TALLADEGA — When I was younger, my favorite movie was Cars.
That has continued as I’ve gotten older, my favorite Disney ride is Test Track, and I still love the movie Cars but have grown to like other movies including Talladega Nights. So when Talladega Superspeedway media relations sent out an email saying that local media members could ride around the track earlier this week, I felt like I was in the Talladega Nights scene when the crew chief asks the crew “Does anybody want to go fast?”
Like Ricky Bobby, my hand immediately went up as I wanted to go fast too, sending a text over to my boss to run the story by him. I got the OK and I thought I was ready for the races but later found out I wasn’t ready for how fast I’d be going Wednesday.
It wasn’t 200 mph like the Cup Series hits going around Talladega Superspeedway but still 170 mph, way faster than I’ve ever gone. The experience is apart of the NASCAR Racing Experience that Talladega hosts throughout the year. It was everything I was hoping for since that email.
I started by climbing through the cars’ window, something I’ve always wanted to do but was worried my frame wouldn’t allow it. The climb in was an easy fit and once the crew got me buckled up, my driver Mark asked if I was ready and off we went speeding toward the first turn.
My first thought was “Oh my God, this is amazing,” followed by how are we going to make that turn at this speed. Luckily the turns here are banked 33 degrees to allow for the speed.
The experience was just three laps around the historic track but I gained an appreciation for the track that I didn’t have before, and maybe only one gained entering the giant banked corners at more than double the posted highway speed limit.
Later those thoughts circulated between how I was glad I hadn’t had lunch ahead of the rollercoaster-like ride of my life to how much fun I was having. Afterward, I felt I accomplished what many of dream of, going fast around a NASCAR track.
It was everything you’d hope a race car ridealong experience would be, especially to younger Max who’d think I have the coolest job in the world covering sports around Alabama.
His first and probably only thought at the start would have been quoting Lightning McQueen’s iconic prerace talk: “Speed, I am Speed.”
On Wednesday, I was speed.
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