Daytona 500

[E-Revonut]

Well said Jerry. I thought the race was great. I have driven over 100MPH many times but not while touching someone else's bumper. I have also done 112+MPH on a snowmobile, that's some scary stuff!

[nascarfan3199]

200+, on someones@back bumper while the spotter is telling you "inside, inside, 14,22 three back , trouble trouble, stay high, caution is out". And a 20 year old rookie who drove like a vet all day wins is very cool.

[JERRY2KONE]

There are factors in every kind of racing that are unique to that sport which require special talent and skills that in order to be able to compete on every level. Although different from F1 or other forms of racing NASCAR is no less challenging than the rest. I would love to see some of the so called "Left turn, another left turn" people attempt to drive anywhere near those speeds and survive let alone be competitive. Try it, and then tell others how boring it is.

Anyway a lot has changed with racing at Daytona over the last year with a completely new asfault serface, and the fact that runing those car trains does not work anymore. Knowing that the only way to be competitive is to pair up with another driver for the entire race is truly unique and extremely difficult to maintain for just a few laps, let alone for 4 to 5 hours. Not sure whether that is a plus or a negative yet. It certanly made the race interesting for me. Having Danica Patrick racing the Nationwide series is also a nice change. I hope to see more women in these events in the coming years, which to me will also make things a bit more interesting much like Ashley Force racing funny cars.

It's all a matter of perspective. If you like it, then good for you. If you don't care for it, then maybe you just don't understand it or know enough about it in order to stay focused on it. Our two boys were taught the same crap by their former step-father, but now that I have taken the time to educate them on exactly what was required in order for these guys to be competitive in NASCAR they are now watching it with us. To each his own.

[George16]

No matter what, last Sunday's race was still the most boring I had ever watched. By the way, I did the Richard Petty driving experience at the Chicagoland motor speedway a couple of times when I was stationed in great Lakes in 1998-2001.

[JERRY2KONE]

Originally Posted by George16

No matter what, last Sunday's race was still the most boring I had ever watched. By the way, I did the Richard Petty driving experience at the Chicagoland motor speedway a couple of times when I was stationed in great Lakes in 1998-2001.

WELL??? Don't just tease us with that, and then not share details with us. So how did you fare, and what was your experience like. Speed? Lap times? Spin outs? Crashes?

Lito I am sorry that you did not enjoy the race on Sunday. Maybe you had too many beers, or maybe not enough? I fell asleep around 11PM and the wife woke me up for the race just as things were starting up at 3AM. I was so exhausted and even dozed off a couple of times for a few moments during the race, but I did manage to see about 90% of the race, and thuroughly enjoyed watching and learning as they embarked onto this new surface. I guess I really like the high speed tracks. Some would say not enough crashes, or maybe just not enough BIG crashes. I was happy to see that everyone went home unharmed, and that most had a good time participating. I was thrilled to see Kyle Bush spin out early on in the race, and was hoping that would be the end of his night. I am happy for That 20 year old kid who won Trevor Baine, but I am not so sure that it was a good thing. He went out there to learn a few things and gave assistance to a few drivers trying to figure out the whole team pushing stratigy, but I am willing to bet that there are some drivers who are not so happy about the way it all ended. I cannot blame him for taking the opertunity that placed before him, but I think he took advantage of a few guys who were just trying to help him along. Just my 2cents. He made history in an event that some of the best seasoned drivers have not been able to overcome. It took Dale Sr 20 years to win that race, and not for the lack of trying either. I sure hope for Trevor's sake that he can hold up his end and compete on that same level every week from here on out.

For me it is a more personal adventure. I watch how the drivers do, how the teams work or don't work, and I even watch for the attitudes of the drivers. Some of them need their a$$es kicked and have that chip knocked off their shoulders so they can have some respect for the other drivers and the fans who root for them.

[George16]

It was fun. You get to drive two laps after the orientation and riding shotgun with one of their drivers. I think the fastest I went was 120-130 mph. It was agreat experience. My whole body was shaking bad when I got out of the car. It took a good 10-15 mintues to calm me down. No spin outs or crashes either. I'm always fascinated with speed hence all the speeding tickets I had received thoughout my driving life. I guess this is a lot safer compared to driving street bikes over 150 mph most of the time before I joined the Navy :).

Don't get me wrong, I still like NASCAR. I had been to Daytona a few times when I was stationed in Mayport. Been to Michigan Int'l Speedway and Pocono. Just one of the perks for being in the military. I just didn't enjoy the race as much as I used to. Now, I just need to be in Bristol for a night race. That would be awesome!!

So sorry if I offend someone but I don't think I could stay awake through a NASCAR race even if my life depended on it. I have never gone past 5-6 laps of viewing before changing the channel. Just around and around and around and......... Yeah, the stacks (I believe you guys call them wrecks) are kind of cool but not enough for me to watch. If they set the cars up to turn both ways and put them on a street based circuit then you couldn't get me away from the TV. Might even get on a plane couple of times a year just to watch a couple of races in person.

I think with the amount of money that is being poured into NASCAR it could be made way more interesting and for sure it would have a much larger world following too. If our Aussie V8 Supercars had the same amount of money as NASCAR being thrown around they would dominate the world racing scene in popularity stakes.

[E-Revonut]

Originally Posted by George16

It was fun. You get to drive two laps after the orientation and riding shotgun with one of their drivers. I think the fastest I went was 120-130 mph. It was agreat experience. My whole body was shaking bad when I got out of the car. It took a good 10-15 mintues to calm me down. No spin outs or crashes either. I'm always fascinated with speed hence all the speeding tickets I had received thoughout my driving life. I guess this is a lot safer compared to driving street bikes over 150 mph most of the time before I joined the Navy :).

Don't get me wrong, I still like NASCAR. I had been to Daytona a few times when I was stationed in Mayport. Been to Michigan Int'l Speedway and Pocono. Just one of the perks for being in the military. I just didn't enjoy the race as much as I used to. Now, I just need to be in Bristol for a night race. That would be awesome!!

Going to the races is a blast and going to a race at Bristol is one of my dreams. Going to the race isn't a one day event though, going to a race is a 4-6 day long tailgating party! At least from my experience going to Watkins Glen a couple times, it's non stop partying from Wed-Monday morning.

[JERRY2KONE]

What makes NASCAR so popular is how the track is setup. Whether you like the oval or not it has one factor that keeps people coming back again and again. NASCAR tracks are setup much like a football stadium. You can seat 150K people around a NASCAR cirtuit with an average price of $35 to $50. Plus add in the executive boxes that sell for about $1K per person for a weekend. The attraction is that no matter where you sit you can see 90% to 100% of the race. This is why of all the different types of car racing NASCAR draws the biggest crouds. I have been to rally and F1 races, but you only get to watch 30% to 40% of the actual race leaving too much down time.

The repetitive roar of the engines as they circle around the track also puts my wife to sleep, because it is a constant cycle of reverberating sound.