NASCAR 2014 - changes and endings

A true fan of the sport never admits when they are lagging behind but I admit that my NASCAR adventures have slowed down drastically in the last year. More than likely it's because I work full time and go to college full time. Now I have one more semester to go and I'll be a 38 year old with a Bachelor's Degree, finally. These last few years have been rough trying to juggle a full time career and still finish this BA. I have sacrificed a lot in the form of SOCIALIZATION in order to finish and finish with a high GPA. I don't think having a 3.976 cumulative GPA with 14 credits left to take is anything to be upset over especially at my age, however, the sacrifice to my social life is starting to weigh heavily on my mind. I miss going to the races, I miss quality time with my friends and I really miss meeting new people. Life is too short and having put on hold my life for the last 10-years since moving down here in 2005 and starting college in 2009, it's time to start living again.

I had the privilege to volunteer at the Michigan International Speedway over the last few races; June/August 2013 and this past weekend, June 12-15, 2014. I have an internship requirement in order to graduate but considering I have a career of almost 18-years, my advisor allowed me to volunteer at the track to fulfill that requirement.

See, I am one of the few lucky ones who get to study a fascinating subject for my senior thesis. I get to study the fans of NASCAR. So, since August 2012, I have interviewed the President of MIS, I have interviewed fans, I have done research and I have been an observer to a sport I love. These last few races at MIS have seen me remove myself from the role of a fan and insert myself as a researcher. I want to know why the fans stay with the sport. What keeps them coming back and spending so much money to watch cars drive in circles? Why do fans pick certain drivers, sponsors, teams? What is it about NASCAR that draws out so many different people to one sport?

As a fan, I never really thought about it. I just went along for the ride, but truly, this sport has a unique culture and it is ever changing and evolving. As we usher in a new era, the old era fights to keep control. But money talks and where money talks, the fan base can and will change. It's up to the tracks to keep ahead of the game and cater to the old and the new fans; to find the balance between generations of fans and our own constantly changing demands of a society. It's up to NASCAR to keep changing the sport to keep it entertaining, exciting and challenging yet still cater to the dominant fan base as well as to the sponsors. It's a truly daunting challenge and I do not envy them their task.

Not everyone will like the changes and that is ok.

My motto: IT IS WHAT IT IS. I will make the best of it or I will find a new passion.

I noticed this past weekend here at MIS that the stands seemed very full for a change. Sure, there were a few bald spots, but overall, the sport seems to be making a comeback here in my state. (fingers crossed) It was good to see but more importantly it was interesting to see who was visiting the track. I worked with ticketing services this weekend and I admit to loving every moment of my personal interaction with the fans, especially on Sunday when I was able to finally sell tickets. They come in all shapes, sizes, ages, as well as from different backgrounds, ethnicities and cultures. I was impressed to see the representation of countries from all over the world and even from all over our country. We easily forget sometimes that even within the borders of the United States we have many different cultures that are truly fascinating. Part of me wished I would have had a little more time to just talk to them and ask them why they love the sport. What draws them to it and keeps them coming back? It's just a fascinating thought and I wish I had a way to explore it more.

Now my time at MIS is done. I am reverting back to being just a fan; however, I can honestly say I have changed. My view on the sport has changed and most certainly my view of MIS has changed. All changes are for the better, of course because now I have seen a little different side of the sport, of the track, of the people. I have seen a small piece of the puzzle when it comes to what the track does on race weekends for the fans. All the preparation, attention to detail, all the long days that are spent trying to give the fans the best experience possible.

I have an incredible amount of respect for their abilities, their hard work and their dedication. I also appreciate their willingness to let in a silly fan like myself so she can finish this degree and still study a sport that I truly love with all my heart. Now as I finish up some research next semester (starting August 26), write my two remaining papers on it all and reflect on what I have seen and learned, I think what is most important to me is how I've discovered a little more about myself. I know more now about this sport and its fans, but I have started to see what I'm made of, what I'm capable of and what truly makes me unique too. In researching a sport I love, I have inadvertently discovered some of myself. I knew I got that tattoo that says "Know Thyself" for a reason. Knowing yourself is truly a powerful thing!

So many thanks to the MIS staff that helped me on this journey. I will NEVER forget your generosity nor could I ever thank you enough for giving me this opportunity.

I raise my glass to the sport of stock car racing, to MIS, to new discoveries, to new experiences and to new friendships.

