Tips for Good Trainers

Tips for Good Trainers

Things to Consider When Training Your Dog

It’s time to begin training your dog, great! There are a few things to keep in mind though when beginning to train your pooch.

The first thing is to remember is your tone! Dogs may not understand languages but they do know sounds and tones. If you are happy and use a silly voice, this tells your animal that all is good and will probably respond to you. BUT if you use an angry or monotoned sound, they may run away or not even respond.

Next is to use lots and lots of treats, they like foods and snacks. It’s just like at work, when you do well its wonderful to receive high praise or even a bonus. Dogs are the same, the more your praise and give treats, the more likely they will do the command over and over to get tasty stuff.

There are so many things to keep in mind but probably the most important aspect to remember is to do the training every day. When doing something every day, it becomes a habit and a routine, like brushing your teeth, as a child you were ingrained to always brush your teeth in the morning and at night which became a routine for you. Same with animals, doing something every day and sometimes several times a day will help teach your dog to do the command.

For more information and all the tips and tricks on getting your dog to start training, check out the full article the American Kennel Club has on their website.

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Basic Crepes

Basic Crepes

Basic Crepes

Photo by Getty Images

Basic Crepes Recipe from allrecipes

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serving size: 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ cup milk
  • ½ cup water
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
woman frying blini in home kitchen - crepes recipe stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images
Photo by Getty Images

Directions

  1. Prepare the Batter:
    • In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, water, and salt. Gradually add the flour and melted butter, whisking vigorously until the batter is smooth.
    • Tip: Alternatively, you can combine all ingredients in a blender and process in short bursts until smooth.
  2. Cook the Crêpes:
    • Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium-high heat.
    • Pour approximately 1/4 cup of batter onto the pan. Tilt the pan in a circular motion to spread the batter evenly across the surface.
    • Cook until the top of the crêpe is no longer wet and the bottom turns light brown, about 1 to 2 minutes.
    • Run a spatula around the edge of the crêpe to loosen it, then flip and cook the other side until light brown, about 1 minute more.
  3. Serve Hot:
    • Serve the crêpes immediately. Top with fresh cream, mixed berries, or your favorite fillings.
crepes with fresh berries, chocolate sauce and powdered sugar - crepes with berries stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images
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Friends say Army captain killed in midair collision was a ‘brilliant and fearless’ patriot

Friends say Army captain killed in midair collision was a ‘brilliant and fearless’ patriot

By MICHAEL R. SISAK and LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. Army captain who died in Wednesday’s midair collision of a Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines jet was “brilliant and fearless” and “meticulous in everything she did,” friends and fellow soldiers said.

Capt. Rebecca M. Lobach was identified by the Army Saturday as one of three soldiers killed in the crash near Reagan National Airport just outside Washington, D.C. In all, 67 people died, including the jet’s 60 passengers and 4 crew members.

Lobach, of Durham, North Carolina, had served as an Army aviation officer since July 2019, earning an Army commendation medal and an achievement medal after graduating from the University of North Carolina as a distinguished military graduate in the top 20% of ROTC cadets nationwide, her family said.

Last month, she escorted fashion designer Ralph Lauren at the White House when he was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

USA Today White House correspondent Davis Winkie trained with Lobach in the University of North Carolina ROTC program. They were in the same training platoon at Fort Knox, Kentucky, in 2018, and were friends ever since.

“Rebecca was brilliant and fearless, a talented pilot and a PT stud,” Winkie wrote in a social media post, using an abbreviation for physical training.

In a statement released by the Army, Lobach’s family said she had more than 450 hours of flight time and earned “certification as a pilot-in-command after extensive testing by the most senior and experienced pilots in her battalion.”

The Army released the names of the two other Black Hawk soldiers on Friday, but withheld Lobach’s name until Saturday at the request of her family. Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Georgia, was the crew chief. Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Maryland, was a pilot.

Lobach “was a patriot, she loved her country,” her close friend, Sam Brown, told WNCN-TV.

