With the flip of a switch, 'Dega takes breath away
By
Duane Cross, NASCAR.COM
December 14, 2009
11:25 AM EST
<!--startclickprintexclude-->
type size: <strong onclick="cnnChangeTextSize(1);">+ <strong onclick="cnnChangeTextSize(-1);">-
<!--endclickprintexclude-->
//
TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Weekend warriors. Speed merchants. Thrill seekers. They all were on site at Talladega Superspeedway, the 2.66-mile beast that dominates the tranquil landscape along I-20 between Anniston and Birmingham.
Cruise along I-20 -- from South Carolina to Texas -- and it is Talladega that will be the lingering memory of your drive. It literally looms -- reminding passersby of its enormity, if by no other way than the massive United States flag that whips in the wind high above Turns 3 and 4.
<!--startclickprintexclude-->
Start your engine
Whether it is with Dale Jarrett, the NASCAR Experience or Richard Petty, weekend warriors have been driving by the seat of their pants for years to embrace the thrill their on-track heroes live by.
Atlanta, Bristol, Charlotte -- pick a track, most likely there is a driving experience available. The DJRA is even branching into Canada in 2010, offering the adventure at MoSport International Speedway near Toronto.
<!--endclickprintexclude-->
That flag -- for me, a simple reminder of what is good -- was my focal point. Drivers talk of "hitting their marks" on race day. That flag was my mark; once around the track and only nine more heart-beating-out-of-my-chest laps remained. Twice around and there were only eight to go. And so on, the countdown continued ...
The Dale Jarrett Racing Adventure is based in Talladega. If you're going to build a company around an "adventure," there are worse places to have as a home track than 'Dega. Race fans flock to Talladega twice each season to be a part of 1,000 of the most nerve-wracking, white-knuckle racing NASCAR has to offer.
Adrenaline junkies also go to Talladega to face the beast, head-on, behind the wheel of a stock car, which is how I again found myself on its hallowed grounds.
Talladega is close to my heart. It is the track nearest to where I grew up, in Aberdeen, Miss. The first race I attended was the 1984 Talladega 500; Cale Yarborough started from the pole, Dale Earnhardt won the race. I was at 'Dega for Bobby Allison's win in '86. I was at Talladega in '93, when Earnhardt bumped-drafted Rusty Wallace into a 10-revolution barrel roll. I was at 'Dega when Mark Martin won the Winston 500 in '97, when Bobby Hamilton won the Talladega 500 in 2001, and when Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the EA Sports 500 in '02 -- the only three caution-free races at the track.
I know my way to County Road 399 -- Speedway Boulevard -- and I know my way around the camp sites. (If you're going to 'Dega, forego the hotel and pitch a tent. It's just part of the experience, believe me.) When the crew was filming Days of Thunder, I wrote "Elvis is at 'Dega" on the rear window of my 1989 Pontiac Grand Prix; apparently it made its way to the cutting room floor. I've walked the garages, watched from the media center as well as the press box, the stands and the infield.
But none of that prepared me for diving into Turn 1 with the unleashed roar of an engine piercing my ears.
<!--startclickprintexclude-->
The heavy equipment doing demolition work along the frontstretch is a blur from inside the car.
<!--endclickprintexclude--> <!--startclickprintexclude-->
"This is life-changing for a lot of people," says Ronda Robertson, COO of DJRA. "I think they come out thinking, 'I'm gonna drive fast.' When they get here, the whole experience is something they only dreamt about. Coming through the tunnel, especially at Talladega, they are in awe.
"Ninety-five percent of the people have never been through the tunnel, and those of us in NASCAR forget that -- just how awe-inspiring driving through the infield is. And then it all happens on pit road, the same place where the NASCAR drivers are on Sundays.
"Everything we do, from the kids yelling 'Gentlemen, start your engines' to the flag ceremony ... our crew is chosen very carefully. We're a family. Obviously everyone knows the Jarrett family -- we exemplify Dale Jarrett and, more importantly, Ned Jarrett.
"It is life-changing -- they come out to go fast, but they don't realize it's not only about going fast. It's about the entire experience.
"We want people to relax, have a good time. It is very intimidating to do this. It's all about bringing everybody in, making them comfortable and embracing the entire family -- people have tailgate parties and it's a racing event. It's about our customer and their dream.
"And nobody comes to this track in a wheelchair that we don't offer them a ride -- any track. We're going ask, if they're physically capable. We had a guy one day who couldn't get in a race car, so we took him out in a Dually. The crew loves that as much as the customer does."
<!--endclickprintexclude-->
The DJRA crew goes out of its way to put its drivers at ease. Coffee and doughnuts greet you upon entry into the credential room. Crew members mill around, chatting with drivers-to-be, answering questions, offering assurances. A short trolley ride to the drivers' meeting is when the butterflies begin awakening inside that part of your gut that no man openly admits to having. This is the time, riding along the frontstrech, when you realize there isn't a flat spot on the track; it's banked from can to can't. It just looks fast, even when cars aren't zooming past.
(Note to NASCAR: Call the DJRA, ask for Bill and hire him for the awards ceremony; he's infinitely more entertaining than Frank Caliendo. He makes taking your life into your own hands at break-neck speeds seem second nature.)
The moment is fleeting, like most moments in time at Talladega, because it's the blink of an eye between suiting up, smiling for the camera while climbing in, being strapped down and flipping the switch.
Now, try to remember: Thumb up. Thumb down. Palm flat. Point left. Point right. Fist. The hand signals -- and the driver's ability to hold the line at speed ("hitting your marks") -- are paramount.
The flag was one of the mental marks I made. It was gone by Lap 3. (Note to self: It's just not right to be hurtling along, looking down such steep banking.) Instead, I became focused on the bright red "TURN 1," "TURN 2," "TURN 3" and "TURN 4" painted on the entrances to the turns. I also remember a Sunoco sign and the blur of heavy equipment doing demolition work along the frontstretch. And those white lines that look smoothly curved through the turns -- nope, they are straight and at an angle, an optical illusion that truly brings the speed into your thought process.
Four laps into motoring around Talladega Superspeedway, mere feet from the wall and diving into either Turn 1 or Turn 3, it is then that you realize there is quietness within the car. Sure, the engine is screaming at 4,000-plus RPMs, the wind is whipping around the car -- but within the car, feet matted to the floor, G-forces pulling hard to the left ... there is a serenity.
This is when you know your heart is at work, pounding against your chest which is strapped very tightly within a five-point harness. This moment -- the rush of adrenaline, the pumping of testosterone -- is why you're here. It's at once exhilarating and scared-the-hell-out-of.
If nothing else, the experience drives home the fact that racing nose-to-tail in a tightly bunched pack of 43 cars is not for the faint of heart -- not even for those trailing the pack. While at any moment you can say uncle and pull to the apron during a driving experience, taking a hard left during a Cup Series race is not an option -- not one that a driver makes willingly, at least.
The next time "Gentlemen, start your engines" echoes across Talladega, I will have a greater appreciation for those 43 drivers, strapped in and hearts pounding. For a moment in time, Talladega reminded me that I was alive -- and glad to be after a remarkable 175 mph adventure.
Leaving the track, the flag was wafting in the wind and even more beautiful than I remembered.
The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.
; "NASCAR")
button beside categories below to add/edit content
