Good Morning,
As I write this I am currently making the trek on the Auto
Train from Virginia to Florida for vacation. I decided that one of the
activities I would do while on the train is make a blog post. This post will
focus on my experiences in the recent Pennsylvania 400 race weekend at Pocono
Raceway. Before I get into that, I wanted to make note of another successful
AAABA tournament that came to an end this past Saturday when the team from New
Brunswick, NJ won their first AAABA title and according to the Johnstown
Tribune-Democrat, the first by a team other than Washington, Detroit,
Baltimore, and New Orleans since 1994. It was a great tournament with plenty of
exciting baseball.
On to the race weekend. This year I was lucky enough to work
for Pocono Raceway during the Pennsylvania 400 race weekend along with some of
the prep work and cleanup. The experience I had that weekend was one of the
most interesting I have had. Not only was I able to be part of putting together
a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race weekend, but I got to see the hard work that
goes into a race weekend by a large staff of various people. Some work in
foodservice, some work in marketing, but they all work together and do whatever
is needed to make the race weekend a huge success. Even the upper level
management pitched in to clean chairs and setup tables. That is something you
would not see in most organizations, but it was noticeable throughout the
entire weekend.
The weekend was a lot of fun and I got to see many parts of
the track off limits to the general public including Victory Lane and the Race
Control center while helping to make the race fun for thousands of people.
There was only one issue that came up during the race weekend and that occurred
when a line of strong thunderstorms hit the racetrack during the Sprint Cup
Series Race on Sunday. I can honestly say this was one of the strongest storms
I have ever experienced and unfortunately 10 people were struck by the vivid
lightning during the storm. One of these people, Brian Zimmerman was killed by
the lightning while returning to his vehicle. My thoughts and prayers along
with millions of others are with the families.
In the end, I left Pocono Raceway with some great
experiences and memories. I also know how special this place truly is. This
track is unlike any other in the Sprint Cup series because of the staff and
their hospitality, respect, and the belief
told to me by one of the summer interns
that “we work for the fans and we want them to have a great experience
here.” These words are so true.
I will be in Florida this week and I am planning on checking
out Daytona International Speedway and if Possible Bright House Networks
Stadium and Jackie Robinson Stadium.
-
The Flood City Sports Fan