Lexi Freas credited Lobach’s mentorship for inspiring her to become an aviation officer in the District of Columbia National Guard.

“Not only did she care about being a leader and being the best officer she could, but also about being the best pilot she could,” Freas told the Raleigh, North Carolina, station.

Another friend, Sabrina Bell, said Lobach “was meticulous in everything she did, she never did anything half-heartedly, she never did anything impulsively.”

Lobach’s family noted that she served as a certified sexual harassment/assault response and prevention victim advocate and hoped to become a physician when she got out of the Army.

“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Rebecca. She was a bright star in all our lives. She was kind, generous, brilliant, funny, ambitious and strong. No one dreamed bigger or worked harder to achieve her goals,” the statement said.

“We request that you please respect our privacy as we grieve this devastating loss,” Lobach’s family added.

After the crash, President Donald Trump blamed the helicopter for flying at too high an altitude, saying: “You had a pilot problem from the standpoint of the helicopter. I mean, because it was visual, it was very clear night.”

The remarks, combined with Trump’s rant about diversity initiatives in the air traffic controller ranks, only added to social media speculation, misinformation and vitriol about the makeup of the Black Hawk crew. No evidence has emerged that diversity rules factored into the collision.

Former military recruiter Bilal Kordab told WRAL-TV that Lobach was kind, intelligent and “put so much pressure on herself to be the best of the best and go the extra mile.”

Before transferring to the University of North Carolina, Lobach played Division III college basketball at the University of The South.

Winkie said he and Lobach were both latecomers to the ROTC program “and quickly bonded over being the new kids on the block.”

One day, while at Fort Knox learning about different Army officer career paths, Winkie said he and Lobach happened upon a small helicopter called a MH-6 Little Bird.

Winkie, who is 6-foot-6 (2 meters) tall, said Lobach — listed at 5-foot-7 (1.7 meters) in her college basketball days — smiled mischievously at him and asked: “Think we can both fit?”

“I’ll be damned if we didn’t somehow stuff ourselves into that cockpit,” Winkie wrote in a tribute to Lobach on X, formerly known as Twitter. “My neck hurt, and I don’t think we would’ve been able to fly it very well, but we were both beaming in the selfie she took.”

Winkie wrote that soon after Wednesday’s crash he texted Lobach, asking: “you good?” He said he didn’t realize until the next day that the message hadn’t gone through.

___

Sisak reported from New York.

Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, handlers say, predicting 6 more weeks of wintry weather

Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, handlers say, predicting 6 more weeks of wintry weather

By TASSANEE VEJPONGSA and MARK SCOLFORO Associated Press

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow Sunday and predicted six more weeks of wintry weather, his top-hatted handlers announced to a raucus, record-sized crowd at Gobbler’s Knob in Pennsylvania.

Phil was welcomed with chants of “Phil, Phil, Phil,” and pulled from a hatch on his tree stump shortly after sunrise before a member of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club read from a scroll in which he boasted: “Only I know — you can’t trust A.I.”

The woodchuck’s weather forecast is an annual ritual that goes back more than a century in western Pennsylvania, with far older roots in European folklore, but it took Bill Murray’s 1993 “Groundhog Day” movie to transform the event into what it is today, with tens of thousands of revelers at the scene and imitators scattered around the United States and beyond.

When Phil is deemed to have not seen his shadow, that is said to usher in an early spring. When he does see it, there will be six more weeks of winter.

The crowd was treated to a fireworks show, confetti and live music that ranged from the Ramones to “Pennsylvania Polka” as they awaited sunrise and Phil’s emergence. Gov. Josh Shapiro, local and state elected officials and a pair of pageant winners were among the dignitaries at the scene.

Self-employed New York gingerbread artist Jon Lovitch has attended the event for 33 years.

“I like the cold, you know, and this is probably the best and biggest midwinter party in the entire world,” Lovitch said in Punxsutawney. “And it’s just a really good time.”

