Boogity, Boogity, Boogity... Let's Go Racing!

I often tease my friends that I possess "white trash tendencies." Yes, I'm a upper-middle class Jew from the metro DC area, who has never lived farther south than Burke, VA. Yet, I often find myself appreciating some of the cultural events traditionally associated with the southern, dare I say, less-educated portion of America.

Among my hidden passions are a fondness for professional wrestling. I make a point to watch WWE Raw pretty much every week, and have now attended the Verizon Center 3 times to see my favorite "stars" in action. (and yes I know its fake).

But the point of this post is my larger and more devout passion... NASCAR! I am a NASCAR fan. I remember when I was young, my grandmother used to watch racing, but I think she just liked the sound of the engines. So I had some idea who the drivers were. But my true appreciation came from my previous job, when I had the opportunity to work trackside promotion at several races. I must say, you haven't lived till you've spent three full days in all of NASCAR's glory, interacting with race fans who've been camped out in their RVs all week drinking Bud and Miller Lite and who will do anything for free t-shirts, frisbees, or pizza coupons.

After working the events for the weekend, I was fortunate enough to be given tickets as well. I have now sat in both the grandstand with the masses, and the luxury suites with the VIPs. I'm pretty sure its impossible to be sober in the grandstand, I hadn't even started drinking yet, and I was getting a contact buzz from the collective breath of my fellow fans.

The great thing about the grandstands is the array of loyalties you see. NASCAR is like a college football game, but instead of 2 passionate fan bases, you have 43... and each one hates several others. Jeff Gordon fan? Then you must hate Dale Jr, Tony Stewart, and Matt Kenseth... Junior your guy? Then you clearly can't stand Jimmie Johnson... and they're just as vocal, despite the fact that the engines drown out anything short of a nuclear detonation.

VIP suites have their benefits as well... for starters, the free food and booze is a definite plus. Additionally, have windows in front of you, muffles the sound enough to be able to talk to the person next to you. And there's the possibility of meeting important people, like NFL Hall of Famer Jim Kelly who happened to sit next to me in Charlotte last year, (yes, I'm name dropping).

At any rate, in case you were wondering who my driver is, that would be the Home Depot #20... driven by Smoke, A.K.A. Tony Stewart, who conveniently drives for Joe Gibbs Racing. So my sports allegiances continue to line up with my Redskins.

Gatorade Duels today at 2 and 4pm to set the lineup for Redneck Christmas Day! Daytona 500 baby!!!