Life is good, if you dare to make it so.


OK Sondra... what's next?

2013 NASCAR Contenders Live

What a HUGE difference a year makes! Of course if you read my previous blogs you know I attended the 2012 NASCAR Contenders Live at the House of Blues. Besides the nice intimacy of seeing the 12-Chase contenders live, it was a horrible experience. I remember after last years event we received a survey to fill out about the experience. I'm guessing based on how wonderful the event was this year they listened to the fans when they responded!

This year, they held it in Chicago in the Grand Ballroom on the Navy Pier. What a fantastic venue!!

Before the actual event, my race buddy, Kecia and I went on a 30-minute boat ride to see the Chicago Skyline from the water. I'm a lover of the Great Lakes and this was a special treat. I absolutely loved the ride and the view was amazing.

I think every time we travel together now we MUST get one of those cheesy tourist photos like this one. We had one taken in Wilmington at the battle ship too. yes, this will become our goal now wherever we end up!

Some of the pictures I took from the boat ride.

This one above I actually took from the pier, but I wanted to fit it in here now. Isn't it beautiful with the sun shining on the water. I just loved it. I could have just sat here all day and been happy.


Now, onto the actual NASCAR event.

As we enter the ballroom, I'm impressed by the layout. They have the stage, four rows of tables with 6 people per table, a small section of just chairs on the floor behind the tables and bleachers behind that for the rest of the general admission. The tables have a large metal bucket with popcorn in it, miniature candies surround the bucket along with six beverages. We have our own little seat numbers, table number card and little plastic cups for drinks or popcorn.

We sat there for a little bit chatting with our table mates before Kim Coon, one of the Miss Sprint Cup ladies came out on stage. She did some interacting with the fans, gave away some prizes and did some surveys using Twitter. They had a NASCAR race truck (Toyota) sitting directly behind us under a sheet. Finally she was done and Nicole from ESPN came out on stage for a bit. After her it was Mike Helton (President of NASCAR) and Dale Jarrett (former NASCAR driver turned ESPN Analyst).

They brought out a bunch of up and coming drivers that are just starting in the NASCAR series. I thought this was really neat. After talking with them each on stage briefly they had them sit with the fans in the audience.

Finally they brought out Kasey Kahn, Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson and talked with them for a few minutes. Really, the drivers were very quiet. It was disappointing simply because they were so candid and relaxed last year and they were NOT this year.

Next they brought out Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle, Joey Lagano and Dale Earnhardt Jr. I was pleasantly surprised that Ryan Newman received a very loud positive acknowledgement from the audience after Nicole congratulated him for making the Chase. I think she summed it up well when she said that Newman will become the sentimental favorite for winning the Championship.

Lastly, they sat Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and Clint Bowyer in the center of the stage since they were the three Toyota drivers that made the Chase and Toyota was a sponsor for the event.

I was a little uncomfortable that Kyle was looking so chummy with the Sprint Cup trophy. I refuse to see that as any form of predicting who will win the championship. My vote this year is for Ryan Newman, simply since he does drive for my driver and I want to see him leave SHR with a championship in his pocket. I may root for Tony Stewart but I didn't agree with him letting Ryan go, so I think a championship would be a fitting send off! Plus, Ryan is going to fill the position that Jeff Burton (my other favorite) is vacating at RCR at the end of this season, so it just seems appropriate.

Anyway, the day was just fabulous. Met some interesting fans, witnessed a great event and had a lot of fun with my race buddy. Once of these years we will have to try and spend a whole race weekend in Chicago. I can only imagine the kind of mischief I could get into!

Clint Bowyer

With all "crap" that has happened in NASCAR since last weekend, it's really hard to listen to all the commentary today and wonder what we're not being told. The looks that Nicole (ESPN) was giving to Rusty, Brad and Ray were something I would expect to see from a woman saying what she was told to say and hating every moment of it. And the way the guys were appearing to walk on glass around her was just hilarious. I might have been reading more into it, but I really do not think so. Everyone was so censored on what they were saying and personally, I think Nicole really did not like it. While at the NASCAR Contenders Live event last Thursday, I noticed that when Clint Bowyer came up on stage, she casually mentioned the elephant in the room. At this comment, all the drivers clammed up.