Phil has predicted a longer winter far more often than an early spring, and one effort to track his accuracy concluded he was right less than half the time. What six more weeks of winter means is subjective.

Tom Dunkel, president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, says there are two types of people who make the trek to Gobbler’s Knob: the faithful seeking to validate their beliefs and the doubters who want to confirm their skepticism.

Phil communicated his forecast to Dunkel through “Groundhog-ese” with the help of a special cane that Dunkel has inherited as the club’s leader. It’s not as if he speaks in English words.

“He’ll like wink, he’ll purr, he’ll chatter, he’ll — you know — nod,” Dunkel said.

Attendance is free but it cost $5 to take a bus and avoid a 1 mile (1.6 kilometer) trek from the middle of town to the stage where the prediction was made, some 80 miles (123 kilometers) northeast of Pittsburgh. The need for so many buses is why the local schools, where the sports mascot is the Chucks, close when Groundhog Day falls on a weekday.

Keith Post, his wife and a friend have watched the “Groundhog Day” movie in each of the past five years and decided this was the time to make the trip from Ohio to witness the event.

“We booked rooms almost a year in advance and we’re here,” Post said. “We’re doing it.”

A new welcome center opened four years ago and the club is working on an elaborate second living space for Phil and family so they can split time between Gobbler’s Knob and Phil’s longtime home at the town library. The club also put up large video screens and more powerful speakers this year to help attendees in the back of the crowd follow the proceedings.

“It’s a holiday where you don’t really owe anyone anything,” said A.J. Dereume, who among the club’s 15-member inner circle serves as Phil’s handler and held him up to loud cheers on Sunday. “You’re grasping onto the belief, you know, in something that’s just fun to believe in.”

Jackie Handley agreed a year ago to visit Punxsutawney for the first time to help a friend check off an item on their bucket list. They were ready for the subfreezing temperatures.

“It’s once in a lifetime — we’re probably not going to come back. And we have tons of warm clothes,” said Handley, who lives in Falls Church, Virginia.

After the forecast was made, club members and Phil posed for photos with people from the crowd.

Phil has a wife, Punxsutawney Phyllis, and two pups born this spring, Shadow and Sunny, although his family did not join him on stage for the big event. The groundhog family eats fruits and vegetables, get daily visits from Dereume and sees a veterinarian at least once a year.

The club’s lore is that Phil is the same woodchuck who has been issuing weather forecasts for the past century, thanks to an “elixir of life” that keeps him immortal.

“There’s only one Phil, and it’s not something that can be handed down,” Dunkel said. “Just like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny, there’s only one.”

There have been Groundhog Day events in at least 28 U.S. states and Canadian provinces. In Pennsylvania, groundhogs predicted more winter Sunday in Mount Joy, Dover, York, Lebanon County and Lancaster County’s Manheim Township. But at the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge in Quarryville, Octoraro Orphie was said to predict spring is on the way.

In Georgia, about 50 miles (81 kilometers) southeast of Atlanta in Jackson, a groundhog named “General Beauregard Lee” saw his shadow, his handlers declared, meaning six more weeks of winter. It was said that Shubenacadie Sam at a wildlife park in Nova Scotia, Canada, also saw her shadow and predicted six more weeks of winter.

___

Vejpongsa reported from Punxsutawney. Scolforo reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Homemade Lasagna

Homemade Lasagna

Homemade Lasagna

Photo by Getty Images

Homemade Lasagna Recipe from Delish

Prep time: 1 hour

Cooking time: 1 hour

Serving size: 10 to 12 servings

Ingredients

Bolognese Sauce:

  • 1 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 lb. (90% lean) ground beef
  • 1 lb. ground pork
  • 3 Tbsp. tomato paste
  • 2 (32-oz.) jars of marinara sauce
  • 2 tsp. kosher salt

Béchamel Sauce:

  • 4 cups whole milk
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
  • 2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Assembly:

  • 15 no-boil lasagna noodles (about 9 oz.)
  • 1 lb. whole-milk mozzarella, shredded
  • 3 cups finely grated Parmesan (about 7 oz.)
  • Cooking spray
  • Chopped fresh parsley, for serving
preparing traditional italian lasagna adding bolognese sauce - making homemade lasagna stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images
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Directions

Make the Bolognese Sauce:

  1. In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the ground beef and pork, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, and cook until no longer pink, about 6 minutes. Drain excess fat.
  2. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for about 1 minute until incorporated.
  3. Add marinara sauce and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then stir in 1 teaspoon of salt.
  4. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors meld, about 20 minutes. Adjust seasoning with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, if needed.

