SIDELINES: Daytona International Speedway

The family and I recently took a vacation to Florida. I had a couple free days during the trip and decided to use one of those to pay a visit to a motorsports mecca, if you will, in Daytona International Speedway. I talked about my experience on a podcast I posted earlier this week, which you can listen to here if you haven't already:

The excursion included a tour of the speedway followed by a visit to the Motorsports Hall of Fame, both included for only $25 - a real bargain if you ask me. Despite a brief shower just before my arrival, it was a beautiful early November morning in Daytona Beach:

The tour utilizes tram cars towed by a pickup truck (not pictured) and begins appropriately by passing by the front entrance of the grandstands. In recent years, the speedway has modernized the grandstands and facilities. They look truly impressive compared to the scaffolding and bleachers I was used to when I used to go to races with my Dad as a youth:

The holiday season provided a unique sight only seen at this time of year, a drive-thru light display set up in the front parking area. Obviously with it being daytime, the lights weren't turned on when we passed by:

There were many more of these spread across about a mile of parking lots. We continued past these and made our way to the tunnel to head to the infield of the track:

We could hear cars speeding around from outside, but once inside we could actually see them turning laps:

I can't recall the series that was using the speedway off the top of my head, but I remember the tour guide saying it was a local independent series. It's tough to see in the second photo, but there were a wide variety of cars participating in several different classes. They certainly weren't going slow, either!

I'd visited this speedway on this tour with my Dad back in 2006, and had attended a couple Summer races with him a few years later, but it had been at least 10 years since then. In that time, I'd forgotten just how massive of a speedway Daytona is. This panorama of the main grandstand should give you a pretty good idea:

And here's another angle from closer to turns 3 & 4 on the east side of the track, The green space would be filled with RV's and campers during a normal race weekend:

For an even better representation of the scale, here's a pic of a graphic displayed in the entrance to the box office that shows 15 other Florida sports venues that could comfortably fit inside the track, with room to spare:

Here's something I didn't know: you don't need a camper to camp in the infield at Daytona. They allow tent camping as well. Pretty neat:

After spending about 30 minutes or so in the infield (and watching some laps), we headed back to the main grandstand and went up to the main concourse area. It's very wide with plenty of concessions, and there's open space to watch the action without needing to be in a seat:

We stopped right near the start/finish line. Here are a couple views from the top of the lower bowl:

I mentioned on the podcast that the front row seat in this area may NOT be the best seat in the house. Here's why:

As you can see, the view from a few rows up provides significantly more viewable area of the track. However, if you can snag a spot right near the fence and are willing to take the risk, you can get some pretty great shots when the cars come around:

During NASCAR sanctioned events, I think they block off the 10 feet closest to the fence for safety reasons.

From there, we headed back to the starting point of the tour and entered the Motorsports Hall of Fame. This entrance greets you with the wall of Daytona 500 winners along with other memorabilia and history from the speedway:

This is also where the Harley J. Earl Trophy and most recent Daytona 500 winning car are displayed. In this case, Austin Cindric was the driver, winning in February of 2022:

The car is presented just as it was when it crossed the finish line, complete with confetti and other racing mementos (read: scuffs):

From there, I headed into the remainder of the museum for a self-guided tour. You are allowed to go at your own pace to check out the things you find most interesting.

For those of you who didn't know, the original Daytona races were actually held a few miles down the road, or beach depending on how you think of it. Here's a picture and some info on that piece of Daytona lore:

Some pics of the speedway we know now under construction in 1958:

A fire suit from Paula Murphy, one of the pioneer female racers:

Bill Simpson's first fire suit, one of many revolutionary safety improvements in a very dangerous sport:

An illustration of the 31-degree banked turns, packed with some of the many series featured throughout the hall:

Richard Petty's famous "Racer's Edge" Plymouth, complete with peace sign headrest:

There's so much more to see, that I could probably have filled up my entire phone with pictures. These are just some of the exhibits that were most interesting to me. If you are interested in motorsports at all, a visit here is highly worth the small investment in time and money.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the statue out front (seen above) of the winningest driver in track history, one Ralph Dale Earnhardt:

I always hated him while he was driving, but at the same time, I respected the heck out of the guy. It's sick irony that the track where he experienced so much glory was ultimately the one that took his life in 2001. The sport hasn't been the same since. But I digress.

I mentioned on the pod that I finished out my adventure with a leisurely bike ride to a brewery just down the road a few miles. I'd never really spent time in Daytona Beach other than the speedway, so I took advantage of this brief opportunity to enjoy some subtropical weather in November:

Dunes Brewery was my destination. A small brewery, definitely worth a visit as well if you happen to be in the area:

The space is eclectic, as you can see, and includes some vintage arcade games and even a shuffleboard table:

On the return trip to the car, I rode north on A1A, which is a historic coastal road that extends the entire length of the state of Florida on the east coast:

When I returned to my car, I didn't drive on the beach, but it is something that you can do, and I'd suggest it if you've never done it. It's a different feeling. Just make sure you air down your tires a bit:

I'm not sure when I'll be back in this area, so I'm very glad I had the opportunity to take a trip down memory lane AND learn some new things in the process. I'm thinking I need to get back to a race next year, too...