Dishing On Darlington

(Originally published on May 10, 2008)

DARLINGTON, S.C.--Congratulations to Kyle Busch, but by my watch it's 11:13 p.m. as I type this, I got up at 3 a.m. to fly down here and they're out of Mountain Dew in the press room. Here's some admittedly woozy sightings from my trek to The Lady in Black. More to come later.
* For $5, the Darlington Raceway Stock Car Museum is a can't-miss, especially if you're walking around the track prerace looking for some air conditioning. The collection runs the gamut, from the 1950 Plymouth that Johnny Mantz won the first Southern 500 with, to what's left of the Lumina Darrell Waltrip flipped at the 1991 Daytona 500. The same entry fee allows access to the National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame, but I just couldn't enjoy it. All inductee displays had a button you could push for a short audio presentation. But with so many people there pushing away and the displays so close together, it turned into a jumble similar to 15 people jawing on cell phones at the same time on the Long Island Rail Road. Here's hoping that the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte is taking notes.
* The difference between Darlington and other tracks, Part I: At Pocono and Dover, you see Confederate flags. At Darlington, you see a 16-year-old in a Confederate flag bikini top, with her parents tagging along, apparently proud of her revealing her "heritage."
* The difference between Darlington and other tracks, Part II: Being North Carolina bred, I expected my first trip here to highlight the best of the Bible Belt. The result: In the general vicinity (we'll call it 6 miles) of the track I saw four adult DVD stores, and two churches--both dilapidated. Rudy Giuliani cleaned up Times Square, and I now know where the displaced went.
* The difference between Darlington and other tracks, Part III: The powers that be at my shop said that if we were willing to blog we had some latitude. I'm about to test said privilege.
[CAUTION FLAG: THE BELOW ITEM IS NOT FOR THE KIDDIES!!!]






For those ladies wanting to go as tasteless on track T-shirts as some of the gents they date, they have options. Saw several Ts on the auction block at one location, most purple and pink, proclaiming, "I hate Bush so much I shaved mine." Someone dissatified with our Republic, or just a member of Junior Nation who can't spell? You be the judge.