I’m sure it’s hard to believe that a 22-year-old female from a suburb of Oklahoma City loves NASCAR but it’s true. My interest began in 2004 when driver Kasey Kahne started racing the #9 Dodge in the Cup series and I attended my first NASCAR race at Texas Motor Speedway.
What you can look forward to reading:
The 2009 season is about to start. I will keep readers updated on the latest news and my personal breakdown and opinion of the Cup races.
What you should know:
I’m a huge Kasey Kahne fan but enjoy rooting for Carl Edwards and many other top drivers, which after reading my blog, I hope you will come to know.
The rest of this post is a blog I wrote in November 2007. This will help you better understand why I love the sport…
Nov. 9, 2007 -I attended the NASCAR Cup race this Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway and I can’t help but point out the many pros of the sport to the non-fans out there. Interesting to me is the massive amount of flak I get for being a fan. It’s as if I am automatically placed in a “white trash of America” category. Unlike what many people may think, the sport can be entertaining to a variety of classes.
So here are the reasons why I have fallen in love with NASCAR:
* Pre-race activities: It’s like one big fair before EVERY race. Everyone has an opportunity to meet a driver if they get up early and head over to the trailers outside the speedway. Drivers are always signing autographs or taking interviews at their sponsor’s venue or at the live pre-race Speed Channel set. Also there are tons of free giveaways at sponsor tents and each driver has a trailer with all of their merchandise available to purchase.
* Fans are decked out in their favorite driver’s apparel. Without the tacky apparel you feel out of place. Getting dressed for a race and choosing which drivers to support that day is part of the fun.
* You are allowed to bring in a cooler of a certain size with your choice of beverage and snack.
* You don’t have to worry about what you look like, because chances are you look 20 times better than the man or woman next to you.
* Once inside the speedway, an hour before race time, the entertainment begins. Celebrities and musical guests are in attendance. Red Bull sky divers parachute their way down into the infield, proving that Red Bull “gives you wings.”
* The drivers are introduced one-by-one, walk across a portable stage hooked up to a semi, hop into the bed of a truck and are driven around the track. This is the best time to hear the crowd go wild. Whether it is cheering or booing, you hear it both. Drivers know it is better to be booed than to hear nothing at all.
* Everyone loves Dale Earnhardt Jr. I mean how could you not have a soft spot for him after all that his dad did for the sport?
* A pastor gives a prayer for the safety of the drivers.
* For whatever reason, I think next to meeting the president or visiting D.C. it’s one of the most patriotic events. As the Star Spangle Banner is played F-16s fly overhead right on cue “…the land of the Free.” I can’t help but look at the 200,000 standing fans in the front stretch grandstand and be reminded that is the number of men and women we currently have in uniform overseas defending our freedom.
* Look around at all of the colors! Driving advertisements! What great marketing and PR!
* After the pre-race festivities, the celebrity guest says the most famous words in NASCAR, “Gentlemen start your engines.” The sound gets my heart racing.
* Next is the warm-up laps and then the green flag waves and “boogity, boogity, boogity, it’s time to go racin’.” The smell of burning rubber and the sound of ear splitting speed gets everyone on their feet.
* It’s the only sport I can think of where you get the opportunity to listen to your favorite driver, during the race, talk to his pit crew on a scanner. Wearing goofy ear plugs or headphones is a must. Nextel even has a scanner where you can listen and watch your favorite drivers.
* Neck and neck driving, cars passing, pit stop plotting and cars colliding make the next four hours worthwhile. Because the cars are safe, I find it OK to wish for a good crash every once in awhile. It’s pure entertainment!
Take a look for yourself: here
* Within the four hours of the race, it’s understandable to take a quick nap. (I always do)
* You never know what kind of points your favorite driver might wrack up or how many they might lose in a brawl after another driver tips them over the edge. There is always a hint of drama.
* It’s a manly sport, so for men you might feel more masculine and for women there are plenty of good looking drivers to swoon over.
* Lastly, the green, then white and finally checkered flags are waved, a driver wins and does an awesome burn-out before heading to victory lane. Wow, what a race!
Before you make a judgment call, try it out for yourself. I don’t mean tune in on a Sunday afternoon while you’re flipping through channels. Buy tickets, camp out, make a weekend party of it, and enjoy the smell and speed LIVE! I wasn’t a fan before I went, but after that first live race I was hooked. It is much more than watching cars make left turns all day.
WARNING: It may change your life.
On the Up and Up 