More Than A Race

Editor’s Note: Jeremy Sellers, he of Jerm’s Joint Racing Pub, is really on to something. A NASCAR event really is more than just a race. The schedule is littered with iconic tracks that have special meaning to fans and their families.

While it’s the Daytona 500 for Sellers and his family, it could very well NASCAR’s Mardi Gras, Talladega, for you. For others, it might be Bristol with its full contact racing, Indianapolis with its historic significance for auto racing, and for others, it may be the pastoral setting of Watkins Glen.

Where is it for you? Read on, as Jeremy shares a more personal look into attending a NASCAR race, and then be prepared to offer up your own stories if you have them….

Sure, the Daytona 500 was an excellent race this year, and produced some of the most excitement we have seen on the circuit in quite some time. Yet, with all of that aside, this year, it had a special meaning for me. My two step sons, aged 18 and 19 respectively were able to get away to make the trip. One, looking towards the US Army when he graduates high school in June, and the other, still wet behind the wheels and just married, partook in the festivities known as speedweeks.

The future soldier had made the journey with me last year, but this year was pretty special as we may not be making the pilgrimage together next year, or for several years to come. The oldest, it is doubtful his wife will let him out of her sight again to accompany me next year, and this was his first rodeo. Regardless, it was a true bonding experience that I will always remember, and throw in my best friend who residess down in St. Augustine where we stay, it was an experience that I would not trade for anything at this point.

It leaves next year in question as to who the crew will be that goes with me. The wife and I are thinking of throwing our eggs into one basket, and making two weeks of it, but the jury is still out. Traditionally, at least for a while, I believe it is safe to say that this was our last "hoorah" until we can all put our heads together again.

I learned that I am not too old to play video games at the arcade, shoot spit wads through a straw, and munch on some really greasy pizza as I did as a youth. It was great to revisit the fact that age is a state of mind, and we only really have to grow up if we want to. There’s no law on the books, or some right of passage that states we have to become prudish after a certain age. You can still climb to the top of a lighthouse and make fun of people looking up at you, and  still laugh when someone in your crew farts so loud you can blame it on someone else in the vicinity. I will remember this years race for more than the race, but yet for one more time, I could be an ignorant adolescent and not care what anyone thought as I did when I made my first pilgrimage to Daytona when I was 18 years old.

Proof that you can step away from reality every once in a while and not feel guilty about it. Conduct yourself like an immature jackass and come out feeling at the top of your game. So yes, I did indeed enjoy the race this year, but the fringe benefits were as equally awesome!