THE MONSTER MILE

BY JOHN MASTALIR jmastalir@yahoo.com

RANDOM THOUGHTS AND REACTIONS TO THE DOVER DOWNS RACE.

FIRST....THE WHOLE NASCAR EXPERIENCE AND ADMINISTRATION JUST PERFECT...FAN FRIENDLY....GOOD CLASS OF PEOPLE....EVERYONE AT THE SPEEDWAY WAS THERE TO MAKE MY VISIT SPECIAL....IT WAS.

THEY RAN THREE RACES...TRUCKS ON FRIDAY...NATIONWIDE SATURDAY...FEDEX SUNDAY.

SURPRISINGLY SMALL CROWDS....NONE ON FRIDAY AND MAYBE 65% CAPACITY ON SUNDAY....IT WAS HOT....MAKES THE EFFORT OF MY HOME TRACK IN LAS VEGAS TO ATTAIN A SECOND RACE MORE FEASIBLE...DOVER HAS TWO.

TRACK ...GREAT ALMOST AS HIGH CORNERED AS TALADEGA....WE WERE ABLE TO SEE ALL THE CORNERS AND FOR ME I WAS ALMOST TOO CLOSE WITHOUT EAR GUARDS...THEY ARE LOUD....BUT BOY ARE THEY SWEET.

GREAT PRESS ROOM...EXCELLENT LUNCH....INTERVIEWED A NUMBER OF TEAM MEMBERS IN THE PITS AND AS EXPECTED THEY COULD NOT HAVE NICER OR MORE HELPFUL....I LEARNED 11 SETS OF TIRES ARE THE LAW AT DOVER....THAT PIT POSITION IS DETERMINED BY QUALIFING TIME AND LEAVING THE TIRES OUT IN THE HEAT EARLY IN THE DAY IS OK IF IT IS THE COMPLETE SET.   WATCHING THE TIRE GUYS WORK THE RUBBER FOR THE RACE IS AN ACT IN ITSELF....MY QUEST FOR INFORMATION IS ENDLESS BUT NASCAR IS DOING A GREAT JOB FINDING ANSWERS FOR ME.

AGAIN THE POINT HERE THE SAME FOR ME...NASCAR SHOULD RUN THE GOVERNMENT.... THEY HAVE A GRASP ON COMMUNICATION...GOOD WILL....AND GETTING IT DONE.

INTERESTING LOGISTICS FOR TRAFFIC ON THIS SMALL AREA AROUND THE CASINO BUT NEAR THE FREEWAY....AGAIN NASCAR AND LOCAL OFFICIALS HAVING DONE IT HERE FOR DECADES AND THEY  HAD ALL THE ANSWERS AND TRAFFIC WAS NOT AN ISSUE.

NOT A GOOD DAY FOR TICKET SCALPERS WHO WERE VISABLE.

THE DOVER TRACK AT ONE MILE DOES SOME OF THEIR PITS ON TURN ONE AND IT MAKES FOR AN INTERESTING STRATEGY FOR THOSE ON THE CORNER.

FOX TVS LAST RACE OF THE SEASON AND THEY COULD NOT BE BETTER... FOX HAD THE ENTIRE FIRST HALF OF THE SEASON...THEIR GUYS ALREADY PANTING FOR 2014....ME TOO.

AS GREAT AS IT IS TO BE AT THE RACE ....TV IS STILL THE ANSWER WITH ALL THEIR CAMERAS AND REPLAYS AND PIT INFO REPORTERS YOU CAN'T BEAT WHAT FOX HAS DONE THIS SEASON.

NO CAMERA CABLE OVER THE TRACK  AT THIS RACE AS FOX CONTINUES TO INVESTIGATE LAST WEEKS SNAPEROO.

INTERESTING RACE WITH HAMLIN SO SMOOTH FOR THE FIRST EIGHTH OF THE RACE AND THEN FINISHING RELATIVELY STRONG AS STEWART SURFACED TO LEAD THE LAST 3 LAPS AND EDGE AMBROSE.

SO LUCKY IN LAS VEGAS TO SEE THE LAST APPEARANCE OF THE THUNDERBIRDS BEFORE THE GOVERNMENT CUTBACK....THATS ONE OF MY PERSONAL HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR....HELL OF A COST HERE.....AT DOVER WE GOT A COUPLE OF HELICOPTERS.

THE WHOLE EXPERIENCE A HIGHLITE OF MY LIFE....RECOMMENDED TO THE WORLD.

103 A+ A+ A+

BEEN TO DELAWARE NOW FOR MY 50TH STATE...BEEN TO TALADEGA....DAYTONA AND ALL OF LAS VEGAS RACES....THIS IS REALLY APPLE PIE...MOM AND THE FLAG.