NASCAR Racing Attractions in the Charlotte, North Carolina Area

I think this Charlotte, North Carolina area should be called "The NASCAR Belt" because of all its racing attractions. When I visited areas surrounding Charlotte, North Carolina, I became quite culture-shocked after seeing just how much NASCAR racing means to the people via the vast amount of attractions. Here's two really intriguing NASCAR racing attractions in the Charlotte, North Carolina area, as well as one hotel recommendation.

185 Miles Per Hour and Ahhhhhhhh!!!

A couple of years ago, I was heading out of Madrid, Spain with a friend of mine to a small village. At times, he was racing the small rental car we were in at about 100 miles per hour. Other than the fact that he had to mildly correct his steering going that fast, I didn't really feel that anxious that he was exceeding the speed limit by about 40 m.p.h.! This didn't prepare me for what I would be doing in a city roughly 25 miles northeast of Charlotte, North Carolina known as Concord, where Jeff Gordon Racing School provides NASCAR fans the opportunity to either drive and/or be a passenger in a former NASCAR stock car.

I'm never going to forget my experience of riding three laps in one of Jeff Gordon's former stock cars around one of NASCAR's legendary tracks called Lowe's Motor Speedway, a 1.5 mile Quad-oval track. The races are so popular here (like for the Coca-Cola 600) that the seating capacity in the stands alone is 167,000, which is roughly 17,000 more people than there are in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, where the track is located.

As I waited in line, I became more anxious. I'm a bit of a fraidy cat when it comes to the idea of going super fast or up and down a lot, which is why I avoid roller coasters. Before racing in the NASCAR car in North Carolina, I had to sign a waiver and fill out a health questionnaire so they would know how to treat me if anything happened to me while racing. I had to put on a sheet-like cover on my head under the helmet, plus a neck support apparatus before I could get into the car.