Texas Station to stage benefit for injured Trickle

      The Texas Station will rock this evening.
      All on the behalf of Chris Trickle.
      The 24-year-old Las Vegas native, a popular driver NASCAR Southwest Tour driver, continues to recover from a bullet wound to the brain he suffered on Feb. 9 while driving his convertible on Blue Diamond Road near Interstate 15.
      Trickle, who continues to be hospitalized at University Medical Center, has had his condition upgraded to serious.
      "He's still about the same as he was a couple of weeks ago," Trickle's father, Chuck Trickle, said Wednesday. "It looks like he's improving, but it's still kind of a week-to-week thing. He's being well taken care of and he looks better than he looks bad."
      As Trickle's medical expenses mount, a benefit concert at the Texas Station has been scheduled tonight at 8.
      The Unplugged Benefit Concert will last for around an hour and a half. Scheduled to appear are Lisa Stewart of The Nashville Network's "This Week In Country Music," Branscombe Richmond of the "Renegade" television series, country stars Brady Seals, Richard Sterben, Mark Collie and John Hiatt; rock stars Peter Cetera, Vince Neal, and Matt and Gunnar Nelson; and television stars John Amos and Jeannie Cooper.
      Two additional fund-raisers also are scheduled.
      Winston Cup stars Dale Jarrett and Brett Bodine, scheduled to appear in Sunday's Las Vegas 300 Busch Grand National Series race, head a group of driving stars who will meet fans and sign autographs beginning at 7:30 p.m.
      Following the show, at around 9:30, a live auction of NASCAR memorabilia will be held. A silent auction also will be held throughout the evening.
      "The support has been absolutely tremendous," said Chuck Trickle, who spends around 13 hours a day at the hospital keeping watch over his son. "It's been kind of a pilgrimage."
      Trickle said he's planning on attending the weekend's activity at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, beginning with a celebrity Legends race Friday night. On Saturday night, he'll venture back into his son's pit area to assist Sean Monroe, the Southwest Tour points leader who will drive Trickle's car in the Nevada 200 Southwest Tour event.
      "Sean is not only a great driver, but a great friend of our family," Chuck Trickle said. "It's appropriate that he be the driver."
      Today, Chuck Trickle is eagerly anticipating a visit from his brother Dick Trickle, a NASCAR Winston Cup veteran also entered in the Las Vegas 300.
      "It'll be nice to see him," Chuck Trickle said. "We'll have a nice family visit and take some family photos. We're looking forward to it."
      -- LVMS SCHEDULE -- Following is the schedule for the Las Vegas 300:
      -- Today: Busch Series practice laps, 11 a.m.-noon; 12:30-5 p.m.
      -- Friday: Busch Series practice laps, 9 a.m.-10 a.m. Southwest Tour practice laps, 10:45-11:45 a.m. Busch Series qualifying, 2 p.m. Southwest Tour practice, 3:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m.
      -- Saturday: Busch Series practice, 10-10:45 a.m. Southwest Tour qualifying, 12:30 p.m. Busch series qualifying (second round), 2 p.m. Southwest Tour qualifying race, 4 p.m. Busch Series practice laps, 5-6 p.m.; Southwest Tour Nevada 200, 8 p.m.
      -- Sunday: NASCAR Busch Series Las Vegas 300, 1 p.m.
      -- ODD BEHAVIOR -- The favorites for the Las Vegas 300 issued by the Imperial Palace are as follows:
      Dale Jarrett, 2-1; Terry Labonte, 7-2; Bobby Labonte, 4-1; Jimmy Spencer, 5-1; Michael Waltrip, 7-1; Todd Bodine, 8-1, and Randy Lajoie, 9-2. Dick Trickle is listed at 30-1 and the field is 12-1.
      -- MORE LVMS -- The top two drivers in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series standings, and three of the top five, are entered in the Las Vegas 300.
      Jarrett, winner of Sunday's Cup event in Atlanta, is the points leader. Second-place driver Terry Labonte and fifth-place driver Bobby Labonte also are entered.
      -- SPENCER FOR HIRE -- Very few drivers entered in the Las Vegas 300 have experience on the 1.5-mile LVMS superspeedway tri-oval.
      Jimmy Spencer is one, but he's not concerned.
      "I've always seemed to fare pretty well on tracks that are new to me," he said. "I guess it goes back to my Modified days. Back then, I won on two or three tracks the first time I ran them."
      Spencer said he's heard the LVMS superspeedway is similar to the Michigan International Speedway, but a little shorter.
      "Michigan is one of my favorite tracks," he said, "so I'm looking forward to Las Vegas."
     
      John Katsilometes' motor sports notes are published Thursday. He may be reached at 360-3727 or by fax at 383-4676.