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While the big league NASCAR world travels south to Homestead, Florida, from Charlotte to crown a national champion, the stock car short trackers are migrating east. From all corners of the grassroots racing world, trailers and tow trucks pulling late-model race cars are headed to Myrtle Beach Speedway for the annual Myrtle Beach 400 in South Carolina. Its an event that signifies the end of the season for many of NASCARs home track racers.Among those pilgrims will be the racer with the Kid N Play fade and his friend with the partially shaved head. Their trip to Myrtle Beach started more than a year ago, a road thats carried them around bullring racetracks, through cancer wards and, they hope, ultimately into Victory Lane.Im so excited about this weekend I cant hardly stand it, Erika Newcome said Tuesday evening.The 21-year-old had just walked out of class at Akron University in Ohio, where shes a fourth-year public relations major. She was heading home to pack, load her car, and make the seven-hour drive to Mooresville, North Carolina, There shed meet up with her friend to carry on toward Myrtle Beach.I cant believe everything that Dylan has done for me since we first met, she said. And I cant wait to get back to a racetrack with him.Dylan is Dylan Smith, aka Black Mamba, the 24-year-old racer who most recently created a social media buzz among NASCAR fans by winning the highly coveted Best Costume honors at Tony Stewarts annual Halloween party.He was dressed as Halle Barrys Catwoman.I told yall I wasnt messing around this year, and that trophy looks oh so good on my mantel. @halleberry ???? #HappyHalloween pic.twitter.com/OEuGiddQrP- Black Mamba (@DylanSmith34) October 27, 2016Erika and Dylan met on Oct. 21, 2015 -- at a racetrack, naturally.Newcome was a late-model racer from Columbus, Ohio, the daughter of a short tracker who, inspired by her trips to Columbus Motor Speedway, started driving her own racing machines at the age of 8. By 2015 she was voted that speedways Most Popular Driver.Smith was a resident of Concord, North Carolina, by way of Randolph, Vermont, where he landed after being adopted out of his native Haiti. He too loved his local racetrack, Thunder Road SpeedBowl in Barre, Vermont, and convinced his adopted father to buy him a go-kart at the age of 4.After wins at tracks scattered all over the American map, Newcome and Smith met in a hotel lobby in southeastern Virginia. Both were there as invited participants in NASCARs Drive For Diversity Combine, an annual talent-scouting event held at the legendary Langley Speedway, a four-tenths mile oval strikingly similar to Newcomes Columbus track.It was the night before we went to the track and there were 23 of us there. A lot of them had been to the combine before. I hadnt and I was really nervous, Newcome recalls. Dylan had done it before and he noticed I was being kind of quiet, and he immediately started talking to me. I was so relieved.At that combine orientation meeting, she was equally relieved to see that the nameplates for the assigned seats in the classroom had her sitting next to Smith. What she didnt know at the time was that hed switched those plates around to ensure that theyd be paired up.We just hit it off immediately, Smith says. I think what we know now is that our instant friendship wasnt just a coincidence.Racers are driven people by nature, but their business is one built on rejection; no is a constant answer, whether from a potential sponsor, a car owner, a would-be car owner or even a loan officer. The Drive For Diversity program is designed to help young racers step out of the shadows, but what happens past that initial push is up to the individual.Smith finished out 2015 but had trouble landing a ride for 16. Hes taken jobs working with other teams, doing everything from building race cars for other drivers to using his significant social media skills to help those teams with their PR efforts.Newcome went back to Ohio and resumed racing, but she couldnt shake a nagging pain in her shoulders. In August 2015 she had crashed into a wall at Columbus, dislocating her right shoulder and tearing her labrum. It seemed odd, though, because the wreck wasnt that hard. In fact, shed kept running and finished the race. And why was her left shoulder hurting, too? The next spring, during a visit to her orthopedist, she was about to leave but asked one last question about an odd-looking blood vessel in her neck. He sent her to have it checked out via ultrasound. On May 18, it was identified as a blood clot, odd for a just-turned 21-year-old.On June 2, 2016, Newcome was told that she had masses in almost every organ of her body. She was suffering from Stage 4 sarcoma, a cancer that aggressively attacks the bodys soft tissues.Now that were looking back on it, what sarcoma damages are things like your muscles, Newcome explains. So thats why my labrum tore so easily. I had been weakened and didnt know.She immediately began treatments that have continued to this day: chemotherapy, an immunotherapy drip and blood thinners to battle the clot. Shes doing it all while also being a full-time college student. When the chemo started thinning