Series team, Michael Waltrip Racing, full time for the 2007 season. He hired Dale Jarrett and David Reutimann to race in the three car operation. After the first round of qualifying for the 2007 Daytona 500, NASCAR inspectors found evidence in the engine manifold that Waltrip's team had used an illegal fuel additive. NASCAR confiscated the car, forcing Waltrip to move to a back-up for the Daytona 500. On February 14, 2007 NASCAR officials announced at a press conference the penalties that would be levied: Bobby Kennedy (Director of Competition for Michael Waltrip Racing) and David Hyder (Waltrip's Crew Chief) were removed from Daytona International Speedway, and suspended indefinitely. David Hyder was also fined $100,000 and was placed on a leave of absence, eventually to be released by the team in April. Michael Waltrip was docked 100 driver points and Buffy Waltrip (the team owner, also his wife) was docked 100 owner points. Waltrip's initial qualifying time was disallowed, but he was permitted to qualify by racing a backup car in his Gatorade Duel qualifying race for the Daytona 500. The Interim Crew Chief was announced as Scott Eggleston, who was Waltrip's former crew chief in 2001. After a 30th place finish in the Daytona 500, Waltrip became the first driver in series history to go into the second race of the season with a negative number of points (−27). Waltrip failed to qualify for the next eleven races following the Daytona 500, so he maintained his negative point total for almost 4 months. He qualified for the thirteenth race of the season at Dover and finished 28th, moving his point total above zero to 52 points.

On Saturday April 7, 2007 he fell asleep behind the wheel of his Toyota Land Cruiser which overturned and hit a utility pole. Michael crawled out from the car suffering only minor cuts. There was no Nextel Cup race held that weekend. He was charged with reckless driving and failing to report an accident.

After failing to qualify for the Pocono 500 in June, Waltrip bounced back the following week by finishing 10th at the Citizens Bank 400 in Michigan.

On October 6, 2007, Michael won the pole for the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, the first restrictor plate race to be run with the Car of Tomorrow. He finished 25th after a wreck, but bounced back the next week at Charlotte Motor Speedway with his second top-10 finish of the season.

2008

In 2008, Michael Waltrip Racing underwent a change following the disappointing 2007 campaign. Waltrip welcomed business owner Robert Kaufmann, owner/founder of the Fortress Investment Group and was made an equal partner and got more aid with real estate developer Johnny Harris buying into the team during the 2007 off-season. Former Cup owner Cal Wells was brought to MWR to oversee day-to-day operations. On February 10, 2008, Michael qualified second for the 50th running of the Daytona 500, which guaranteed him a second place start in the race. Waltrip started the race with "gold wheels" on his car in tribute to the golden anniversary of the Daytona 500; after the race the wheels were signed and sold to benefit NASCAR charities. After leading the first two laps, he was not a factor in the race and finished 26th. Waltrip finished second at New Hampshire's Lenox Industrial Tools 301. He made his 1,000th NASCAR touring series start at Atlanta in October. He is second to Richard Petty in most career starts spanning all of the top divisions in NASCAR.

2009

In early 2009, Waltrip announced that he would be sharing the #99 NNS Aaron's dream machine with David Reutimann and Scott Speed during the season. On May 25, 2009 Michael Waltrip scored his first win as an owner in Sprint Cup Series competition in the Coca-Cola 600, with David Reutimann winning the event.

In the 2009 season, Waltrip garnered two top ten finishes (Daytona and Talladega) He came within a few laps of winning his third Daytona 500 as he was moving forward when the race was called for rain. He ended up seventh.

On July 7, 2009 Waltrip announced he would be driving part-time in the 2010 season starting with the Daytona 500. Waltrip also announced Martin Truex Jr. will be joining Michael Waltrip Racing as the driver of the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota full time in 2010.

2010

In 2010, Waltrip announced that he is only racing at the Daytona 500 unless more sponsorship is found. Waltrip qualified 21st on Daytona Pole qualifying day. This was not fast enough to get in the race on speed, however. He then wrecked out of the first qualifying race. Waltrip was able to gain a spot in the starting grid when driver Scott Speed raced to make the 500 using his qualifying time in the second qualifying race, giving Waltrip the 43rd place starting position. He finished in a respectable 18th place. Since then, Michael has started the #55 Prism Motorsports entry at Bristol, finishing 41st. Waltrip qualified for the Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway and raced his way to the lead early, but wound up finishing 39th after "The Big One" on lap 84 of the race. It was announced in May that Waltrip will pilot the Toyota Sponsafier winning paint scheme on June 20 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA but failed to qualify. Waltrip also entered the 24 Hours of Spa, driving a Ferrari F430 GTE for Italian team AF Corse. He has raced a total of 3 races now in the FIA GT3 European series in the Ferrari F430GT2. Waltrip's team finished 5th overall and 3rd in class. Waltrip also ran the Amp Energy 500 in a Michael Waltrip Racing fielded #55 Toyota. Waltrip lead a handful of laps but finished 28th due to a last lap crash.

