America! **** Yeah! Daytona 500 2016
Discussion
Found myself reading about NASCAR the other day and then the next thing I know I'd managed to book flights and tickets to the race in February. Wine may have been involved. 
I'll be honest, I know little about the championship, but I'm pretty sure it'll be an awesome spectacle and a bloody good day. 
Has anyone else been? Anything I definitely need to see or do? I need a driver to root for - any recommendations?
P.S. I have also rented a huge pickup truck from Hertz for the trip. You need that for NASCAR, right?
I'll be honest, I know little about the championship, but I'm pretty sure it'll be an awesome spectacle and a bloody good day. Has anyone else been? Anything I definitely need to see or do? I need a driver to root for - any recommendations?
P.S. I have also rented a huge pickup truck from Hertz for the trip. You need that for NASCAR, right?
Went to the 2012 race that was cancelled before it began due to the rain but was re run on the Monday and was delayed after the track melted after Juan Pablo Montoya crashed into the jet car drying the track - the race didn't finish until well past midnight.
We never got to see the race or see any cars turn a wheel so we were very disappointed. However, we got to see Lenny Kravitz, sign the start line and walk around the pits. The atmosphere was electric before the start.
So based on our experience, get there early and take full advantage of everything that's going on. Be prepared for lengthy delays (they don't race in the rain). Getting out of the car park took us 2 hours but that may be due to the rain.
I think you'll have a great time but you should have hired a convertible like a Mustang or Camaro.
We never got to see the race or see any cars turn a wheel so we were very disappointed. However, we got to see Lenny Kravitz, sign the start line and walk around the pits. The atmosphere was electric before the start.
So based on our experience, get there early and take full advantage of everything that's going on. Be prepared for lengthy delays (they don't race in the rain). Getting out of the car park took us 2 hours but that may be due to the rain.
I think you'll have a great time but you should have hired a convertible like a Mustang or Camaro.
We went for the 2013 race and have booked our tickets for next year's race. Can't wait!.
It's an absolutely fantastic experience and will most probably be unlike anything else you've experienced. The noise is fantastic. The atmosphere in the build up is incredible, you can almost feel the tension on the warm up laps.
Whereabouts are you staying? Make sure you leave plenty of time getting there and into the speedway. The queues were huge getting into the car park, we must have been sat in traffic for at least a couple of hours. Next time we're going to leave much earlier.
Shuttle busses run from the main car parks to the speedway although there are numerous temporary car parks in the retail outlets etc on the way in (depending on where you're coming from I guess).
Getting out wasn't too bad although we did leave quite late. I should imagine if you left straight after the race you'd be queuing for hours! We had a wander around the merchandise stands and the outside of the speedway.
Dale Earnhard, Jr (#88). Is the most popular driver and would be a good one to follow as a neutral. The crowd go wild for him and it's good to join in and soak that atmosphere up.
It's an absolutely fantastic experience and will most probably be unlike anything else you've experienced. The noise is fantastic. The atmosphere in the build up is incredible, you can almost feel the tension on the warm up laps.
Whereabouts are you staying? Make sure you leave plenty of time getting there and into the speedway. The queues were huge getting into the car park, we must have been sat in traffic for at least a couple of hours. Next time we're going to leave much earlier.
Shuttle busses run from the main car parks to the speedway although there are numerous temporary car parks in the retail outlets etc on the way in (depending on where you're coming from I guess).
Getting out wasn't too bad although we did leave quite late. I should imagine if you left straight after the race you'd be queuing for hours! We had a wander around the merchandise stands and the outside of the speedway.
Dale Earnhard, Jr (#88). Is the most popular driver and would be a good one to follow as a neutral. The crowd go wild for him and it's good to join in and soak that atmosphere up.
We went to our first NASCAR at Charlotte in 2013; it is a hell of an experience and unlike anything I have seen here. Noise is great and the atmosphere in the crowd is electric - very tribal but we found everybody incredibly friendly when they heard our accents . The racing ? It was OK but tbh I preferred qualifying , especially as I could then sit on front row of seats . People may babble on about all the overtaking but it is nothing like as exciting as watching two cars side by side outbraking each other , as in European racing. Manouevres can last a lap- or longer- and watching cars switch from high to low lines is entertaining enough but I'd rather watch a pack of Formula Fords jostle into a corner if I am honest.
