Talladega Nights

Essential Background Info

Deep in the heart of Alabama, a spectacle of epic proportions take place. Dozens of cars reach supersonic speeds in an effort to wiz past their opponents and come out the champion. Talladega Speedway is known to have massive car wrecks where cars will lose tires, flip over, and sometimes go up in flames, these occurrences make up what is notably called "The Big One". Although the race is extremely exciting on its own, my buddies and I wanted to immerse ourselves in the full Talladega experience. We all purchased the college pass which included a ticket to the race on Sunday, ticket to the infield concert featuring Charlie Daniels Band on Saturday night, access to all Talladega activities, and access to the college camping ground all for the sweet price of $24. I do not own boots or any sort of country attire so I decided to make a trip to the closest thrift store for some much needed purchases. The event was taking place over Cinco De Mayo weekend so I wanted to dress redneck with a hint of Mexican flavor. I got a few shirts I could tear up, a pair of jeans (that would later be snipped up and turned into jorts), and most importantly a fine crafted sombrero. After getting a few more supplies we were ready to make the journey to DEGA.

Welcome to DEGA

We arrive to Talladega camping grounds on Friday night and make sure to park far from the majority of people so we can sleep at peace at night. Turns out we unknowingly set up camp right next to the dirt practice track and all of their races were late at night :). Nevertheless, we went out to explore the grounds and  all you could see was RVs, trucks, and confederate flags. Everyone was friendly and somewhere in the middle of a spectrum of intoxication. Until the concert on Saturday night a bulk of the trip consisted of us hanging out and meeting all the souls brave enough to camp out in the muddy Alabama wasteland. On the surface this may sound awful but it was actually one of the parts that made the trip so enjoyable. All of my best friends and I were able discuss a plethora of subjects without the distraction of electronics and the outside world. 

The Devil Went Down to Alabama

Out of the hundreds concerts I have been to in my life, The Charlie Daniels Band concert in the infield of the speedway will forever be ingrained in my mind. Around 7 PM my group began the mile long walk to the speedway. Navigating through mud, hopping fences, crossing the race track, and walking by concession booths and bars were all part of the trek to the infield stage. When we finally arrived we discovered we should of came earlier because there were hundreds of people clumped together in a muddy field. We were able to slide our a way into a decent spot for the show. Never have I ever been around more drunk people in my life. People were chugging whiskey and Bud Light as if the Devil actually was going to come to Alabama. When the show began everyone started swaying there hips and singing a long. My friends and I were right there with the rest of the crowd, no one cared about how dirty their boots were or often they bumped into their neighbor, the whole audience everyone was just enjoying the melodic tunes of Charlie Daniels.

Race Day

After a night filled with excitement we woke up as the sun rose. The race was scheduled to start at noon but because there is a time change we got confused and ended up showing 30 minutes late when we thought we were going to be early. We brought a cooler of beer and purchased headphones that not only cancelled out the noise of the cars but also included a transmitter that allowed you to listen to the racers communicate with their pit crews. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect but the race truly was the best part of the weekend. The cars flew by us with an immense amount of power and I was focused in the whole time on the rankings of the drivers. Cars were consistently passing each other and we all got to witness "The Big One", there was an eleven car pile up which included Danica Patrick (who I had been listening to on the transmitter the whole time). The cars got pretty banged up but all of the drivers were not injured. We listened intensely to the drivers as the crash was happening but to our surprise all the drivers were super calm and collected. These people are professionals and they know what to do when a crash happens. The winner of the race was Ricky Steinhouse Jr. who I later found out dates Danica Patrick (fun fact). It was a hell of a weekend and I am so glad all my buddies followed through and made the trip with me.