In The City Of NASCAR

Since becoming a NASCAR fan I have noticed some changes in my city lifestyle. They are not bad changes by any means, it is just the natural progression of introducing something new and important to your daily routine. When I think of some of these changes brand awareness is the first to come to mind. The irony is that I film commercials, inherently working closely with ad agencies, which is all about brand awareness. Yet I still find myself getting sucked into this just as much as the next person. It is inevitable.

Example 1
My car is running low on gas, there is a Shell gas station on one side and a SONOCO on the other. Embarrassingly enough, I have actually taken a split second to think – Harvick or the Official Fuel of NASCAR?

I think it is safe to say that all NASCAR fans makes the correlation between driver and products. Can you imagine doing word association with Nascar fans?

Therapist: Okay, now I am going to say a word and I want you to tell me the first thing that comes to mind… Mountain Dew
Fan: Dale Earnhardt Jr
Therapist: Dupont
Fan: Jeff Gordon
Therapist: Home Depot
Fan: Ton-.. sorry… Joey Logano

Ever wonder if drivers get that too? I understand that money help drivers become brand aware with their own personal sponsors, but do you think that Carl Edwards ever says ‘ha, Mark Martin!’ while passing a box of Kelloggs in the supermarket? Or does Tony Stewart think of Kyle Busch when buying bags of M&M’s.

It is also pretty amazing how loyal we become to such brands - and equally how much we go out of the way to avoid the brands of drivers we dislike. How far will you drive just go shop at Lowe’s – or how far would you drive just to NOT shop at Lowes, despite its close proximity. But that is not the only change NASCAR has had on a city girl like me.

My permanent residence right now is in New York City, so my beloved car (whose bumper is now adorned by my favorite driver’s number and nascaresque bumper stickers) sits patiently at my parent’s house in Long Island. I find myself going months without driving simply do to the fact that having a car in the city is more of a hassle than not having one.. Several NASCAR races later, and a visit to my parents, I found that my driving habits have changed as well. See example 2.


Example 2
I am driving with my brother in the passanger seat laughing at me.
Brother: Look at you, stop pretending you’re a NASCAR driver.
Me: What are you talking about? I’m not speeding….
Brother: Everytime you make a turn you hold the steering wheel like you’re
going into the corner.

I tried to argue with him that I was he was lying, as I made my next turn…. And I watched my right hand glide over the top of the steering wheel and meet my left hand as I went through the center and then my right hand shift back into place on exit….. All of a sudden green lights are green flags, you start judging “restarts” of the drivers in front of you. You are happy when you make a ‘pass on the outside’ and you hate ‘lap traffic’.

My worse scenario happened the other day. I was the first car approaching a red light at an intersection. There were 2 lanes and just past the light, the right lane merges into the left. I have driven this road numerous times and was privy to this merge. Yet I still chose the right lane. Why? Because lapped cars line up on the inside lane, and as long as I have a good restart, I should be fine.

Well I did have a good restart and found myself with clean air once the green flag.. err.. the light changed green.

I have also come to the conclusion that once a NASCAR fan meets another NASCAR fan, the idea of a ‘short conversation’ is almost impossible. There is just so much to talk about. Correction… the only time you will have a short conversation would be like such:

Fan #1: Hey you’re a nascar fan?
Fan #2: Heck yeah I am!
Fan #1: YEAAHHHHH GO 88!! Jr, NATION!
Fan #2: Oh… I’m a Kyle Busch fan…


There are three scenarios on how that one can play out.

1: That is the end of the conversation
2: Fan # 1 starts screaming at Fan #2
3: Fan #1 punches Fan #2, in which Fan #2 retaliates and starts a
full on brawl.

I am well aware that this is not new to many of you who are reading this. But you have to keep in mind that I am a girl who lives a double life, one as a NASCAR fan, and one as a big city girl. Bouncing between the fast pace that is forced upon you in the city to the fast pace on a high-banked super speedway are as different as night and day. I find that my other side often perplexes people.

In NASCAR world : “Oh, you’re from NY? Upstate? NEW YORK CITY??? Hey Bob, she’s from New York City! Give this girl a beer!”

New York world: You’re a wha? You’re really a NASCAR fan? Where are you from? Really, your from NY and you’re a NASCAR fan? Don’t you get bored watching them drive in circles?

My friends’ ideal vacations require exotic locations with sandy white beaches, with crystal clear water and mojitos. While my ideal vacation may require clear skies, you can just ship me off to Dover with a hot pass, a beer and good company and I will come back grinning ear to ear with exiting stories, pictures and heck – even a great tan!

I feel like all the changes made to my lifestyle due to NASCAR have been for the better, even if I am the only one on the LIE who understands bump drafting…. Just kidding!