That's how we got our Bristol tickets. When we heard that some season tickets had become available, we got them! Usually, you either had to know someone, or wait until someone died before you could get Bristol tickets.
Man, Indy 500. THAT would be epic.
I've been to 2 Indycar races, rather CART races, the first was in 1990 at Road America in Elkhart Lake, WI (My baby brother lived in Chilton, and I was up visiting him that weekend), and at Mid-Ohio in Lexington, OH, in 1994.
Road America was GREAT! I got to shake hands with Emerson Fittipaldi, and spoke with MY favorite CART driver, Rick Mears. (They finished 2nd and 3rd. Michael Andretti won, after Danny Sullivan's transmission failed.)
This was the race where A. J. Foyt's brakes failed, and he took a ride off into the woods off turn 1. They stopped the race for an hour to medivac him out. After the race, we went back to Brother's house, and watched the whole thing again on TV!
The Boss told me when we got married that she had 3 things she wanted to do. Go to Bristol (done), go to the night race at Bristol (done), and go to the Daytona 500 (still working on it). We've even worked in a fall race in Martinsville last year for her birthday. I hope to take her to Daytona by 2013, that would be shortly after our 10th anniversary.
The first time I went to the Indy 500, I had a lot of trepidation.
I liked watching NASCAR, but had never been to a race. I had gone to a couple of drag type races when I was first living out in Omaha. Those local summer night type things...and I was bored out of my mind. The only other time, was when I was really young, about 5 or 6 to a dirt track type thing, all I remember was my cousin was visiting, he and my dad thought it was great, my mother and I just wanted to go home, it was so hot and nasty.
We went with 2 other couples, driving from Cincy, in a limo with a driver. M had the tickets...one of the guys had a limo source, so the 2 other guys provided the limo. Not a shaby way to go anywhere!! We had coolers in the trunk, with stuff to eat during the race ( you would not believe the big coolers that people lug up into the stands and the incredible food some pack! - full scale picnic/tailgate food!). I was pretty over-whelmed, I had never gone to anything comparable.
We got there....and it's bright and sunny...and hot. I have no idea what to expect.....all I know, is that if I'm sitting in the hot sun for 5 hours, I'm going to be miserable. I was excited but pretty tense, too.
We lugged all the stuff up to the stands...we were under the high canopy....and somehow, the way it's constructed, there was a breeze. (2 yrs later, when it was cool and rainy, it was actually cold!). Soon as I felt the breeze, I began to get really excited. I was at the Indy 500!!! We could see several of the "pits" right in front of us. It was really neat to see everyone scurrying around!
It came time for the "fly-over", for the National Anthem....to hear everyone sing...it brought tears to my eyes. This was the ultimate Americana. Then Jim Nabors sang, Back Home in Indiana. Mrs Holman, who was ancient, even back then...."Gentlemen, start your engines!!".
There is absolutely nothing like it when they start the engines!!! The concrete stands we were on, seemed to vibrate...the very air vibrates with the roar of the engines. It's coming up through your feet and legs, it's blasting the front of your body.....then the yells start as the cars start to move....it's waves of sound just hitting the body and the hair stands up on your arms and the back of your neck...the pace car moves. And comes around again, then moves off! The noise suddenly quadruples...the engines' roar, the yelling, hollering, its everywhere....and I realized that I'm screaming as much as anyone else!!
It was a blast!!
Getting out of there...not so much fun. It took several hours, to finally get on the road back. The next two years, that we went, we parked downtown, and took a cab to the track. That's the best way to do it, because cabs and buses have specific roads to travel, that no other cars or RV's are allowed to travel. We had to walk a couple of short blocks, but it was worth it, to avoid the traffic jams. We stayed in Covington KY, because that's where M's dad lived, and it's only a bit over 100 miles or so, to get there....and a whole lot less expensive!!
I just looked at ticket availability....there's a lot available!! Prices aren't as bad as I thought they would be.
You and your wife would have the best time!