Of everything we heard about the last week, I think for me the most difficult was hearing about Clint Bowyer. I really like him. I like his sense of humor and his down-to-earth personality. Sure, he can drive a race car but that is not what caught my attention. What caught my attention was the fact he appeared "normal". About as normal as anyone could be who drives a race car for a living, but still, he is what I would consider normal.

He also has this infectious smile and this mischievous glint in his eye that lets you know he's up to no good.

Anyway, I posted on Facebook today that while watching him walk to pit road before the start of today's race in Chicago,I felt sorry for him. His usually confident, almost on the verge of arrogant swagger was gone and he just looked lost. From everything I read and heard, he was following team orders when he spun his car at Richmond. Now most of us would jump immediately to the conclusion that he was wrong and should not have done it. I, on the other hand did not immediately judge him.

I'm sure we have all been in a position where our boss tells us to do something that we really don't want to do. Perhaps it's morally or ethically wrong and yet we face a huge dilemma when deciding what to do. It's the damned if we do, damned if we don't scenario. Until we are in his shoes, facing his choices and dealing with his consequences, we really don't know what we would have chosen to do. Do any of us really have the right to automatically condemn him without truly understanding?

No, we don't.

I'm not saying I agree with what he did. No, I can't say that at all.

However, I can say that I don't think that one wrong is going to damn him in my eyes. I am going to choose to believe that he will learn from this situation and he will become a better person.

I'm choosing to give Clint Bowyer a second chance.

We all make mistakes. I think we will see Clint's true character by the way he chooses to race from this point forward.

So, here you go Clint... your second chance starts RIGHT NOW!

2013 - slow year for me and NASCAR

I've been so busy this year I can honestly say I have not attended any races as a fan. Totally disappointing but not surprising. I had a two week trip to Europe in May. That took up a majority of my time and energy. I had a trip to Texas in mind with my race buddies, but that kind of fell through. It's a real bummer for me to not have seen Jeff Burton race this year, especially since he's out at RCR for next year and has no set plans. If I missed seeing him race for his last full Cup year I'm going to be very pissed to say the least. I've been a fan of his since 1997, I want to be able to see him race ONCE more live. And Tony breaking his leg and ruining his championship contention, was just another nail in the coffin.

The only excitement I've had this year in regards to the sport was my 80-hours of volunteering at Michigan International Speedway. As part of my graduation requirement I have to have about 120-hours of an internship. Well, I have a career and really didn't need that requirement so they substituted 120-hours of volunteering at the speedway in it's place. The goal was to let me see a little bit behind the scenes as far as what goes into making a successful race weekend and have some fan interaction for my research. My senior thesis is on NASCAR so it was a win/win for me.

Well let me just say, I had a very involved meeting with two of the higher ups at MIS before they approved me doing this. It almost felt like a job interview. They agreed to let me in and so I worked 38-hours at the June race for the Fan Experience and 42-hours at the August race in ticketing. Very interesting, thoroughly enjoyable and absolutely tiring as hell. I have met some wonderful staff and fans. It has been a true eye-opening experience to say the very least. I have some pictures of the staff I worked with and me from the June and August race but I'll not post them on here since this is public post. You'll have to trust me that I did it.

Can I just say... until you see it with your own eyes you can not imagine the work they put into each race weekend. It's truly incredible.

Hopefully they will take me back next year so I can finish out the requirement. To me though, it is just so much more than a requirement. It's been a fantastic experience and it helped me broaden my view about the track and NASCAR.

As for what is next on the agenda, I head to Chicago this coming Thursday to see the NASCAR Contenders Live. I'm going just for the day with my racing buddy Kecia. We had a great experience last year and I can't imagine this would be any less. I'm super happy they moved it from the House of Blues to the ballroom at the Navy Pier. That is the one place in Chicago I have not been (Navy Pier) so I'm super excited!

I'll post any good pics I get from the event on Thursday. Catch you later!

Fans know the risks

Anyone who is a NASCAR fan knows the risks in attending an event where 43 stock cars zoom by you at 200+ miles an hour. I take that risk everytime I sit my butt in those stands. For me, it's all part of the sport. I accept the risk; I own responsibility for taking that risk.

