Mason is Baaaack!!! - Hooper And Whistle

Mason is baaackkk!!

Well he has actually been back in the states for a couple weeks now, but we elected (at his request) to wait until this past weekend to see him. His wish was to see Dale Jr. on the track at his last Charlotte race.
Long long ago…we lived our life centered around NASCAR and Dale Earnhardt Sr. It was our world. We attended the spring race at Michigan and every race at Pikes Peak International Raceway hosted, minus when we were in Michigan. We started out with a pop up camper and graduated to a converted 66 passenger school bus. The boys were with us at PPIR but had to go to bed shortly after the sun went down. Upon hearing of Jr’s retirement, Mason requested to attend his last race at Charlotte. Since he was never able to properly party at the races, he also wanted us to be there to experience that side of the race world.

We met and camped at the Tim Flock Campground. Yes, in the truck!! The campground hosts were a little apprehensive on where to park us, not due to space but for ability to idle the truck without disturbing the other campers. There was plenty of space!
Tim Flock Campground is a grassy, wide open, no trees, with small rolling hills area. They have port a potties throughout and a camp host on site 24/7. There is a shower bus that runs every day from 0700 until 1100 that shuttles you to the bath house. They also have a fan shuttle that will take you over to the track, although it is just a short walk across the street. We were surprised that it wasn’t full, nor were any of the other campgrounds around the track to include the infield. In comparison to Michigan International Raceway (from several years ago), it was extremely quiet and mellow camping. However, as race fans go, we met some really cool people and were welcomed into their camps with open arms.

We surprised Mason with tickets to Saturday’s race along with pit passes for the weekend, which included entry to the Brad Paisley concert and the fan block parties with some of the drivers. Minor glitch in our plan was the rain that came down most of the day on Saturday. The track personnel worked hard and were successful in getting the race in on Saturday under the lights! We spent half the race in the grandstand and the other half along pit road. It was super awesome being that close to the action!! Sunday’s race was moved up by one hour due to the impending weather. We had fantastic seats near the start/finish line. It was a bit overcast but we still managed a little sun. There is absolutely nothing that compares to the sound, smell, and feel of experiencing the cars going around the track in person!!

Such an awesome way to spend time with our son!