From Dana Plocheck:I apologize for the delay with the Trails but I have run into a technical problem and have been up all night trying to fix it and not having any luck. I will get the Trails posted as soon as I can get the problem fixed.

Thanks for your patience.

From Richard Knight:
Here is what the 1983 TICC Champion Paul Brian is doing for his Thanksgiving:

While most of us will be spending Thanksgiving eating overly generous portions of food, watching football, lounging around with family & friends, checking out the Black Friday sale flyers from the newspaper, and generally kicking back, WLS-AM's Paul Brian will be having an extremely different experience. Paul Brian will be spending his Thanksgiving with some of brave fighting forces in Afghanistan.

This Friday, Paul Brian leaves Chicago to fly across the globe and spend ten days embedded with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Afghanistan. From there, Brian will be calling in to WLS-AM's "Roe Conn Show with Richard Roeper" on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday next week -- maybe more depending on on connection & signal strength while in that country. He will also be blogging, telling the stories of the men & women working hard there, as well as his own experiences while embedded with the troops. His blogs will be on the WLS-AM website, as well as on ArmyStrongStories.com. http://www.armystrongstories.com/ 

He will be there as a radio journalist & blogger to help embrace our troops' narrative and tell their story to the masses. Brian said the he wants to "let them know that while it's easy to say that we support them back home, that some of us are willing to go there to find out what it's like -- beyond what we see in the news -- and then tell as many people as I can what I saw." This is his gift to them, along with his way of giving thanks to these soldiers on Thanksgiving.

Brian knows this will not be an easy trip, and that is not what he is looking for. He will spend two days in Bagram, followed by a trip to Ghazni with the famous 187th "Rakkasan" combat brigade, which is followed by some time spent with Task Force White Eagle, manned primarily with Polish troops who are being assisted by eighteen Illinois National Guardsmen. On top of all that, he will be lucky enough to spend a day shadowing Major General John Campbell, the commanding General of the 101st Airborne (Air Assault) Division.

Outside of WGN-TV's Tom Negovan, no other Chicago broadcaster has been given this rare and wonderful opportunity to experience our troops in Afghanistan from the inside. This is a rarity for any civilian, Chicago broadcaster or otherwise.

His radio show "Drive Chicago" has been named the best automotive program in the country by the International Automotive Media Association twice. He won two Emmy Awards for production of specials that aired on Chicago television for the Chicago Auto Show. He was made a lifetime member of the Sports Car Club of America, and in 2008, Brian was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from The Legends of Motorsport Guild. Last year, Brian was proudly inducted into the Motorsport Hall of Fame.

Not only is Paul Brian a veteran broadcaster and automotive enthusiast, but also a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving his country toward the end of the Vietnam War, right after leaving college. When he can, Brian still actively participates in U.S. Army events and projects, including jumping out of an airplane with the US Army Golden Knights Parachute Team in August 2009, and putting together a benefit CD with Joe Cantafio called "Soldiers Christmas Project." He sits on an advisory board for the Chicago Battalion of the United States Army Recruiting Command (USAREC) and also serves on the Illinois Board of Directors of Operation Homefront.

Regarding his Thanksgiving wishes for this year, Paul Brian told CRM that he would simply ask that everyone should try to "keep our GIs in their thoughts and prayers when they're saying their Thanksgiving grace."

Here's hoping everybody has a great Weekend!