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Thursday, October 22, 2009

Opinion / Mike McCray / News NASCAR surprisingly hip

Posted By on Thu, Oct 22, 2009 at 2:38 PM

Maybe it was when I heard "Swag Surfing" blaring from someone's speakers as I pulled into the infield at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Or maybe it was seeing my alma mater's marching band performing hits from Whitney Houston, Luther Vandross and Luke on the Start/Finish Line before the race.

Whatever the case, NASCAR on Saturday presented something different from what general perception would be. NASCAR driver Martin Truex Jr. put it best during our interview a few hours before the race started: "Times are changing, man."

Don't get me wrong, Confederate flags, camo hats and shirts and some signs of dental neglect were plentiful, but I couldn't help but feel like one of the few sports yet to have a black star was making an effort to reach out.

The Bank of America 500 was hyped as NASCAR's Homecoming, and after wandering the infield, from the garages to "Redneck Hill" for hours, I realized it really wasn't that different from the Homecoming celebrations I know and love from college.

People were surprisingly cool and really. Imagine one of the largest tailgates you've ever seen, that just so happens to have dozens of cars whizzing by at crazy speeds. Once you master the whole, "'hold your thought until all the cars pass by then resume your conversation" thing, it's dope.

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