My First NASCAR Experience

 

I never followed NASCAR races.  When NASCAR coverage came on ESPN I would change the channel to something else.  Not interested.  Until ...

After moving to Arizona this past year I had the opportunity to attend the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday November 7th.  The age 55+ community I live in chartered a bus to the event with seats near the finish line.  "Why not?" I thought, "Let's see what this NASCAR craze is all about."

Much to my surprise, it was awesome!

When I arrived I could tell this was no ordinary race.  Many tents were setup outside with race fans eager to purchase merchandise or see a celebrity in attendance.  This reminded me of the atmosphere when I attended Super Bowl 50   For NASCAR fans, I figured, this was their Super Bowl.

Once inside the Phoenix Raceway I was pleasantly surprised by my seat location - near the finish line in what turned out to be in the shade the whole race.  That was a good thing as I didn't know if I'd be sitting in the hot Arizona sun this afternoon.

The pre race activity reminded me more of a beauty contest than a sports event!  The top competitors walked across a stage waving to the crowd.  The very top racers, the ones in contention for the NASCAR Cup, each rode around the track standing up in a flatbed truck waving to the crowd.  Broadway star Kristen Chenoweth sang the national anthem. "This is a big deal," I thought, remembering hearing Lady Gaga sing the anthem at Super Bowl 50.

While the prerace activity was interesting, the highlight was the race itself.  The closely bunched cars raced by me at high speed to start the race.  The noise was deafening - much louder to hear in person than what you may hear in watching the race on TV.  How can cars go so fast, so close together, without wrecking?

There were a few minor accidents this day, with a few cars bumping the track's outside wall when trying to take a turn too wide.  Nothing too serious.  While a wrecked car was cleared from the track the drivers got the "yellow flag" to reduce speed.  During the yellow many race cars would visit pit row to get a new tank of gas and new tires.  I marveled at how fast these pit crews could service their race cars and get them on their way.

The race was 312 laps around a 1 mile track.  A bit repetitive?  Yes.  However the intermittent yellow flags slowing the race, and then the cars coming out of the yellow all bunched together in a thrilling start, kept my interest.  I also was impressed with the driving skill of some of the racers as they tried to maneuver around the cars in front of them.

Overall I was impressed with the show that NASCAR put on this day.  I don't anticipate becoming an avid NASCAR fan like many in the crowd.  But if given an opportunity to attend the championship race in 2022 at this same Phoenix track, I think I'll do it!