I am nearing the move date (6 days...days!). The house is on the market. Most of the packing is done for now. And this is the last of my weekends here in Winston Salem.
Because this is our last weekend here, we made plans, had an amazing going away party Friday (more on that later), went biking, and said some goodbyes already. Seth insisted that we fit one particular activity into our agenda this weekend, one that I had to experience before leaving, the Bowman Gray races.
For those of you not from Winston, Bowman Gray is the oldest sanctioned NASCAR racetrack still running. It is 1/4 mile track that 20+ cars fly around at 100 mph. I grew up hating any motorized vehicles (other than cars with seat belts and air bags), and never watched NASCAR. Because of that, I guess I don't get the sport, and even as I talk to people here who love it, I just can't get into it.
However, it all changed for me last night! Of course the roar of 20 cars driving past, vibrating your entire chest, is exciting, and the chunks of rubber flying from the track to your hair is also amazing, but it was totally the crowd that suckered me right in. NASCAR tends to attract some interesting people, a whole lot of bud light, and a constant cloud of cigarette smoke. The profanities, the middle fingers, the thick southern draws- Seth was right, it was something I had to experience for myself. Just amazing.
And while I did a hefty amount of people watching, I did learn a bit about racing in general and my respect for the sport has increased.
This is a picture of the chain race. As you can see, the above cars are chained together- the front car has the engine/gas, and that back car has the breaks- you can just imagine the entertainment there! The cars are all from the local junk yard, so in lieu of the blog's purpose, I cheered for these drivers extra hard!
**North Carolina, you have been amazing to us,
and I'm so glad to experienced something so integral to who you are**
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