Now some might have the illusion that the catch-fence separating them from the track will stop debris from wrecked cars or even the cars themselves from reaching the stands, but those of us who have been around the sport long enough know that it will never be 100% safe. I remember when the fans were killed at Michigan International Speedway back in 1998 during an IRL race. I remember because I sat very near to that same spot for a NASCAR race. I also know that as these tragedies occur, NASCAR and the tracks take steps to make it safer for us. Mind you, they make it SAFER but never 100% safe. That is impossible.

Photo is from ISportsTimes.com



My heart aches for those fans at the Daytona Nationwide Series race yesterday, 2/23/2013. As I watched Kyle Larson's car ricochet off the catch-fence and debris fly into the stands, I knew someone was going to be hurt. Ironically, I didn't think about the drivers. I know that for the most part, NASCAR has seen to it that they are safe. Sure, odd things happen, but not this time. This time, it was the 28 injured fans that held my attention along with the gaping whole in the steel cabled catch fence, the burning engine caught in that fence, the wheel assemblies that flew into the stands and the frantic fans calling for help for the fallen. It was just unbelievable.

It could have been my friends, family or even myself sitting in those seats. I have not developed a fear of going back this year. I know the risks and I know that NASCAR and the tracks will learn through this tragedy and they'll work to make us, the fans, safer.

But remember, I take risks strapping into my car and traversing the highways of this country. If I was ever asked, I would easily say I feel safer sitting at a NASCAR race than I do behind the wheel of my own passenger car.

Prayers and thoughts to those who were injured and here's to a speedy recovery.

One last adventure

Ok, so I was lying when I said that my last blog was my last official NASCAR adventure for 2012. I actually had one more small one that I completed on Saturday 12/1/2012.

Michigan International Speedway has what they call a track drive. By bringing a new unwrapped toy for the Toys for Tots or a bag of food for the food pantry, you can drive your passenger vehicle around MIS.

Ok, who wouldn't do it? Not only is it for a good cause, how often can you say you drove around a 2-mile speedway?

Saturday morning at 9:30am I picked up my friend Joan and we headed out onto US-127 for the hour long journey to MIS. Of all the damn days to be foggy, today was the day! I know, it could have been worse but still, fog? Grrrrr

Upon our arrival, a very nice security officer directed us through the tunnel (for those nonNASCAR fans, the tunnel takes us under the track in turn 1) and follow the signs to the event. It took us up and around into the garage area and out onto pit road. We dropped off our toys, signed the waiver and took off down pit road. We were flying!! Yup, 25 miles per hour never felt so fast!!!

Yes, sarcasm! LOL

I understand the need for a 25 mph speed limit since many people brought out their corvettes and camaros but geez, it was a tad slow. In my residential neighborhood it is 30mph!

Not to sound ungrateful because I'm not, it was just a buzz kill. I could see maybe 35-40 when you're out by yourself which basically we were. Except for the Pontiac G6 who decided they wanted to go really fast and pass us in turn 2. I was in the middle of the track, he was at the bottom. It was a cool feeling.

But anyway, I'm jumping ahead. So we slowly crawled down pit road. What a cool persepective. For a moment I imagined 42 other cars diving for their pits, the fans packed in the stands, the pit signs waving for the drivers, the anxious faces of the crew braced on the pit wall waiting for my arrival, my crew chief counting down in my head, ... it was awesome. What a unique perspective to have. It gets you one step closer to having an inkling of an idea what the drivers, teams and NASCAR deal with on a grander scale during race weekends.

So at the end of pit road I went up onto the 18 degrees of banking in turn 1. What a feeling. I have a new respect for these drivers who go over 200 mph around this track. It is AWESOME! I just can't describe the feeling. I almost felt like crying and I'm not really sure why. I mean I've walked the track for a charity event, I've ridden around the track in a tram and of course in the back of the truck, but this was just an entirely different experience that every true fan has to try at least once!

I didn't take pictures obviously because I was driving but I did have my friend take video. I never understood why this blog doesn't allow me to upload video. You'll just have to trust me that it was well worth the hour drive down and back. I just wish the sun had been shining, but I'll still take it.

Watch the website for MIS, they have these types of events and opportunities multiple times throughout the year. Do it at least once!

Bring on 2013. What adventures will the New Year hold?

I CAN'T WAIT TO FIND OUT!

My first official interview

I don't want to waste this blog space by telling you what a wonderful year this has been for me because all you have to do is read my previous blogs to know! I do want to tell you about the most recent and probably the last NASCAR adventure I will have in 2012.