Make the Béchamel Sauce:

  1. In a medium pot over medium heat, warm the milk until it’s warm to the touch but not boiling.
  2. In a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook, whisking frequently, until it becomes light tan and resembles wet sand, about 2 minutes.
  3. Slowly whisk in the warm milk until fully combined. Increase heat to medium-high and continue whisking constantly until the sauce thickens and becomes smooth, 3 to 5 minutes.
  4. Scrape along the edges of the pot to incorporate any remaining butter-flour mixture. Stir in the nutmeg and season with salt and pepper.

Assemble the Lasagna:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a deep 13″ x 9″ baking dish, spread 1 1/2 cups of Bolognese sauce. Layer with 3 pasta sheets, 3/4 cup of béchamel sauce, and about one-fifth of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
  2. Repeat the layering process 5 times, finishing with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese on top.
  3. Spray one side of a sheet of foil with cooking spray and cover the baking dish, greased side down.
  4. Bake for 20 minutes, then increase the oven temperature to 400°F. Uncover and continue baking until the sides are bubbling, the cheese is golden brown, and the top is darkened in spots, about 25 to 30 minutes.
  5. Turn the broiler to medium and broil the lasagna, watching closely, until the top is browned in spots, about 1 minute.
  6. Let the lasagna cool for 15 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley.
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No. 2 Duke jumps all over rival North Carolina, rolls to 87-70 win to stay unbeaten in ACC

No. 2 Duke jumps all over rival North Carolina, rolls to 87-70 win to stay unbeaten in ACC

By AARON BEARD AP Basketball Writer

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Cooper Flagg had 21 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in his Duke-North Carolina rivalry debut, helping the second-ranked Blue Devils roll past the Tar Heels 87-70 on Saturday night.

Fellow freshman Kon Knueppel scored 22 points for Duke (19-2, 11-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), which shot 52.8% and made 10 of 20 from 3-point range to win their 15th straight game.

RJ Davis and Drake Powell each scored 12 points to lead the Tar Heels (13-10, 6-5), who fell behind 40-13 and trailed by as many as 32 points.

Takeaways

UNC: The Tar Heels have lost four of five, with the lone victory coming in overtime against a Boston College team that had just one league win at the time.

Duke: The Blue Devils have won their 11 league games by an average of 19.8 points, though there were grinds in the past week to beat Wake Forest and N.C. State.

Key moment

The Blue Devils wobbled the Tar Heels with a 16-0 run that effectively ended this one early.

Tyrese Proctor got Duke going with a 3-pointer set up by Flagg passing out of a double team, then threw down a dunk after a turnover. Moments later, Flagg buried a catch-and-fire 3 from the top to force UNC into a timeout. He emerged from the stoppage by finishing a bounce feed from Proctor for a transition basket and a foul.

By the time Knueppel scored in the lane over Ian Jackson, the Blue Devils led 23-6.

Key stat

North Carolina had more turnovers (nine) than field goals in the first half after shooting just 8 for 27 (29.6%). Duke had 11 points off those turnovers.

Up next

The Blue Devils visit Syracuse on Wednesday night, while the Tar Heels host Pittsburgh on Saturday in a game that could help boost their NCAA Tournament resume.

