First-Person: Newman Wins 50th Anniversary of the Daytona 500

I've never attended the NASCAR Daytona 500. I learned about the racing sport last year when my favorite singer, Kelly Clarkson, was the NASCAR spokesperson and performed several songs including "One Minute" which became the NASCAR commercial song. I easily fell in love with the sport and wanted to know more about it.

A few friends and I traveled down to Daytona Beach to enjoy the race firsthand. It was tough getting tickets, even early because the show was selling out so fast due to the 50^th anniversary of NASCAR racing. First thing I noticed getting there is that fans are crazy for their favorite drivers! It's like going to a concert watching cars instead. Fans wear homemade T-shirts with their favorite drivers, signs go up to show support.

The prerace show was amazing as country artists Brooks and Dunn took the stage to perform. During the first song, they brought out Dale Earnhardt's car to display, citing that 10 years ago the car was in the winner circle.

Opening with the "Star Spangled Banner" was one of my favorites country artists of all time, Trisha Yearwood. Such a beautiful rendition to kick the race off.

The Daytona 500 car race opened with 24 of previous Daytona winners being the Grand Marshal, including Dale Earnhardt Jr., last years winner Kevin Harvick, and Richard Petty who won seven times in total from 1964 to 1981. The 50^th Anniversary was a perfect time for NASCAR to bring out its former champions that helped make the sport what it is today. The famous "Gentlemen, Start your engines" got the race underway.

Junior Johnson is one of NASCAR's most famous as he has won over 50 races in the the series. He came out to pace the field in commemoration of the sport and what it stands for. Chevy was proud to say it's had 50 years of the Impala. Seven of Johnson's Chevy wins were in an Impala.