Racing Is In my Blood Part 2

Okay Folks it`s almost time to start loading up the Van for our semi annual Trek to the Track..LOL

New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon NH is where we are headed next weekend.

Every September my husband Donald and I, along with our 2 sons 2 Daughters In Law 4 grandchildren and 4 friends head for a fun filled weekend in Loudon NH for the Nascar Race held there .

The planning starts MONTHS before the race as we need to get our timeshare space lined up before all the best spots are taken.

Almost every Hotel, Motel, Bed and Breakfast and even the Campgrounds start to fill up as early as March for the September race.

And if you have a Camper or RV you can even stay right on the grounds of the race track for the weekend BUT you have to get there as early as 3am on the Friday before the race or you may not get a spot there either..

We usually stay at a Beautiful Resort called Cold Springs which is in the town of Ashland about 30 miles from the track.

This year though I didn`t get my request in on time for there, so we are staying at Steele Hill Resorts in Sanborton NH about 20 miles North of the track.

So we are just about set to go.

The suitcases are packed and waiting to be loaded in the Van.

Went Grocery shopping today to get all the essentials we`ll need for the weekend for Grilling and Cookouts including Breakfast at the track at 7 am the morning of the race.. This is such a fun thing. 2 camp stoves going at the same time frying bacon, sausage, scrapple, homefries, and eggs for 10 people :>)

The Easy Up Canopy, the folding chairs, the campstove, the Container I call my
"traveling kitchen" and all the rest of our racing gear ( scanners, coolers, binoculars etc) are all placed in a common spot in the garage just waiting to be loaded.

Come Thursday morning we will be " on the road again" for another Great Weekend.

Do I Love Racing ??

What do you think ??

Race Weekend Rituals

Since I had been brought up around racing as a little girl, it was inevitable as I got older, that I would become more involved with the sport.

Well THIS tells you how involved I got, and why I say Racing Is In My Blood

After attending my first Nascar Race in NH I was totally HOOKED on racing.

Living in CT and so close to NH gives my husband Donald and I the opportunity to attend both of the Races held in Loudon New Hampshire each season and have now for the past 3 years also gotten tickets for our 2 grown sons, their wives, and our 4 Grandchildren to go with us. Along with 4 friends whom I used to work with we make this truly a Family Affair !

This coming Sunday June 28 th is the first of the 2 races this year.

And away we go !

Each race weekend we usually leave CT on early Saturday morning to drive the 3 hrs. to Ashland New Hampshire where we stay at a Very Nice Time Share Resort called Cold Springs Resort.

The Van is packed with everything we need for a fun weekend. Coolers are packed with lots of food and Cold drinks, especially if the weather prediction is for a Hot Sunny weekend, which all race fans hope for..

The Black & White Checked EZ Up Canopy is packed waiting to be set up next to our cars in the parking lot of the race track. Most everybody "tailgates" at the track while waiting for the race to begin

Portable Picnic Table and benches are packed along with the Black & White Checked trash bag bin. Can`t have anyone littering the parking lot, that`s for sure !

The Grill and Camp stove are loaded and ready to go for the several cookouts we`ll have while we are there.

Bags of paper plates, cups, napkins and silverware along with cooking utensils, all neatly in a Plastic tote bin I call " the KITCHEN" box.

The folding chairs are bagged and waiting as is anything else we use at the "track campsite"

Caravan style with 3 cars and 10 people we head NORTH to NH.

Arriving at Cold Springs we usually just kick back and relax for the evening maybe go for a swim in the outdoor pool, weather permitting, ya know how New England can be finicky weather in June.

Maybe order in Pizza for everyone after the drive or go out to a Family restaraunt where several other race families we`ve met through the years have stopped for the night meal.

SUNDAY Morning Race Day !

The alarms go off at 5 am and the day begins. Last minute additions to the back of the Vans, Load the Kids, and Gentlemen Start Your Engines ! We are off to the track by 6 am

7 am we are arriving at the track along with many of the 140,00 fans who flock to this New England Track every June and September for the 2 races held here.

By 8 am we have parked, Set up the Canopy, brought out the Stove and Grill and have begun to make Breakfast for everyone.

Bacon and Scrapple, Home Fries and Lots of Scrambled Eggs with Bagels and Fresh Fruit is usually the Race Day Breakfast.

And of course a Big Pot of Coffee perking on the Campstove for after breakfast.

Breakfast is served ! Mmmm Mmmmmm

After breakfast we get down to business.

Time to load up the things we bring to the Grandstands every race.

1) Sandwiches and snacks for lunch

2) Drinks ususally ICE WATER - No booze during a race for us in this family ( you do NOT want to get dehydrated sitting in the sun way up in the Grandstands )

3) Scanners - Gotta listen in on the drivers radio conversations with their crew chief and spotters

4) Sunscreen Hats or Visors keeping our heads protected from the sun during the 3-4 hr race

5) Binoculars - don`t really need these too much cuz our seats are High in the stands where you can see the whole track. But if someone wrecks we need to be able to see them getting out of the car safely

6) And of course our tickets

Head to the Main gate to enter the track and walk through the Souvenior Trailer area.
This where most of the Drivers have their Merchandise trailors set up where we can buy stuff of our favorite drivers.

Some of the drivers even have autograph sessions at their trailors out here.

Now it`s time to get up to our seats and settle in for the race.

GENTLEMEN, START YOUR ENGINES !

After the race is over, we head back to the parking lot to fire up the stove and grill to have our supper cookout.

With 140,000 people and probably 90,000 cars here, most of us tailgate again till 2-3 hrs. after the race is over to let the traffic thinout.

No sense to me to sit in a line of traffic burning up gas for 2 hrs. when you can be having a fun time eating and visiting with family and friends while you wait.

And at almost every race, a conversation starts up with other people parked around us doing the same thing !

Everything is loaded back up in the Van, traffic has thinned out, and it`s Dark now and time to head back to Cold Springs.

We`ll get a good nights sleep and head home in the morning and start counting the days till September for the 2 nd race in New Hampshire and we`ll do it ALL OVER AGAIN..

I told you RACING IS IN MY BLOOD !