Crab Cakes

Crab Cakes

Crab Cakes with Old Bay Donkey Sauce

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Crab Cakes with Old Bay Donkey Sauce Recipe from Foodnetwork

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour

Serving size: 18 to 20 crab cakes

Ingredients

  • For the Crab Cakes:
    • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
    • 1/4 cup finely chopped shallot
    • 1/4 cup finely chopped celery
    • 1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
    • 1/3 cup panko
    • 2 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
    • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
    • 1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat
    • 1 large egg, beaten
    • 1/2 cup Donkey Sauce (recipe below)
    • 4 teaspoons minced fresh chives
    • 4 teaspoons minced fresh basil
  • For the Sauce:
    • 2/3 cup Donkey Sauce (recipe below)
    • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
    • 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives
    • 1 tablespoon minced fresh basil
    • 1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
    • Lemon wedges, for serving
  • Donkey Sauce Ingredients:
    • 2 heads garlic
    • Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
    • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
    • 1 cup mayonnaise
    • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
    • 4 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
macro closeup of raw uncooked crab crabmeat fish cakes on parchment paper of baking oven tray in kitchen with herns - making crab cakes stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images
Photo by Getty Images

Directions

Make the Crab Cakes:

  1. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot, celery, and bell pepper. Cook until just tender, 3 to 4 minutes.
  2. Stir in the panko, 1 teaspoon Old Bay, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook until the panko is lightly golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool.
  3. Add the crabmeat, beaten egg, Donkey Sauce, chives, basil, and the remaining 1 teaspoon Old Bay to the bowl. Fold together until well combined, breaking up some of the crab.
  4. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a 1-ounce scoop, mound balls of the crab mixture (18 to 20 balls) on the baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Flatten them slightly and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
  5. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through until the crab cakes are golden brown and cooked through; 15 to 18 minutes.

Make the Sauce:

  1. In a medium bowl, combine the Donkey Sauce, lemon juice, chives, basil, and Old Bay. Stir to mix.
  2. Serve the crab cakes with the sauce and lemon wedges.

Make the Donkey Sauce:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Slice off about 1 inch of the pointed top of each garlic head so the cloves are slightly exposed. Place the garlic heads on a sheet of foil and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
  2. Tightly wrap the garlic in the foil and place it on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until the garlic is very tender and soft, 35 to 40 minutes.
  3. Squeeze out 1/4 cup of the roasted garlic cloves (reserve the rest for another use) and mash thoroughly.
  4. In a medium bowl, combine the mashed garlic with mayonnaise, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Mix thoroughly. Refrigerate until ready to use.
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Photo by Getty Images
January 31st 2025

January 31st 2025

Thought of the Day

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Until the rotten tooth is pulled out, the mouth must chew with caution.

Homemade Pop Tarts

Homemade Pop Tarts

Homemade Pop Tarts

Photo by Getty Images

Homemade Pop-Tarts Recipe from The Pioneer Woman

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Serving size: 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 whole Refrigerated Pre-made Pie Crusts
  • 1/2 cup Fruit Jam, Any Variety, Plus 1 Tablespoon For Icing
  • 1 Tbsp. Cornstarch
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 cup Powdered Sugar
  • 1 Tbsp. Heavy Cream (or More As Needed)
  • Sprinkles
female making tasty toaster pastry at home - homemade pop tarts stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images
Photo by Getty Images

Directions

  1. Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a small bowl, combine ½ cup of your favorite jam with a bit of cornstarch to thicken. In another bowl, beat an egg until smooth and set aside.
  3. Lightly flour a clean surface and roll out two ready-made pie crusts into 11-inch circles. Trim the edges to create two 9-inch squares, then cut each square into six strips, about 3 inches wide.
  4. Place 1–2 tablespoons of the jam mixture near one end of each strip. Brush the edges around the jam with the beaten egg to act as glue. Fold the other end of the strip over the jam and press the edges to seal.
  5. Use a fork to crimp the edges of each tart for a decorative and secure seal. Repeat for all strips.
  6. Arrange the tarts on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15–18 minutes, or until the crust turns golden. Allow the tarts to cool on the baking sheet.
  7. While the tarts cool, prepare the glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon of jam, and 1–2 tablespoons of cream until smooth. Drizzle the glaze over the tarts and decorate with sprinkles if desired. Let the glaze set before serving.
  8. Enjoy the tarts warm or at room temperature!
woman preparing jam filled pastry tarts - homemade pop tarts stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images
Photo by Getty Images
NASCAR champion Joey Logano tunes out critics and insists playoff format is ‘very entertaining’

