Summer Road Trip Volume 2: NASCAR at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

New Hampshire is a beautiful place, made all the better by the sound of racing. Saturday NASCAR race days are listed highly in my top deals of the century list, $35 for three races this past July 14th. Parking on Saturday is much easier than Sunday; we arrived around noon and parked two cars for free on track grounds. As with most race tracks, you can bring in just about anything you can fit in a 14 inch or less cooler, as long as it's not in a glass bottle. Around here that means gallons of Narragansett Light. 

We caught the end of practice before the first race, the Whelen Modified series. The cars will look a bit odd to those unfamiliar with them, but they're as fast and exciting as their Sprint and Nationwide Cup cousins. Local Mike Stefanik won by the incredible margin of .003 of a second, a photo finish.

Shortly after came the main event, the Nationwide F.W. Webb 200, the fastest 200 miles you'll see outside of an aircraft. In some of the most exciting racing I've ever seen in person, aided by a slick post-rain track that had cars close, there were mercifully still only a few cautions. Deafening screams from the crowd make watching races at the track so much more exciting than on television and it seemed impossible to look away. As a huge Mopar fan was I thrilled to see the two Dodges finish First and Forth, a win by Brad Keselowski and an incredible race run by Sam Hornish Jr. Also of note, the "Dash for Cash" bonus was claimed by baby-super-star Austin Dillon, whose popularity seems to be growing as quickly as his list of achievements.

A huge bonus, for the first time Global Rally Cross was run at NHMS. This meant an appearance by the Top Gear USA truck, as Tanner Foust joined SPEED's Rutledge Wood at the track.
Like watching cars on the internet going fast sideways? Then you're likely familiar with Ken Block, who despite some bad luck to start put on a great show. One of my favorite drivers of all time, Sam Hubinette, ran the Rally as well, finishing second in a Saab 9-3. He'd probably have won if he'd brought his Dodge Challenger or Viper, as the win went to Travis Pastrana in a Dodge Dart. Pastrana also ran the Nationwide race, an incredible show of endurance and will after wrecking his Toyota and finishing 31st only hours before winning the Rally event.

In short, if you live within driving distance of Loudon and you haven't been to a race there, gear up, Spring Cup racing returns September 23rd and it's worth every penny. You may want to consider a bus trip or shuttle in for that one though; the Sylvania 300 draws huge crowds by mid morning. Tickets for that race are $39-110, and I'd recommend going for the cheap General Admission, you can see the whole track from just about anywhere and you'll want to save your money for beer and foot long corn dogs.