As my blog readers know, I have been allowed the opportunity to study NASCAR for an independent study class at Olivet. Never in a million years did I think I would have the chance to study and learn Sociology/Anthropology in the context of a sport that I adore. I never thought about competition, cooperation and conflict as anything other than just being a part of the sport. Let me tell you it is so much more! When you're a fan, you don't see the concepts of culture, socialization, conformity, ethnocentrism and the NASCAR nation, or even acculturation! But it's all there, ripe for the taking and ready to be studied and understood (or atleast try to understand it). My eyes have been opened and I'm so excited that my Professor is allowing me the opportunity to study this for the rest of my undergraduate stay at Olivet.

My studies allowed me the chance to interview the President of the Michigan International Speedway, Mr. Roger Curtis.

My thesis for this term has focused on the fans of this sport and Mr. Curtis is one of the most, if not THE MOST fan-friendly track presidents I have ever seen or heard about. Everytime I turn around I was seeing his tweets or facebook posts about his interactions with the fans here in Michigan and around the country. With MIS my home track and the track where I received my NASCAR initiation, what better way to start than to interview a man who has made it his priority to learn about and understand the fans of NASCAR. He wants MIS to be one of the premiere motor sports facility in the country and he knows that in order to do that the track needs to appeal to the fans.

I've been going to events at MIS since 1997. I personally have seen the positive changes MIS has done over the years to appeal to the fans. I've also travelled to tracks such as Daytona, Homestead, Bristol, Darlington and Charlotte. With the changes MIS has brought about, I see now where these other tracks have expended very little effort in catering to the fans. It's as if they need to be reminded that without fan participation, the sport will die.

I arrived at MIS and shortly after was greeted by Mr. Curtis. We walked to his office and I must admit that I was stunned and quite in awe with the view. You would expect the President of the speedway to have a brilliant office and he truly does but even this left me speechless. It's an unobstructed view of the entire track from the middle of turn 1 & 2. MIS has always been a truly majestic track to me, and this view solidified it.

We sat down and started to talk. I had sent him my questions a few weeks earlier so he had an idea where I wanted to go with this. I really wanted to focus on the fans and his interactions with them, however, once Mr. Curtis started talking, I was just fascinated by what he had to say. For me it was a behind the scenes look into a track and sport that I love. I didn't want to ask my questions, I really just wanted to sit and listen.

We talked for almost two hours and there were two things in particular that I heard that has stuck with me. We were talking about stereotypes of the sport and it's fans. He said that when you're young, you can play baseball, football, soccer, hockey and basketball but you can't play NASCAR. There really is no way to play it. Now when we're older I can see you playing NASCAR but it probably wouldn't be a good idea! In fact, I played NASCAR trying to get to this interview since I was running a bit behind. I was lucky that I didn't get caught!

The second thing was his analogy of NASCAR and Disney. He explained that NASCAR is like Disney; they own the rights and the name but it's up to the theme parks (aka the tracks and venues) to bring the fans in to buy into NASCAR. If the venue doesn't cater and draw in the fans, the company will go bankrupt. I thought it was such a priceless analogy that now everytime I look at a different track, I start to imagine what is there besides just the drivers and teams and cars that will pull me in. What will make my experience a fullfilling and unique one? I think the tracks had better take Mr. Curtis's advice and start figuring out how to draw the fans back to the track!

Overall, it was an experience that really only a true fan of the sport would appreciate. I loved every minute of it and can only hope that some day my path will have me at the MIS Administrative offices yet again, finding out more unique and interesting facts about this sport.

Thank you Roger Curtis!

NASCAR Contenders Live

I was surfing through an online newletter I received in my email and noticed talk of an event happening for the first time in the history of NASCAR. This event was to take place on Wednesday, 9/12/2012 in Chicago, Illinois at the House of Blues. Since Chicagoland Speedway is the first track on the 10-race run to the championship, they decided to have all 12 of the Chase contenders on stage answering questions from the fans.

The tickets were $10 each and all proceeds were to benefit The NASCAR Foundation. My friend Kecia and I decided that this would be a good day trip so we left at 7:00am Wednesday morning and arrived in Chicago about 4 hours later. It's always such a joy navigating through the miles and miles of expressways and tollways and bridges. I must say Lake Shore Drive is my favorite as it runs along Lake Michigan. It's so beautiful and BUSY!