But, cynically deployed yellow flags aside , it is a wonderful day or night out and the US approach to customer care is fantastic and makes most UK circuits look like total amateurs . Most memorable of all is the sheer sense of occasion and that simply obscene noise of a pack of V8s at speed
But, cynically deployed yellow flags aside , it is a wonderful day or night out and the US approach to customer care is fantastic and makes most UK circuits look like total amateurs . Most memorable of all is the sheer sense of occasion and that simply obscene noise of a pack of V8s at speed
Went in 2014. Really enjoyed it. We stayed in Orlando and hired a car to go to the truck race on the Friday and the Nationwide race on the Saturday.
Sunday we caught a coach to the track so we didn't have to battle traffic and we could drink. Turned out to be good plan as the rain delayed the race for 6 hours so beer it was
Sunday we caught a coach to the track so we didn't have to battle traffic and we could drink. Turned out to be good plan as the rain delayed the race for 6 hours so beer it was
I've attended the 500 many times and live in the area.
Your questions are pretty general and easily answered here:
www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com
Let me know if you need anything specific (accommodation, parking, drive-times, dining, boozing, tit-bars, staying out of jail, surviving the infield etc. etc.)
Your questions are pretty general and easily answered here:
www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com
Let me know if you need anything specific (accommodation, parking, drive-times, dining, boozing, tit-bars, staying out of jail, surviving the infield etc. etc.)
Thanks for all of the replies, guys! I'm looking forward to it even more now. I'm staying in Orlando for a few days before, then staying in Daytona from the Friday to watch the evening truck race as well as the 500 on the Sunday. Not sure what Daytona Beach itself is like, but I can always drive elsewhere for days out if it's not great.
In truth, Daytona Beach is a bit squalid. Being a venue for The Rolex, the 500, Bike Weeks, Spring Break, the Coke night race and Biketoberfest, unless you are prepared to pay a premium, the local hotels are a bit seedy and spunk-splashed.
Also the local populace, welcoming as they are, get a little tiresome after a while. Undoubtedly friendly, their somewhat one-dimensional, cackling Miller Lite-soaked humor and dentally challenged, melanomic and sweaty demeanor kind of gets on some folks' nerves in the end.
There is a VERY good bar - The Iron Horse Saloon on route A1a just to the north of Daytona that I would recommend without hesitation, provided you'd like to sample a slice of good ol' southern (Volusia) culture. For days out, I would also recommend St Augustine to the north and Kennedy Space Center and Cocoa Beach to the south.
There is also excellent clubman drag racing on Friday evenings at Orlando Speed World.
Where are you staying in O'town? I am happy to share some dining/boozing ideas if appropriate - just suggest your preferences.
Also the local populace, welcoming as they are, get a little tiresome after a while. Undoubtedly friendly, their somewhat one-dimensional, cackling Miller Lite-soaked humor and dentally challenged, melanomic and sweaty demeanor kind of gets on some folks' nerves in the end.
There is a VERY good bar - The Iron Horse Saloon on route A1a just to the north of Daytona that I would recommend without hesitation, provided you'd like to sample a slice of good ol' southern (Volusia) culture. For days out, I would also recommend St Augustine to the north and Kennedy Space Center and Cocoa Beach to the south.
There is also excellent clubman drag racing on Friday evenings at Orlando Speed World.
Where are you staying in O'town? I am happy to share some dining/boozing ideas if appropriate - just suggest your preferences.
I'm jealous
The four restrictor plate races (two at Daytona including the 500 and two at Talladega) are nothing like the other 32 races in the championship, or any other kind of motor racing one will ever see. The engine / aero rules specific to those tracks make it impossible for any one driver to gap the field so they all end up running in a big pack, as it's something like 10mph faster that way than running alone. Daytona didn't used to be like that as the surface was old and bumpy so once the tyres wore a bit it became a handling track and the field would gradually spread out, but since they relaid the surface a few years ago it is very much a "drafting" track like Talladega.
If you haven't seen it before you will either love it, or not get it at all.
Good call whoever said follow the 88 as a neutral, he's not only the most popular driver but also almost certainly the best currently competing at this type of racing and can usually be relied on for a few "OMG! How did he do THAT?" moves in plate races.
The four restrictor plate races (two at Daytona including the 500 and two at Talladega) are nothing like the other 32 races in the championship, or any other kind of motor racing one will ever see. The engine / aero rules specific to those tracks make it impossible for any one driver to gap the field so they all end up running in a big pack, as it's something like 10mph faster that way than running alone. Daytona didn't used to be like that as the surface was old and bumpy so once the tyres wore a bit it became a handling track and the field would gradually spread out, but since they relaid the surface a few years ago it is very much a "drafting" track like Talladega.
If you haven't seen it before you will either love it, or not get it at all.
Good call whoever said follow the 88 as a neutral, he's not only the most popular driver but also almost certainly the best currently competing at this type of racing and can usually be relied on for a few "OMG! How did he do THAT?" moves in plate races.