Controversies

In a race in the early 90s, Waltrip hit driver Dave Marcis. Waltrip was fined for his actions.

In 1995 at Michigan International Speedway, Waltrip also hit driver, Lake Speed. Waltrip hit Speed twice on national television, while Speed was strapped in his car. Waltrip was fined for his actions.

Waltrip had a much-publicized feud with Jeff Green, then driver of Petty Enterprises #43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge Charger in the early part of the 2005 season, which came to a head during races at Martinsville and Darlington, where Green and Waltrip wrecked each other on several occasions.

In the 2005 Sylvania 300, Waltrip wrecked Robby Gordon's #7 Jim Beam Chevrolet after the yellow flag had come out. The angered Gordon got out of his totaled car and threw his helmet at the #15 car as it was passing by. When TNT interviewed him about the crash he stated "You know Michael, everyone thinks Michael's just this great guy, but he's not the good guy he acts he is. The caution was out and he wrecked me; and so he's a piece of s*it." TNT apologized for the incident on both drivers' behalf, and both Gordon and Waltrip were required to meet with NASCAR officials after the race. Gordon was fined $50,000 and docked 50 drivers' points. Waltrip was also penalized, but the penalties were overturned on appeal. Gordon and Waltrip ultimately decided to auction the helmet for the benefit of the Harrah's Employee Relief Fund, a fund that provides aid to Harrah's employees displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Both drivers signed the helmet, which was purchased by GoldenPalace.com for $51,100.

In 2008 Waltrip was parked in a race in Richmond for his deliberate hit on Casey Mears.

In the 2008 Sharpie 500, an irate Clint Bowyer, who was involved in a wreck involving Waltrip, said "Michael Waltrip is the worst driver in NASCAR period! Could not believe NAPA (his primary sponsor) signed him back on!"

See also

Michael Waltrip Racing

This Week in NASCAR

References

External links

Michael Waltrip Challenge

Michael Waltrip official web site

Michael Waltrip profile from NASCAR.com

Coca-Cola Racing Family's Michael Waltrip profile

Stats at Racing-Reference.info

Michael Waltrip at Daytona 500 Racing

Category:1963 births Category:American Christians Category:American Speed Association drivers Category:Daytona 500 winners Category:Living people Category:Motorsport announcers Category:NASCAR drivers Category:NASCAR owners Category:People from Owensboro, Kentucky Category:Racecar drivers from Kentucky

Coordinates	21°50′20″N45°23′29″N
Name	Mark Ballas
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Mark Alexander Corky Ballas Junior
Born	May 24, 1986 Houston, Texas, USA
Genre	Pop/Rock
Occupation	Singer, dancer, guitarist
Years active	1999–present
Label	Hollywood Records
Associated acts	Julianne Hough Derek Hough
Url	Official Site

Mark Alexander Corky Ballas Jr. (born May 24, 1986) is an American performer. At a young age, he moved to London, in the UK, where he began his performing career. He remained in London until 2007, when he moved to the US.

Ballas is a professional ballroom dancer on the ABC program Dancing with the Stars. He began competing on the show in the fall of 2007. He is also a singer/songwriter/musician for the group Ballas Hough Band, where he composes the group's music, plays lead guitar and sings lead vocals.

Early life

Ballas was born in Houston, Texas, with family ties in Laredo, Texas. His paternal grandparents are George Charles Ballas and Maria Luisa Marulanda Ballas of Mexican, Spanish and Greek background. His parents are Corky Ballas and British-born Shirley Ballas (née Rich). Grandfather George Balls is the inventor of the Weed Eater lawn-trimming device.

At the age of 11, he earned a full time slot at the Academy, as well as earning a full scholarship to the college. In 2005, he was awarded "Performer of the Year". He then moved on to win championships at The British Open to the World, The US Open to the World and The International Open to the World. With his former partner Julianne Hough, he won the Junior Latin American Dance Championship and the gold medal at the Junior Olympics.