her hair on one side, she shaved only that side, leaving longer blonde locks on the other. But its the blood thinners that dont allow her to race, as thinned, freer-flowing blood makes racing too risky. For a moment last month it appeared as through that might no longer be an issue, but the clot returned and so did the thinner.Being in school gives me normalcy, she says. I really feel pretty normal. But cancer is all anyone can talk about. Its all anyone can see when they look at me. Thats hard. But Ive come to peace with it. Still, thats what makes encouraging talks and phone calls and texts so important. At my low points, I always hear from Dylan and he always knows just what to say. He always says we because were in this together.Really excited for this weekend, @dylonwilson really hooked it up with the @AmericanCancer & @WendellScott_34! #FearTheFade #CancerSucks pic.twitter.com/XAC508wmEO- Black Mamba (@DylanSmith34) November 16, 2016Last month Smiths call was even more enthusiastic than normal. Hed been kicking around an idea for a while and it was starting to come together. While Dylan had been encouraging Erika during her treatment, shed been returning the favor, pumping him up during a summer when he hadnt turned a single competitive lap on the racetrack.I havent raced all year and its driven me crazy, Smith said earlier this week, en route to work. So I thought, if Im going to race only once this season, then Im going to make it count.He secured a late-model car he could race from one of his employers, racer Travis Millers father Matt and team co-owner Chris Florian. Then he went looking for support. He used LinkedIn to track down the national marketing director of the American Cancer Society, who just so happened to be looking for ways to reach out to blue-collar cancer victims about services such as its transportation-to-appointments program.Smith also reached out to the Wendell Scott Foundation, run by the family of the late NASCAR Hall of Famer. Wendell Scott, the only African-American to win a NASCAR Cup Series event, is Smiths hero and the family has become one of his biggest supporters. Scott died in 1990, killed by cancer.Smith set up a GoFundMe page titled Beating Cancer 1 Lap At A Time, promising donors that any money raised and all winnings from the Myrtle Beach 400 would be split between the American Cancer Society and an account to help pay Newcomes mounting medical bills.I couldnt believe it when he told me what he was doing, she said Tuesday night. But thats Dylan. Thats the kind of person he is. Hes so unselfish and hes so positive. I knew I had to go with him this weekend. Just being back at a racetrack again, theres no more positive atmosphere than the racetrack. And working with the American Cancer Society to let people know about sarcoma. This is all the best medicine I could possibly think of.On Thursday, the dude with the fade and the girl with the half-shaved head traveled east toward Myrtle Beach on a mission. In the front seat were two reunited friends. Behind them was a towed late-model race car, painted baby blue with a big white 34 on the side. Its modeled after the rides of Wendell Scott. The duo racing it will do so fueled by one of Scotts favorite sayings.Wendell always said, When it gets too tough for everyone else, its just right for me, Smith explained. That sounds like my friend Erika right there.Nike Air Max Rea Sverige . -- Aaron Murray threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns, ran for another score, and led No. Nike Air Max 720 Sverige .C. -- Chris Thorburn thinks one of the reasons the Winnipeg Jets have been successful under new coach Paul Maurice is that theyre playing together as a team. http://www.reaairmaxsverige.com/air-max-1-rabatt.html .Y. -- Injured Buffalo Sabres forward Marcus Foligno did not practice with the team Monday and head coach Ron Rolston said its unlikely hell play in Wednesdays season opener in Detroit. Nike Air Max 2020 Rea . The 19-year-old Olsen played 34 games with the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL this season. In that time, hes recorded 17 goals and 17 assists with 36 penalty minutes. Nike Air Max 270 Sverige . PETERSBURG, Fla.CHICAGO - Marian Hossa and the Chicago Blackhawks were well aware theyd been playoff underachievers since they captured the Stanley Cup in 2010. Now, theyre eyeing another championship. And they just took an important step toward it. Hossa scored twice to back a strong effort by goalie Corey Crawford, and Chicago beat the Minnesota Wild 5-1 Thursday night to win the first-round playoff series 4-1. The Blackhawks will face either San Jose or Detroit, if the Red Wings get past Anaheim, in the next round. "We knew we hadnt done it in two years," Hossa said. "Minnesota, they still have a great team and are missing some players. We found a way. Now we get ready for the next round." The way the Blackhawks have dominated, anything less than a trip to the Stanley Cup finals would be a disappointment for them. They got off to a record start and captured the Presidents Trophy for finishing with more points than any other team. Now, theyre eyeing the biggest prize of all. And after bowing out in the first round the past two