It is hard for me to believe, but here we are again at the end of March. Spring is in the air (other than the reality of winter and snow sneaking around us Northerners), and the sports calendar is shifting. For a general sports fan like myself, this is March Madness, and the NCAA basketball tournament is in full swing. The Major League Baseball season is not far away either (within 2 weeks). For a RACING fan, this is also the return of short-track racing. There is no better short track to go to than Bristol Motor Speedway.
Thinking of Bristol got me thinking of favorite tracks. Based on ticket sales / availability, Bristol is a perennial favorite for many people. It is arguably the toughest ticket in NASCAR to get, and people without tickets will pay high amounts to get them, especially for the August night race. Bristol was the second track I ever attended in person, and it quickly became my favorite. It probably didn't hurt that I saw one of the "classic" races there: the 2002 Sharpie 500, when Jeff Gordon bumped Rusty Wallace in the final laps to claim victory. Gordon hasn't been to victory lane in Thunder Valley since ... but the action has remained intense there.
Although Bristol is probably my #1 favorite, picking against some other venues is difficult as well. Tracks at which I have seen races have included: Charlotte (great place), Talladega (great racing), Michigan (my experience wasn't great, but the facility is first-class), Darlington (amenities may be lacking but the racing is fantastic), Richmond (reminds me of Bristol - great racing action and nice facilities), Dover (the mile-sized version of Bristol -- I love the place), and Chicagoland (typical 1.5 mile setup -- great facility, pretty good racing). As you can see, I have generally good things to say about each ... although I have some "less than desirable" things to say about each as well. Traffic to and from each of the venues is very different, although usually difficult in general.
What makes a track a favorite? For those who haven't attended in person, it cannot be the roar of the engines, the closeness to the action, the "smells" and the "sounds" in the air ... but the common denominator is the racing itself. Television does not do a lot of the tracks justice ... although the better ones shine through. Although I have never been to a race at Atlanta, the racing there looks phenomenal and produces strong finishes. I know I would like Daytona because I know what Talladega was like. In the same vein, Kansas or Las Vegas would probably look a lot like Chicagoland or Charlotte ... not to say that they would be bad, but I probably wouldn't find them necessarily unique. No track I have seen compares to Bristol, even though Martinsville would be interesting as well but lacks the banking I like. Dover, with the comparable banking and concrete surface, has the racing characteristics I like as well.
Enough about what I like, though; to each his own. What makes a track your favorite? Do you have multiple favorites (for similar or for different reasons)? I personally have a thing for the short tracks, but I must admit the superspeedways are exciting, too (and the speed cannot be appreciated without being in person).
So, what's your favorite?
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