After a lovely jaunt through the city, we saw places that we didn't even know existed. At one point we lost satellite reception on the GPS after missing our turn. We were under the city running parallel to the river. It was dark and just plain spooky. But the cool part was suddenly seeing the sunlight and realizing we were right on Dearborn and 0.1 miles from the House of Blues and didn't realize it! We were super happy to leave that underground world behind us and try and find the parking for the venue.

We decided the easiest thing to do was to pay for valet parking which was located right behind the House of Blues. The buildings look like tall cylinders or ears of corn. It almost looked like a gigantic matchbox car holder from when we were kids. There were two of them right on the river so it makes a very easy landmark when you're trying to find the House of Blues. (Mental note)

After we dropped off the car, we decided to walk around the block and find a place to have a bite to eat. We ended up at Einsteins Bagel. Oh ya, yummi! I had a multi-grain bagel with egg whites, cheese, asparagus, mushrooms and spinach. It also had a real light sauce of some kind. Wow, talk about awesome! I think it was on the corner of Kinsie and Dearborn! I certainly would like to visit that place again.

After our bagel, we walked back up to the House of Blues to stand in line. This event was supposedly general admission even though our tickets had assigned sections and seat numbers. we really did not receive any additional information on the venue seating arrangements so I assumed it was as stated on the ticket.

We stood in line for a little over an hour and one of the people from Toyota Racing snapped our picture. No, we did not meet Clint Bowyer. He was digitally inserted into our picture.

I would guess we were around the 100th in line. The line stretched all the way down the block and over the bridge. I would guess there were probably close to 1000 people in the venue total, perhaps a little less.

I noticed that many of the fans were wearing tshirts or hats or other clothing with their favorite driver on it. Some people came sporting tattoos of their driver! There was ONE man walking around in tank top with two beer cans and a half bottle of some liquor on his head. He did that trick to keep them stuck on his head with no glue or tape. It was comical, but at the same time I knew as soon as I looked at him that he would make the news, FB, Twitter, etc and thus just another reason that NASCAR fans are stereotyped as rednecks! Kecia and I were not and we seemed to stick out like a sore thumb. We were dressed in plain blue jeans and shirts except of course I had my sterling silver necklace with Tony's #14 on it. But we were the "classy" NASCAR fans that we were accused of being in North Carolina if you remember my previous blog.

There were representatives from Toyota, Sprint and HOB outside with us. They were telling jokes and having trivia contests to keep us entertained. One of the Miss Sprint Cup ladies was having her picture taken with fans and others were of course pushing Toyota and Sprint products on us. That was a bonus because they made the time fly.

The House of Blues is a beautiful building but the first thing I noticed is that it would be a death trap in a fire. I'm sure they are up to code, but there is no clear way in and out. It's a maze of narrow staircases and the exits are not clearly marked. It was dark and old and I bet it's a great place to be on Halloween night! LOL

As we walked into the facility, we had to climb a huge staircase to the main floor of the venue. At the main floor you could see the stage and there were maybe 4 rows of people already standing in front of the stage. Much to my surprise, it was standing room only! No where on the event information did it say that! Well, I asked one of the HOB staff where we were allowed to stand based on our tickets and he looked at mine and directed me to the second balcony. Here I was, within striking distance of the stage and he directed me to the balcony. So, being the dutiful, lawbiding citizen, I hoofed it up a million flights of stairs and landed in the balcony. Here is what I could see...

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. You could not see the stage! I was furious. Gas is not cheap, parking is not cheap, plus add in tolls and food and you had one expensive day trip and I couldn't even see! The stage is literally down below the 1st balcony. WTH?!?

So I stood there fuming. I was happy to be there, but this was NOT what I had in mind. Come to find out, it was general admission period and even though our tickets had seat numbers, we could have stood wherever we wanted to. I find this out AFTER the 100's of people behind me are now standing where I should have been standing! I could have been 2 feet from the stage. (yes, you can insert choice words here)

Finally the show started. First out onto the stage was former full-time NASCAR driver Kenny Wallace who introduced us to the grand prize winner of a contest they had. Second was Chris Meyers, NASCAR Analyst and sports broadcaster for mostly FOX but I think I've seen him on other networks. He had a sit down interview with Mike Helton, the President of NASCAR. I must say that was fascinating. Mike was asked a couple of questions and one was from a young fan who asked him what he would be doing if he was not President of NASCAR and Mike simply said he would be a fan just like everyone here because he loves this sport. He also made mention of how the Chase is currently designed at the suggestion and support of the NASCAR Fan Council. It's nice to know that fans really do have a say in this sport. Of course, that received a hearty round of applause from the audience.

