Kolohe secured four VIP tickets to the NASCAR Pennzoil 400 race presented by Jiffy Lube at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but she had a scheduling conflict and could not use them. The tickets also included The LiUNA!, NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series race that was held the day before the Pennzoil race and VIP parking adjacent to the grandstand. Since I did not want the tickets to go unused, I offered to take some friends and use the tickets on her behalf.
We arrived early on Saturday morning for The LiUNA! race so we could spend some time on the midway, look at the various exhibits, and sit in an actual race car.
During non-race weekends, Dream Racing operates a driving school for people who want the experience of driving high-performance exotic supercars and GT race cars on a dedicated road course inside the speedway. There were also midget race cars on display that youth drive as they learn to race.
To test people's reaction times, an exhibit featured iron rods suspended about six feet in the air. The objective of the game was to catch the iron rods one at a time before they hit the ground. It was harder than it looked. Andrew and Todd were determined to catch a bar, so they tried numerous times until they finally succeeded. (In the pictures, it can be noted that the iron bars are below the catchers' hands.)
I found that spinning the wheel to win a prize was easier.
There were a number of celebrities in attendance, including Elvis, with whom you could have your picture taken.
For those who wanted a little extra excitement in their lives, Gatsry Racing offered a ride (for a price) in one of their specially equipped drifting cars. (Gatsby Racing LLC is a professional drifting team based in Las Vegas.)
Our VIP passes also allowed us entry to the inside area of the racetrack and the Neon Garage.
From an elevated walkway, it was possible to look down into the garages. All of the team car haulers were lined up by the Neon Garage, and various team members were relaxing and cooking lunch under canopies on the backs of the trailers.
Only team members were allowed to cross the line into the actual pit areas where the cars were located. However, we were allowed to walk along the outside of the fence to take pictures.
The LiUNA! NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series race is NASCAR's second-tier series, featuring drivers who want to gain experience, hoping that some of the NASCAR teams will see their performance in these races and offer them a position on one of their teams. This race is more fun to watch because, with less-experienced drivers, there are more bumping, passing, and out-of-control spins. Qualifying for starting positions is held just before the race starts. Since the qualifications were about to start, we decided to watch from our VIP seats in the grandstand.
Our VIP suite was at the end of the grandstand balcony. It had its own restaurant, bar, and restrooms. Best of all, there was seating in the air-conditioned lounge. We felt sorry for the spectators who had to sit in the open seating during the hottest part of the day.
Nellis Air Force Base is located near the racetrack, and throughout the day, planes were landing and taking off.
There were many yellow flags during the race, so the cars regrouped and restarted after the track was cleared of debris. The cars were only in the pits for a few seconds, making it difficult to capture pictures of the pit action. Even more difficult was getting focused pictures of the cars as they passed the grandstand at 180 MPH. Cars in the Pennzoil 400 are about 10 MPH faster.
After one minor fender-bender, car 45 pulled into the pits. The pit crew cut away part of the damaged front fender, applied Duct tape to the loose parts, and he was back on the track before losing a lap.
After the race was over, all of the cars except the winner pulled into the pits while the winner took a victory lap. After the victory lap, the winner did a burnout in front of the grandstand.
The Pennzoil 400 race the next day was similar to the The LiUNA! race, except there were a lot more people at the racetrack. (I later read on the web that 2.771 million people viewed the race on TV.) Carter missed The LiUNA! race because he was at a seminar in Las Vegas, but for the Pennzoil 400, he left the seminar early and caught a taxi to the track in time to see the race.
Before the race, there were more displays on the midway.
Before the race started, we were allowed on the racetrack for the opening ceremonies. We used our VIP passes and the tunnel under the racetrack to get to the infield, but we later learned we could have walked from the grandstand area directly onto the track.
Before the formal introduction of the drivers, there was a band playing to entertain everyone and showgirls to photograph. The drivers came out one at a time for the formal introductions.
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