As a youth, Ballas was a member of a pop singing trio called "2B1G"(2 Boys 1 Girl"), along with Julianne Hough and Derek Hough.

Career

Acting

As an actor, Ballas played the lead role of Tony in the musical Copacabana and was the lead dancer in the UK national tour of the Spanish musical Maria de Buenos Aires. He was also the understudy for the role of Ritchie Valens in the UK national tour of Buddy, The Buddy Holly Story. In October 2008, Ballas made a guest appearance on the season premiere of Samantha Who. In September 2010, Ballas had a guest appearance on his former Dancing With the Stars partner Melissa Joan Hart's new series, Melissa & Joey.

Dancing with the Stars

On the fifth season of Dancing With The Stars, Ballas was partnered with Cheetah Girls star Sabrina Bryan. On October 30, 2007, the pair was voted off the show. Ballas' partner for Season 6 of Dancing With The Stars was Olympic Gold Medal-winning figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi. On August 25, 2008, ABC announced the cast of the seventh season of Dancing with the Stars, with Ballas paired with reality television star Kim Kardashian. They were the third couple eliminated, finishing in eleventh place, on September 30, 2008. For the eighth season of Dancing with the Stars, Ballas was paired with Olympic gold-medal winning gymnast Shawn Johnson, winning that season's competition on May 19, 2009. He was partnered with actress Melissa Joan Hart for the show's ninth season. They were voted off in week six and came in 9th place. For season 10, Ballas was partnered with actress Shannen Doherty. They were the first couple eliminated, on March 30, 2010. For season 11, Ballas was partnered with Bristol Palin, daughter of politician Sarah Palin. They made it to the finale and finished in third place.

Dancing with the Stars performances

With celebrity partner Sabrina Bryan (average: 27.0): With celebrity partner Melissa Joan Hart (average:21.2): {| class="wikitable" |- style="text-align: center; background:#ccc;" | rowspan="2"|Week # | rowspan="2"|Dance/Song | colspan="3"|Judges' score | rowspan="2"|Result |- style="text-align: center; background:#ccc;" | style="width:10%; "|Inaba | style="width:10%; "|Goodman | style="width:10%; "|Tonioli |- | rowspan="2" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|1 | rowspan="2" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Viennese Waltz/ "The Time of My Life"
Cha-Cha-Cha Relay/ "Centerfold" | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6 | rowspan="2" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Safe |- | colspan="3" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6 |- | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|2 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Jive/ "Long Tall Sally" | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|7 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6* | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" ||3 ||Samba/ "Turn Me On" ||6 ||6 ||7 ||Safe |- | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|4 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Charleston/ "Charleston" | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|9 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|9 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|10 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" ||5 ||Argentine Tango/ "Tango Barbaro" ||8 ||8 ||7 ||Safe |- | rowspan="2" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6 | rowspan="2" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Waltz/ "Only One Road"
Mambo Marathon/ "Ran Kan Kan" | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|7 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|7 | style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|6 | rowspan="2" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|Eliminated |- | colspan="3" style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;"|4 |- | colspan="6" style="font-size: 90%;" | * Due to Len Goodman's absence in week 2 the 6 was awarded by stand-in guest judge Baz Luhrmann. |}

With celebrity partner Shannen Doherty (average:19.0): {| class="wikitable" |- style="text-align: center; background:#ccc;" | rowspan="2"|Week # | rowspan="2"|Dance/Song | colspan="3"|Judges' score | rowspan="2"|Result |- style="text-align: center; background:#ccc;" | style="width:10%; "|Inaba | style="width:10%; "|Goodman | style="width:10%; "|Tonioli |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" ||1 ||Viennese Waltz/ "The Killing Moon" ||6 ||6 ||6 ||No Elimination |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" ||2 ||Jive/"Shake a Tail Feather" ||7 ||6 ||7 ||Eliminated |}

With celebrity partner Bristol Palin (average: 22.6):

