Kansas NASCAR photos

[danc]

Last weekend was my annual trip with the boys to Kansas Speedway for the NASCAR race. With all of the driving and four days at the track, it ends up being a week long affair. The great weather, food, racing and good times with good friends all added up to a fun filled week.

 

This year we upgraded our rental motor home to a top of the line machine. It had two pop outs, one on each side, which when opened up made it feel as big as a dance hall inside. Just an incredible machine.

 

 

We literally have one of the top 10 best setups available at the track. We are just about dead center of the backstretch. The track is our front yard for four days. Can you pick us out??

 

 

This is a view of our setup from behind. Our neighbors are a bunch of great guys from Kansas City. We've been neighbors for race weekend since the track opened eight years ago. Every year one of us backs our motor home in so that our awnings open up to one large covered area. Party central!!

 

 

I took a couple of HDR's of the track. I liked this one best.

 

 

Then it was time for the driver intros. I was happy to see my guy, Jimmie Johnson on the pole.

 

 

Shortly before the race, this gigantic Chinook helicopter land on the track, and the pace car drove out of the back of it. Incredible!!

 

 

After the national anthem, that same helicopter, along with two smaller ones, performed the flyover.

 

 

I didn't notice from a distance, but when the two smaller helicopters flew overhead, this is what I saw.

 

 

The pace car then lead the cars around the track before the green flag dropped. Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin lined up one and two.

 

 

I got a few shots of some of the chase contenders before the green flag. It's almost impossible to get close up shots of these guys when they're running full speed. By the time you find then in the viewfinder, they're gone.

 

 

 

 

 

Anyways, the race finally went green and Jimmie lead the first bunch of laps.

 

 

It was a long green flag run and Jimmie eventually got shuffled back a few spots while Martin took the lead.

 

 

Then it was Casey Mears' turn to run up front for a while. This is how they lined up after a mid race caution.

 

 

My buddy Pat loves to cook and kept us well fed during the race.

 

 

Jr. didn't have a great day. Here he is running in 15th.

 

 

Eventually Jimmie got back out in front and he looked like he was going to walk away with the win with about 10 laps to go, until home town boy Carl Edwards started gaining on him.

 

 

The last lap was unbelievable. Edwards gave it everything he had. As they approached the last two turns, Edwards shot past JJ on the inside. He made JJ look like he was standing still. But he had tried to defy the laws of physics and shot up the track and into the wall and JJ took the lead once again to the checkers. Many fans called it one of the best finishes in quite some time, including myself. I was too much in awe to get any photos of the last turns.

 

Jimmie always runs good in Kansas but has always had a problem of some kind along the way. It was his first win there. And I was glad to be there to see it.

 

[Wild]

Cool post Dan! Looks like a really nice track and ya have to love the Canadian flag pic haha. How much would that motor home cost for the trip?

[b2kptbo]

Very cool, musta been a great time...

[Deano]

Great report and pics Dan. That's doing it in style. Loved the finish, Carl Edwards said he tried to win like in the video games, but his car slowed down much more than he expected. LOL Was a great race, glad you had great weather and a great time. Looking forward to Vegas in March, that's gonna be my next NASCAR race we're attending.

[Whopper]

Great pics Dan, glad to hear you had a great time

[Bernie]

Great pics Dan! Would have loved to see that finish at the track.

Everyone should go to a NASCAR race at least once Dan. Lots of fun and great people.

[Mike the Pike]

Thanks for posting Dan It looks like an exciting place .I have an opportunity to go to New Hampshire with my boy in July .

 

I think I will have to go since I have never been to a Nascar event.

[danc]

Thanks Guys..

 

Mike. Go to New Hampshire. You won't regret it. The entire experience of attending a NASCAR race is incredible. It's so much more than just a race. Just as Bernie said.

 

Deano. Have fun in Vegas. I really like the track now that they have redone it. Apparently Carl can bump draft in the corners on the video game too. But not on the track, as we saw last weekend.

 

Wild. The motor home cost us about $1400.00 for the week. We are allowed 10 persons at our spot, and we bring 10, so my share of the motor home was about $140.00. The price of a decent hotel room for one night. We pull a trailer too, and some of us sleep in the trailer.

[Wild]

Jeeze you can't beat that deal it make a trip like this really worthwhile.

[danc]

Keep in mind that you can't just book a spot like this one that we have. There's a long waiting list. We more or less own it, until we stop paying or we get kicked out (long story but it almost happened once). When the track first opened, 8 years ago, we applied for a motor home spot. We got picked fairly early and picked as close to the middle of the backstretch that we could. About 5 or 7 spots off. Our spot costs us about 3 grand with 10 admissions maximum. So we bring 10 people. All of our costs are divided by 10. Add in the motor home rental, gas and food, this trip costs me $700.00 plus spending money. Cheap, cheap, cheap for one of the best seats in the house and a week long vacation. When I look across the track and see the 80,000 people that are jammed in the grand stands, I realize how lucky we are. We are within a few steps of coolers of beer, a bar b que, washroom facilities, a tv for replays, and even an air conditioned place for a nap if you're so inclined. We don't leave the track until Monday morning, so there's no traffic worries either. I don't know how a bunch of rednecks from Thunder Bay ever swung such a deal, but I'll be going on this adventure until the day that I die. It's definitely one of the highlights of the year for me. Which reminds me. They already want our deposit for next years race by the end of the month. Now that's just criminal....

[fishindevil]

it must just be amazing to be at a nascar race with a big motorhome like that,great pics,and car shots too !!!!

[Uncle Buck]

Wicked Report Dan

 

can't explain the difference in watching a race on TV and in Real life, there's just no comparison!!

 

amazing pics