NASCAR champion Joey Logano tunes out critics and insists playoff format is ‘very entertaining’

By MARK LONG AP Sports Writer

Joey Logano has found a way to tune out months of negativity.

Critics? Naysayers? Anyone who thinks his third Cup Series championship was a fluke?

“I can’t hear it because my trophies, they kind of, like, echo around me,” Logano quipped during a Zoom call with media Wednesday.

Logano won his third title in November, sparking debate about whether NASCAR’s current playoff format is the best way to determine the series’ worthiest champion. Few could make a strong case for that being Logano in 2024.

He won four races, had 13 top-10 finishes and rarely had the car to beat over 37 events.

He got huge breaks along the way, too. He used what amounted to a Hail Mary to win in Nashville — stretching his empty fuel tank through five overtimes — just to qualify for the postseason. And then he was actually eliminated from playoff contention in the second round only to be reinstated when Alex Bowman’s car failed a postrace inspection.

While competitors have since called for NASCAR to tweak its playoff format, with some wanting to move the finale to a different track every year instead of keeping it at Phoenix Raceway, Logano — not surprisingly — believes the setup is just fine.

“The playoff system is very entertaining,” he said, adding that teams often get hot in other sports and win it all. “It takes a lot to get through the 10 races to win the championship. … When the playoffs start, a lot of times you see teams that fire up.

“And we’ve been one of those teams, thankfully, and it’s worked out for us three times. But I don’t think that means you have to change the playoff system.”

NASCAR said earlier this week that no tweaks would be made to the championship format in 2025. Instead, officials plan to study it for another year before making any decisions. That won’t stop drivers from stumping for a makeover.

“I think it deserves a look for sure and probably a change down the road,” Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron said. “I just don’t know what that change is. I feel like we’ve just gotten into such a routine of going to the same racetrack for the final race, and having similar tracks that lead up to it has gotten a little bit predictable. But you could say probably the same thing in other sports, with the (Kansas City) Chiefs hosting the AFC championship every year.

“It’s just kind of the nature of sports, probably; it gets a little bit repetitive. But it’d be nice to see the final race to move around.”

Team Penske has won the last three Cup Series titles, with Logano sandwiching championships around teammate Ryan Blaney. All of those came in Phoenix, where the finale landed in 2020 after nearly two decades at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

NASCAR has made wholesale changes to its schedule in recent years, including moving the season-opening Clash and the all-star race.

The Clash bounced from Daytona International Speedway to the Los Angeles Coliseum and is now headed to historic Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for Sunday’s exhibition.

The all-star race went from North Carolina to Tennessee to Texas before landing back in North Carolina.

No one would be surprised to see the finale end up with similar movement.

“We have some tracks that could be awesome for the championship, like Vegas and Homestead and even Charlotte,” Byron said. “Just being open to all the different ideas would probably be cool and bring some buzz and also just kind of even the competition out.”

With no changes in sight for now, the 34-year-old Logano can focus on a fourth championship. He’s one of six drivers with three Cup titles and needs another to join Jeff Gordon (4), Dale Earnhardt (7), Jimmie Johnson (7) and Richard Petty (7) as the only guys with at least four.

“Probably not until I’m done racing will I be content with what I have because I’m not done yet,” Logano said. “I got a lot of years ahead of me to win more championships and races.

“As great as it is, the first 20 minutes is amazing because you’re celebrating with your team and your family. And then every day (after) it becomes a little less exciting and more thoughts of, ‘We got to do it again.’”

Another one surely would do a lot to drown out those detractors.

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