Flashback: When in Rome...

Today is one of the busiest days of the year on the highway outside our front door. A year ago, Scott and I surprisingly found ourselves participating in this major traffic-generating event. I had only been working for about a month, and the ad agency that my bank hires invited me to enjoy their pit suite at the NASCAR race at MIS (Michigan International Speedway). MIS is just a few minutes down the road from our house.

We spent almost the whole day there! My agency has connections within MIS. We were given the head-to-toe tour of the facilities. The above picture was taken as we stood solemnly among the spotters on the roof above the sky suites. We were warned before leaving the elevator that we had to stay quiet and move slowly and under no condition were we allowed to raise our hands over our heads. The official spotters were very busy keeping an eye on the track for debris or accidents, and others were keeping a close eye on the spotters for any signal they might send. It was a pretty amazing view. You can see the pit suites from here, which is where we spent most of the time when the race was underway, enjoying free Shirley Temples, complimentary meals and a plethora of hors d'oeuvres, all behind sound-proof windows and in air-conditioned comfort. I've decided that is the very best way to enjoy a NASCAR race.

We got to park on the infield,walk around the cars in the pit before the race, tour the sky suites and cafe, thoroughly explored the fan plaza, and get almost within touching distance of Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Here we are on the roof of the pit suites. You can see the spotters on the roof of the sky suites in the background.

As we explored on our own, we wandered as close as we could get to the track during some of the test runs of cars preparing for the Quicken 400 the next day. It was amazing to feel the power of the cars as they rocked your whole body when they sped past at 200 miles per hour. It was like nothing I've experienced before. I can see how the thrill can be addicting. I'm glad our pit suite also offered complimentary ear plugs, because we definitely needed them here.

This was a crash course for me on race traditions and culture. Here's an example: I saw the black skid marks around the finish line and assumed that it was remnants of cars trying to avoid collision. I felt like an idiot when I realized they were celebratory marks that the winners always make at the end of a race, like their victory dance. I think I only mentioned it to one person, though, so I didn't make that big of a fool of myself.

I think our favorite car was the M&M car, which after much trial and error we got a decent picture of while in motion. Taking a clear picture of a car driving 200 mph is not easy. We ended up getting a small matchbox version of this car in the fan plaza for Henry. He still loves it and plays with it a year later.

Here's a shot of the pits.

And finally, here's the afternoon when the race began and the stands were full of crowds. It was definitely a memorable day.