Eventually, I became so irritated with the fact that you couldn't see anything that I ditched Kecia (truly, she said I could go) and headed down the maze of stairs to the main floor. Now, you remember right that I was already misdirected by one staff person, well, it happened a second time as well. Unbelievable, but as I think about it, I'm kind of happy it happened.

I climbed down about 3 flights of stairs and I'm totally confused as to where I'm at. So, I ask two HOB staff where I can get a drink and they point me to a bar that's off to my left. So I head over and the first clue I should have had was the fact they were ALL men and all of them were in some form of suits. In other words... CLASSY. I walk up next to this nice looking man and ask the bartender for a drink. She starts to get it and the guy next to me asks me if I'm ok. I of course said no, I was frustrated, blah, blah, blah. Man, he had beautiful blue eyes... I digress, sorry. The bartender comes back and says she's sorry but she can't serve me. I'm like, ok, why and she tells me I don't have a VIP tag. Oh for the love of Pete. I'm in the VIP section! WTH is it with the House of Blues staff and their directions???

I just shook my head, apologized and told her I was misdirected and where should I go? Ugh, I wasn't embarrassed because obviously, and here is the most important part to consider... I DIDN'T LOOK LIKE A TYPICAL NASCAR FAN SO NO ONE QUESTIONED ME ENTERING THE VIP SECTION!! Just think about that one for a second!

So I busted ass out of there, back to the two HOB staff who were clueless, told them that this was the VIP section and they apologized and sent me down another couple flights of stairs. By the time I hit the main floor, I said screw the drink because they were just getting ready to introduce the 12 drivers. So, I stood back and just watched. Here are some pictures I snapped. Some are slightly fuzzy because it was dark and the lighting made it difficult for my camera to focus.


Jimmie Johnson & Tony Stewart

Clint Bowyer

Matt Kenseth & Kevin Harvick

Kasey Kahne

Dale Earnhardt Jr

Dale Earnhardt Jr & Matt Kenseth

Tony Stewart & Brad Keselowski

Jeff Gordon

Anyway, they were supposed to take questions from the fans but I think they only took 2 questions from the audience and a couple from facebook and twitter. I was thoroughly disappointed. They had the typical boring questions for the drivers and frankly I think even the drivers were bored with it. It wasn't until Clint Bowyer let loose with his awesome humor that the rest of the drivers seemed to relax and have fun.

Clint could have his own stand up comedy routine and the fans would go wild for it. I was amazed how many people were making comments about how they did not realize how funny that man was. The fans were eating it up and craving more! They were saying he needed to be the host for next years event. And without him, I don't believe the other drivers would have been as free to let loose with there own brand of humor.

At one point Clint pointed out that here we were in this awesome bar and they didn't have a cold one to drink. He just kept saying it in hopes that someone would bring out the beer. He named a few brands like Miller or Budweiser and suddenly he got a tweet from someone that reminded him that this event was sponsored by Coors Light. Clint had to tell us what a dumbass he was for screwing that up and shortly afterwards, they brought out trays full of Coors Light for the drivers to drink.

It's been a week now since the event so I can't remember everything I was going to say, but I will mention that they televised the event that following evening on Speed. Talk about disappointing! They took about an hour and a half worth of material and cut it down to about 35 minutes on tv. THEY CUT OUT ALL THE GOOD STUFF TOO! Well, not all but most of the humorous stuff. The took out all the funny things they said and the way they made fun of Kasey Kahne. They just ripped him up and by the end of the event all the fans were feeling sorry for him. The REAL stuff was gone and in it's place were all the cookie-cutter, sponsor loving, typical horse crap that we hear every week. Only the fans who attended really got to see the authentic event.

It was worth the 8 hours of driving and the 4.5 hours of standing to witness the 12 drivers on stage. It was fun to see how they interacted with each other. It was awesome when Jeff Gordon annouced to everyone what an awesome driver Tony Stewart is and when Clint picked on Jeff for being a member of the AARP. It was just neat to see them all at once and in such an intimate setting.

I hope they do it again next year because you can bet I'll be there!