{| class="wikitable" |- style="text-align: center; background:#ccc;" | rowspan="2"|Week # | rowspan="2"|Dance/Song | colspan="3"|Judges' score | rowspan="2"|Result |- style="text-align: center; background:#ccc;" | style="width:10%; "|Inaba | style="width:10%; "|Goodman | style="width:10%; "|Tonioli |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |1 |Cha-Cha-Cha/ "Mama Told Me (Not to Come)" |6 |6 |6 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |2 |Quickstep/"You Can't Hurry Love" |7 |8 |7 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |3 |Foxtrot/"Just the Way You Are" |6 |6 |7 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |4 |Rumba/"Umbrella" |6/4 |6/5 |6/5 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |5 |Jive/"(Theme From) The Monkees" |6 |6 |6 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |6 |Tango/"According To You" |8 |7 |8 |Safe/Encore |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |7 |Viennese Waltz/"Trouble" |9/8 |8 |8 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |8 |Argentine Tango/"Buttons"
Samba/"Mas Que Nada" |8
7 |8
8 |8
8 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |9 |Paso Doble/"Gimme More"
Waltz/"Mary Goes To Jesus" |9
8 |9
9 |9
9 |Safe |- style="text-align: center; background:#faf6f6;" |10 |Jive/"Move"
Freestyle/"Cell Block Tango"
Tango/"According to You"
Cha-Cha-Cha/"Raise Your Glass" |9
8
8
9 |9
9
9
9 |9
8
8
9 |THIRD PLACE |}

Week 4 - Double Score Showdown - Technique/Performance

Music

He began playing the guitar at age of 4, and at 12 began to write and perform his own music, playing guitar, drums, and bass. The Hough siblings and Ballas formed a pop music trio called 2B1G (2 Boys 1 Girl). With his friend Derek Hough, he formed the band Almost Amy, the name of which was later changed to the Ballas Hough Band. The other members of the band are singer Emily Grace, who plays flute, saxophone, and piano; Sam Marder, who plays bass; and Harry Sullivan, who plays drums.

References

External links

http://www.learning2dance.com

http://www.almost-amy.com/

Mark Ballas official Fan Site

Category:1986 births Category:Actors from Texas Category:American dancers Category:American male singers Category:American rock guitarists Category:American ballroom dancers Category:Dancing with the Stars (US TV series) participants Category:American people of Greek descent Category:American people of Spanish descent Category:American people of Mexican descent Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Houston, Texas Category:People from Houston, Texas Category:People from London

Coordinates	21°50′20″N45°23′29″N
Playername	Anne Hobbs
Country
Residence	New York, USA
Datebirth	August 21, 1959
Placebirth	Nottingham, England
Height	5' 6"
Weight	140 lbs
Plays	Right-handed
Careerprizemoney	$166,045
Singlesrecord	39 - 51
Singlestitles	2
Highestsinglesranking	No. 33 (30 November 1981)
Australianopenresult	4th (1987)
Frenchopenresult	4th (1983)
Wimbledonresult	4th (1981 & 1984)
Usopenresult	4th (1987)
Doublesrecord	71 - 45
Doublestitles	8
Highestdoublesranking	No. 6 (17 September 1984)
Grandslamsdoublesresults	yes
Australianopendoublesresult	F (1983)
Frenchopendoublesresult	SF (1983)
Wimbledondoublesresult	SF (1983)
Usopendoublesresult	F (1984)
Updated	25 March 2010

Anne Hobbs (born 21 August 1959 in Nottingham) is a British former professional tennis player.

Tennis career

Hobbs represented Great Britain in the Wightman Cup and Federation Cup from 1978 to 1989. She was ranked as the top British player for periods during her 12 year career and achieved a best WTA ranking of 33 in singles and 6 in doubles.

Although primarily a doubles specialist, reaching the final of the Australian Open in 1983 and the U.S. Open in 1984 with Wendy Turnbull and the Australian Open Mixed Doubles in 1983 with Andrew Castle, she won singles titles at Indianapolis in 1983 and in Auckland in 1985 and the British Closed in 1985.

Hobbs' industrious serve and volley game earned her singles victories over Virginia Wade, Rosie Casals, Jo Durie, Carling Bassett, and Zina Garrison, among other top ranked players of her time. She now works as a tennis coach and consultant in the area of sports psychology.

WTA Tour finals

Singles 2

{| class="wikitable" |- bgcolor="#efefef" |Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |- bgcolor="FFFF99" | bgcolor="FFA07A"|Runner-up | 1. | 25 January 1987 | Australian Open, Australia | Grass | Andrew Castle | Sherwood Stewart
Zina Garrison | 6-3, 6-7(5), 2-6 |}

References

ITF site

External links

Category:1959 births Category:Living people Category:British female tennis players Category:British tennis coaches Category:English expatriates in the United States Category:English tennis coaches Category:English tennis players Category:People from New York Category:People from Nottingham