Visit in 2009 to See RG

Want to get opinions on which track would be the "best" one to see a race at next year. I would like to limit it to the first half of the year. I would like to take my wife on sort of a small vacation. (She is the one in the picture at Robby's souvenier hauler at Darlington this year). We would like to go somewhere that puts on a good show AND that RG can get a decent run. My (our) experince has been limited to Charlotte and Darlington in Nascar and she will go to the ALMS at Road Atlanta. We are in South Carolina so some place away from the southeast would be a plus. Our only race plans for 2009 is Darlington again (it is 10 miles from work).

What has the experience been like at Vegas for the fans?

Fontana?

Can you see the action at Sonoma?

Any other obvious races I'm missing?

Thanks,
Jim

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Permalink Reply by shana on October 24, 2008 at 11:55pm

i have been to daytona three times and i loved it everytime , robby usually runs well their. the one in feb i have been to once, the other two times was in july very hot , but if you can stand the heat go to that one its a night race and soooo cool looking. plus you have the beach. JMO

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Permalink Reply by Terie (aka vassinvegas) on October 25, 2008 at 12:27am

Vegas is fun. This year Robby did two appearances besides the trailer. Both were smaller low key events and he was relaxed and chatty. There is stuff going on every day, drivers all over the place at one event or another. There's so much more to do than gamble. I'd suggest checking out the package deals at the Soth Point Hotel/Casino. It's on the south strip, easy to get to the main strip by free trams from there. Brandon Gaughan is usually around since daddy owns the place and teams stay there. I'd rent a car but don't drive to the track on Sunday! Weather is normally in the low 70's though a couple years ago it was frigid. If you'd rather have more luxury, Mandalay Bay is great or if you're feeling rich, the Bellagio can't be beat and you get to mingle with drivers. Since my husband works for Bellagio I'm not allowed to mention the place the begins with a W.
I plan on getting the locals and any visitors together this year for a party at my house or someplace. Maybe some of the crew might want to join us. If you pick Vegas drop me a line and I can give you suggestions for fun things to do.

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Permalink Reply by Lance on October 25, 2008 at 10:31am

Vass, my wife and I visited Vegas last summer (2007) and we LOVE the Bellagio. We got a deal to stay NY NY which was ok but when we go back we definitely love to do the Bellagio if we can afford it.

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Permalink Reply by Terie (aka vassinvegas) on October 25, 2008 at 8:29pm

join the mailing list online and you get great offers. that's the way to do it for ALL Vegas hotels. My son works at Red Rock and it's pretty cool too if you want to be on the west side of town.

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Permalink Reply by Lance on October 25, 2008 at 10:23pm

Will do. Thanks

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Permalink Reply by AZBadseed on October 25, 2008 at 1:17am

i bet he'll be at Eldora again next year...that would be a hell of a show, but not much of a vacation

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Permalink Reply by Ms Gibby on October 25, 2008 at 3:03am

Go to Bristol then zip down to Gatlinburg...wife should like that.

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Permalink Reply by Rod on October 25, 2008 at 10:07am

Ok here is my .02 cents. I have been to Vegas many times as I lived there for years it is ok but the b.s. rules of not being able to bring in coolers and then they rape you for anything you buy! Fonatana is truly not that good. Sonoma rocks just don't bother getting seas just spend the day walking around the track watching from many different places. Daytona and Talledga are cool but it is real hard to see much racing as big as these places are. Atlanta is a great place with good racing. The locals around Atlanta must have given up on NASCAR because the place is never sold out. The 2 best for sure are Bristol and Richmond. For obvious reasons. Dover is also gonna get a nod from me. As far as Bristol goes I have bought tickets off e-bay for face value twice. The other times I have been there I just bring cash and find the scalpers. Same for Richmond.

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Permalink Reply by 7 Gordon 7 on October 25, 2008 at 1:04pm

I would say go to Sonoma. Sit up in turn 2. You can see 90% of the track. Robby is great there and it's only 30-45minutes from San Francisco. ANd San Francisco is an awesome town. You can save money by staying in Petaluma or any of the small towns near Sonoma. I love the road races. I was lucky enough to be there when Robby won at SOnoma. It was great.

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Permalink Reply by Sabra on October 25, 2008 at 5:59pm

I have been to Vegas the past four years and will be going again next year. If you decide to do that make sure you get the neon garage passes. It sounds like Terie wants to have a get together which I think would make it even more fun. Sonoma is a fun track, but you can see much more at Vegas. Hope to see you both there.

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Permalink Reply by Jim on October 26, 2008 at 9:23am

Thanks for all the advice!

We are kinda leaning towards Vegas depending on the cost of the trip. We might hit Atlanta just to cut down on the cost/travel time.

The big plus at Vegas is the novelty (for us) of visiting that town and having plenty to do. The track looks like it will have plenty of amenities and the garage package looks cool! We are looking at airfare packages today. You can get great seats right now at Vegas. (and Atlanta for the spring for that matter)

If anyone wants to make plans for Darlington in May - I can host a cook out/barbecue for RGM fans the day of the race in the parking lot if anyone is interested.

The only bad thing about this choice is there all kinds of races we want to visit together. Bristol, Montreal for anykind of race (wish I had seen an F1 race there), Sonoma, Richmond, Vegas, Atlanta.

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Permalink Reply by Kathy on October 26, 2008 at 2:03pm

I agree have been to Vegas the last four years and the only time we did the Neon Garage was the year it first open...it was kind of worth the price but wouldn't do it again.