years, they sure are looking good. Even so, coach Joel Quenneville insisted they need to step it up a notch. "Its not the regular season," he said. "Theres another appetite that weve got to get as well. I dont think we should be happy where were at with our play. Lets get angry as we go along here." Hossa scored off a feed from Jonathan Toews late in the first period. Marcus Kruger made it 2-0 with a wraparound early in the second, and Hossa chased the Wilds Josh Harding when he knocked in a rebound minutes later. Then, after Torrey Mitchell scored for Minnesota, Chicagos Andrew Shaw scored against Darcy Kuemper. Patrick Sharp added his fifth goal of the series early in the third period, and that was more than enough for Crawford. Coming off his second career playoff shutout, he saved 21 shots, and his performance in this series went a long way toward winning over a fan base wondering if he had the makeup to succeed in the post-season. After all, he let in some bad goals against Phoenix a year ago. "Im not the only guy in the league thats given up soft goals in the playoffs," Crawford said. "You guys like to keep telling me about it, but its something youre trying to learn from and trying to make yourself better from it." The Blackhawks became the third team to advance in this post-season, along with San Jose and Ottawa. They also bucked a recent trend of early exits for Presidents Trophy winners. The team with the most regular-season points had been eliminated in the first round in three of the previous four years. The Wild were hoping to replicate what the Los Angeles Kings did last year and win the Stanley Cup as the eighth seed, but the Blackhawks simply had too much skill, speed and depth. The Wild were also short-handed after losing one of their top scorers in Dany Heatley to season-ending left shoulder surgery late in the season. They also had to get by without goalie Niklas Backstrom after he suffered a leg injury in warm-ups before Game 1. That forced the Wild to go with Harding, who played in just five games during the regular season after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis last suummer.dddddddddddd "It was a kind of a curveball there, but I thought Josh played very well. I was very happy for him and way that he handled everything," the Wilds Matt Cullen said. Harding also got banged up in this series. He left Game 4 after a collision with Toews in which his legs got straddled around the left goal post, and he wasnt sharp in this one, allowing three goals on 18 shots even though he was deemed well enough to start. Coach Mike Yeo turned to Kuemper after Hossas second goal. He also insisted the injury in Game 4 wasnt a factor in Hardings performance in this one. "It wasnt," Yeo said. "I dont want to pin this loss on Josh, either. Credit them and their team." There was also a question about Yeos job security after this loss. The Wild were widely considered Stanley Cup contenders after they gave free agents Zach Parise and Ryan Suter identical 13-year, $98 million contracts last summer. But they never quite lived up to expectations. "I cant answer that," Yeo said. "All I can say is if you want to look at it objectively, statistically, if you really want to look at it properly, then thereve been a lot of improvements in our organization and our team. I feel that were going in the right direction." For a moment, the Wild looked like they might get back into this one. Moments after Minnesotas Jared Spurgeon hit the right post, Mitchell ripped a one-timer past Crawford midway through the second period. But Shaw answered 35 seconds later with his first career playoff goal when he swept the puck in from a bad angle just to the right of the net, making it 4-1. As for Crawford, there was some debate in Chicago over whether he or Ray Emery should be the No. 1 goalie in the playoffs. Both were terrific during the regular season. Emerys lower body injury ended the discussion, and Crawford was nothing but solid in this series. "Hes making saves that he needs to make and hes making saves that he shouldnt be making," Sharp said. "When he does that, it breeds confidence throughout the lineup and it filters through everybody." He even had the fans chanting his name at several points. For example, when Crawford stopped a routine shot by Jason Pominville from the wing and scrambled back toward the middle of the net for a neat pad save against Mikko Koivu on the rebound. That foiled another power play by the Wild after they went 0 for 15 in the first four games. "I definitely heard (the chants)," Crawford said. "Its nice. It was a good feeling. Theyve been hard on me at times this year, obviously, but thats a part of it. They want the best. They expect us to be at our best. Its only fair." Notes: Blackhawks C Dave Bolland and Emery remain sidelined by lower body injuries, although Quenneville said theyre "real close." Bolland said its 50-50 he would have been able to play if "it was do or die" for the Blackhawks, but he expects to be ready in the next round. ... Quenneville moved ahead of Mike Keenan and took sole possession of second place on the Blackhawks playoff wins list with 34. Billy Reay is the club record-holder with 57 from 1963-77. ' ' '