Horsepower in the hills of Kentucky
And here I sit in August of 2010, a decade after Greg Biffle won the track’s inaugural Craftsman Truck Series race, looking at all the happy comments on the mission accomplished by Jerry Carroll, one of the track’s original owners, and Bruton Smith, the track’s current owner.
Smith, an 83-year-old badass (my opinion), told the folks of Kentucky when he bought the track in 2008 that he would accomplish the goal of bringing a Sprint Cup date to the track located 40 miles southwest of Cincinnati and 65 miles northeast of Louisville.
In less than 11 months the big boys will be gracing the track in Sparta. Is Joey Logano the favorite? I'll discuss as the countdown to NASCAR in Kentucky begins (before the Brickyard countdown I guess)
And looking back at that June night in 2000, I’ve come to realize that my love-hate relationship with the track should be put aside, and I should wear a proud smile on my face. Hey, as the popular song states, “Two is Better Than One,” and two NASCAR Sprint Cup races within one month for me wouldn’t be a bad way to close out the short summer vacation I have.
As I have stated numerous times, my first thoughts of Kentucky Speedway are of anger and resentment. We scored free tickets for the track’s first race in 2000 and left Cincinnati around 3:30 p.m. for the 8 p.m. event. We never made it.
Stopped three miles short of the exit for the track, we shut off the van and played football on the highway around all the other stopped vehicles. When we got back in the van to get turned around and head back to Cincinnati (because the state police had told us to turn around because the exit to the speedway had been shut down) the van wouldn’t start. Thanks to some friend—and some heavy duty jumper cables from the Kentucky State Police—we got back to Cincinnati in time to watch the results of the race flash across the screen on ESPN.
So my first experience with the Kentucky Speedway wasn’t a positive one. In fact, my dad still believes that Jerry Carroll still owes us $45 for a new car battery.
In fact, the track’s first race drew ire from many fans due to the horrid conditions of traffic and parking. Rain soaked the area for almost the entire week heading up to the race and numerous campers were stuck in their parking areas until Tuesday after the Saturday night race.
But as bad as the conditions were, those who got to see the race were thoroughly impressed with the facility and couldn’t wait for the big boys to finally embark on a journey to the Bluegrass State.
In 2003, we again scored free tickets, this time from family, and headed down to Sparta. For the 8 p.m. race we left at 5 p.m. and I was visibly nervous. I kept asking my dad if we would make it in, citing the 2000 example. He assured me that it was fixed and if it wasn’t, there was zero chance we’d ever go back to the track.
We made it there, and a young gun driving one of Jack Roush’s trucks won that evening. The kid from Columbia, Mo., got out of his truck after doing some donuts and performed a very unique celebration. Little did we know that Carl Michael Edwards would make it big one day, and we enjoyed the backflip he did off the bed of his #99 truck.
It took me six years to make it back to the track in Sparta, and this time it was with the assistance of the TV station I was interning for. I stood within inches of Edwards and NASCAR’s newest young gun, Joey Logano, and interviewed them for WCPO.
From left: FOX19's Dan Wood, me and WCPO's Mark Slaughter at the 2009 Nationwide practice day (NASCARMedia.com picture)
It was here that my hatred for Kentucky Speedway started turning around. And after I attended that Camping World Truck Series race one month later, I was all but cemented in my stance: Kentucky deserved a Sprint Cup race, but the Cincinnati-area media didn’t act like they wanted one.
Carl Edwards answers questions in 2009 (Bob Pockrass of SceneDaily.com stands in the background)
I got into heated debates with others about how the local TV and newspapers don’t care about NASCAR, and got the same old, tired responses that they don’t have the time or energy to cover motorsports. Well, they better get up on the wheel—literally and figuratively—if they want the Kentucky Speedway to continue to thrive as a legitimate Sprint Cup destination.
I know it’s unfair to compare the track in the rolling hills of Kentucky to the flat track on Indianapolis’s west side, but the media coverage of the Brickyard 400 is astounding, and I’m not sold on the fact that Cincinnati-area TV stations care as much as they need to. (Note: I’m working on changing that perception and will admit I was extremely happy to be at WXIX-FOX19 this year to cover both the Nationwide race at Kentucky and the Brickyard at IMS)
Me, in the aqua shirt on the right, stickying a microphone in front of Brad Keselowski before this year's Nationwide race at Kentucky (Getty Images)
So my love-hate relationship might be almost all love, with one caveat: the Kentucky Speedway needs to update their infrastructure including the garage area and media center. But, Bruton Smith (remember, 83-year-old badass) can and will get it done.
And fans of racing in Cincinnati, Louisville and everywhere in between, will be happy when the green flag drops on the unnamed 400-mile race next July.
I’ll probably be there. Will you? Drop me a line in the comments section if you will.
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*Note: I’ll be out at Camp Higher Ground for UC football training camp for the next two weeks. Of course we have internet access out at camp but it’s very spotty. I’ll be using it each day to check e-mail, check the news and reports about NASCAR. It’s highly unlikely I’ll be blogging (about football, NASCAR or anything else) until I get back in town on August 27th.
Until then, or until I have the time to check back in, enjoy your August. And remember to drink plenty of water because it’s hot outside.
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