We slept in again today. We have about 300 miles to go to
our next destination…Talladega, Alabama! For those of you who don’t know (but I’m
sure you all do) Talladega is one of the great NASCAR races…one of the more
famous ones. We were going to meet up with Dustin & Cassie there. We had
planned to surprise Dustin (and in fact, had kept it a secret that we were
going from him for over a month) but, alas, in the final 24 hours the secret
came out. He was still super excited and surprised, and it probably worked out better
for planning purposes anyway.
NASCAR is an amazing sport. Really, the physics involved for
cars to go over 200 mph in a pack is really spectacular. NASCAR, with all its
sponsors, is also really in tune with its fan base. They allow you to bring in
coolers to the races, so you can pack drinks, food, or whatever and bring it in
with you. We brought our hard cooler but not a soft cooler. On the way down we
stopped at some Wal-Mart in South Carolina and got a few supplies. They didn’t
have a cooler we liked so we went to Dollar General, and, although they sold
wine and beer (in a DG!) they , too did not have a cooler. In a last ditch effort
we went to another DG just down the way. We found a cooler but decided to go
next door to Big Lots instead to see what they had. We found success in a $16
igloo cooler that came with a free mini-cooler. We picked up a couple extra
fleece blankets too.
We made it into ‘Dega mid-afternoon and got our tickets from
will-call. They have both reserved and free camping on track property so we
decided on a campground. We drove all over the place looking for a good site,
something big and relatively flat. Luckily it wasn’t very crowded. We picked an
area and got some heckling from nearby campers as we looked for a spot. We
found a spot right out in the middle and tried to find a spot that wasn’t
inundated by fire ant hills. Eventually our hecklers came over and advised us
to a different spot, offering to let us camp behind their camper. Apparently
right out in the middle is where all the drunks like to take their trucks in
the middle of the night. Our hecklers come to the race every year and we’re
glad they told us to move.
We set up our taj-mah-tent and unpacked the car. We decided
to head into town (about 15 minutes away) to get a few last minute things at
Wal-Mart. We found new drink coozies with our drivers on them. They had a
Subway in Wal-Mart so I sent Devin to order subs while I checked out. Did they
have meatballs? Yes, but they weren’t cooked and they were closing down. I
mean, really? How hard is it to get a meatball sub on the eastern side of the
US?
On our way out of town we stopped at the second Subway and
two very nice young girls, who did have the makings for a meatball sandwich,
made our dinner. We made it back to camp and enjoyed our meal by lantern light.
Here’s the thing about ‘Dega and NASCAR: they like to party.
They really get into it. These campsites are all done up; flags, tiki-torches,
porch areas, people bring their full-size grills. Tables of booze. One place
had a full-size tent awning…the kind you rent for big events. They go for days
or the full week before time. And, even though not everyone roots for your
favorite driver we all seem to get along. It’s really a fun atmosphere.
We took a nap until Dustin & Cassie made it in, then
Devin went to meet them with the tickets (which were required to get into the
campground). They stayed up late chatting. It was a cold night and we were all
bundled up.
Still no miles…but we are 2 more here in Talladega anyway, so
that’s at least 4 Miles in AL!
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