Thanks again for the replies, guys - not long to go now!
Thank you in particular to Matt Harper; I'll definitely give the Iron Horse Saloon and drag racing a go. When I'm in Orlando I'm staying in one of the Universal Resort hotels (really must look up which one!). Fire away with any suggestions of places to eat / drink. My wife and I are into country music if that helps!
Thank you in particular to Matt Harper; I'll definitely give the Iron Horse Saloon and drag racing a go. When I'm in Orlando I'm staying in one of the Universal Resort hotels (really must look up which one!). Fire away with any suggestions of places to eat / drink. My wife and I are into country music if that helps!
I was at Daytona over the weekend for the Rolex 24 and the new Daytona Rising project has produced a huge grandstand! I have witnessed the rising over the last couple of years and it is very impressive. Last year at the Rolex I actually went all the way up to the top of the stands on the very far right as they were finished and the view is amazing.......it is also extremely windy, well it was on that day.
I attended the Daytona 500 in 2014 the year that the race was stopped after 38 laps because of epic rain / tornados / thunder / lightning the full nine yards. Sat in the back stretch grandstands with friends getting absolutely drenched for about an hour before finally giving in and heading back to my 4X4 Dodge Ram truck which promptly sunk up to its' axles when I tried to move it out of the swamp (sorry car park) over behind the airport! Had to be towed out. Got home (3 hour drive) and managed to watch the rest of the race which didn't resume until probably 9 p.m. on the Sunday evening.
The race has also been postponed to a Monday night once in the last few years because the Sunday was completely rained off.
So my advice would be take a coat and sunscreen you might need both on the same day!
Daytona Beach is fantastic, great to take a walk on the beach. Ormond Beach just north is also a great place to eat, try Lulu's Oceanside Grill (it isn't oceanside BTW) but the food is very good or at least it was when I ate there last year.
I attended the Daytona 500 in 2014 the year that the race was stopped after 38 laps because of epic rain / tornados / thunder / lightning the full nine yards. Sat in the back stretch grandstands with friends getting absolutely drenched for about an hour before finally giving in and heading back to my 4X4 Dodge Ram truck which promptly sunk up to its' axles when I tried to move it out of the swamp (sorry car park) over behind the airport! Had to be towed out. Got home (3 hour drive) and managed to watch the rest of the race which didn't resume until probably 9 p.m. on the Sunday evening.
The race has also been postponed to a Monday night once in the last few years because the Sunday was completely rained off.
So my advice would be take a coat and sunscreen you might need both on the same day!
Daytona Beach is fantastic, great to take a walk on the beach. Ormond Beach just north is also a great place to eat, try Lulu's Oceanside Grill (it isn't oceanside BTW) but the food is very good or at least it was when I ate there last year.
I was there over christmas and it is an awsome place. Go on the tour if you can, standing next to the banking makes you apreciate how steep it really is. TV flattens it massively. Still, nothing compared to Silverstone / Brands / Spa, it is just an oval after all in the middle of knowhere!
I also echo what others have said. Daytona is a dive and dont go to the beach at night, even if it is the "worlds greatest"
.
I am definately going to do this next time I go.
http://www.drivepetty.com/
I also echo what others have said. Daytona is a dive and dont go to the beach at night, even if it is the "worlds greatest"
. I am definately going to do this next time I go.
http://www.drivepetty.com/
Every UK petrolhead has to see NASCAR once in their life,there is nothing like it anywhere else in the world.
The site and sound of 46 cars going past,not far from your seat,door handle to door handle,bumper to bumper at 190+mph is an unforgettable experience.The US fans are great,so friendly,especially when they realise you have come all the way "from little ole England",they go out of their way with info and answers.
I went in 98 when the late great Dale Earnhardt won his only Daytona 500.We also booked a Richard Petty Experience drive at Disney Speedway for the Monday after the race,but it was pissing with rain and cancelled.What a disappointment,we were flying back Tuesday so could not have a re-run.(money refunded).
The site and sound of 46 cars going past,not far from your seat,door handle to door handle,bumper to bumper at 190+mph is an unforgettable experience.The US fans are great,so friendly,especially when they realise you have come all the way "from little ole England",they go out of their way with info and answers.
I went in 98 when the late great Dale Earnhardt won his only Daytona 500.We also booked a Richard Petty Experience drive at Disney Speedway for the Monday after the race,but it was pissing with rain and cancelled.What a disappointment,we were flying back Tuesday so could not have a re-run.(money refunded).
looks unlikely you will will see Tony Stewart.....
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nascar/2016/0...
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nascar/2016/0...
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