Stories from Friday, April 24, 2009

The Fairgrounds Speedway at Nashville has carried on a strong tradition of being a "stepping stone" to the upper divisions of racing for 51 years. Drivers such as Bobby and Donnie Allison, Coo Coo Marlin, Bobby Hamilton, Bobby Hamilton Jr., Chad Chaffin, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the infamous Red Farmer have used the track to rise to stardom. There are too many drivers to list that raced at the Fairgrounds and rose to bigger and better things...

At 4 a.m. it will be a pleasant 64 degrees, the street lights will be vibrant and much of the city of Shelbyville will be resting easy. Not Brad McGee. The 26-year-old may have a knot in his stomach and wonder to himself, "What in the world am I about to do?"...

Thomas Vern 'Shorty' Yeager, 66, of Laws Hill, died Thursday at his home after an extended illness. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Lawrence Funeral Home, Chapel Hill, with the Rev. Gilley Andrews officiating. Burial will follow at Hopper Cemetery, Laws Hill. Visitation will begin at 5 p.m. Friday.

For users of Google Earth, large sections of Bedford County look sharper and more detailed, thanks to an update to the computing giant's imagery database. The popular program allows Internet users to "fly" anywhere in the world, utilizing satellite imagery, maps, as well as 3D terrain and buildings, letting the user explore mountain ranges and canyons, along with outer space...

Shelbyville Central didn't waste any time getting on the board, but things turned south after that as the Golden Eagles fell 2-1 to visiting Lincoln County in a huge District 8-AAA match Thursday on Senior Night. Less than a minute into the match, senior Jose Garcia drilled a shot into the back of the net to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead, but the Falcons closed out the first half with a pair of goals to take the lead for good...

Cascade softball assured themselves of finishing no lower than second in the District 9-A standings after a doubleheader sweep of visiting Middle Tennessee Christian on Thursday. The Orange and Black are settling into a groove after missing several days of diamond time in the previous weeks due to weather...

Jay Bishop, Kyle Saylor and Ryan Rippy combined for a two-hit shutout of Moore County as Cascade won 8-0 in Lynchburg on Thursday. Saylor (4-0) tossed four innings of no-hit baseball and struck out three. Rippy hurled a perfect seventh. After plating a run in the first, the Champions (27-1-1) put a three spot on the board in the second thanks in part to a two-run triple from Bishop...

Community's Viqueens spotted visiting Huntland a two-run lead through two innings before their offense exploded to post a well-played 5-2 win Thursday afternoon. "It was a good win," Community coach Libby Frost said. "I am proud of our kids for stepping up when it counted to beat a pretty good team."...

Tennessee Technology Center at Shelbyville held its General and Craft Advisory Council meetings Thursday night, with recognition of those involved in renovating the TTCS lobby, presentation of the distinguished alumnus award, and a guest speaker, Dr. Frederic Seifer, who discussed taking a proactive approach to health care...

A Shelbyville man died Wednesday after falling into the waters of Normandy Lake in Coffee County. Chad Partin, detective with the Coffee County Sheriff's Department, told the T-G that 79-year old Clyde Burks, of Shelbyville, and his wife were fishing in the upper part of the lake in the Riley Creek area when witnesses saw him first stand up, and then fall out of the boat...

The full state Senate voted 22-6 on Thursday to approve legislation that would ban texting while driving. The bill, SB 393, was sponsored by Republican State Sen. Jim Tracy, of Shelbyville. It prohibits sending or reading text messages on public roads and highways while the driver is operating a motor vehicle in motion...

A forum was hosted last Sunday about the Somali culture in an effort to educate the community about Shelbyville's newest residents. Leaders of the Somali community, along with El Centro Latino, Save Our Cumberland Mountains, Nashville Public Television and the Welcoming Tennessee Initiative, organized this event "to address the growing concerns and misunderstandings within the city."...

A man stopped early Wednesday on North Main Street because taillights on his car were inoperable faces multiple drug charges, Shelbyville police said. Substances including Lortab, Xanax, Ambian, Fiorecet and Keflex were found in a prescription bottle under the seat of a car operated by Sean Casey Cunningham, 19, of La Vergne, the police report indicates...

Shelbyville Central advanced six singles players and three doubles teams to the final day of competition on the individual portion of the District 8-AAA tournament. Varsity Boys Singles Kishan Patel (S) d. Emmett Deyung (Law) 8-0. Jordan Phelps (S) d. Zack Thompson (Col) 8-4...

Shelbyville Central's Golden Eaglettes were no-hit in a 10-0 loss at District 8-AAA leading Lincoln County on Thursday night. Senior Amber Russell started on the mound for the Eaglettes (5-15, 2-10 8-AAA) with freshman Alyssa Moore taking over in relief...

It's hard to find a parent who isn't shuttling a child from one event to another, from soccer practice to school, from school to church ... Stacie Barrett takes that limousine service a step further. For weeks now, she's been driving her 14-year-old son Cain up to Monteagle, where he has a role in Bear Hollow Dinner Theater's production "Twilight, Alaska."...

Funeral services for Kenneth Rumsey 'Slick' Lamb, 69, of Shelbyville, who died Thursday at Heritage Medical Center, will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Gowen-Smith Chapel. Bobby McGee will officiate and burial will follow in Smotherman Cemetery. Visitation with the family will be from 4 to 8 p.m. today...

Don 'Grumps' Melson, 82, of Shelbyville, died today at his home after an extended illness. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at Feldhaus Memorial Chapel with the Rev. Bobby McGee officiating. Burial, with full military honors, will follow at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens...

Webb's tennis teams ran into trouble versus East/Middle Region opponent University School of Nashville on Wednesday. The Feet (2-5, 0-3 East/Middle) lost 9-0, while the Lady Feet (6-1, 2-1) fell 6-3. Webb goes back to work at USN on Saturday at noon...

Cody Pierce's two-run single in the eighth inning provided the winning margin for Community in an 8-6 victory at Cornersville on Thursday night. With two runs on the board and the bases loaded, freshman pitcher Sammy Bryant came on in relief of Joseph Freebury in the bottom of the first. Bryant responded by tossing eight innings to pick up the 'W'. He walked five, gave up four hits and struck out two...