OK, I know I was excited about the 24 Hours of Daytona. I meant it. But that's nothing to the anticipation I feel for next weekend. Not only do we finally see the start of the Formula 1 season, but next Saturday is SEBRING! And there's that little thing called Bristol for NASCAR.
We all have our favorite race and our favorite series. Certainly the American Le Mans Series (note the fancy new Web site they've launched, with a customizable home page, no less) is my favorite ... that's why I wrote about it. And the 12 Hours of Sebring is the Grand Poobah of all the ALMS races. Sure, most of the teams go to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, but they all go to Sebring to test for Le Mans, some teams even claiming that 12 hours at Sebring is harder on the car than the 24 at Le Mans.
Why? Because the track is crazy bumpy. Those cars and drivers are battered and bruised by the end of the Sebring race, and that's not even counting the bumping and banging into each other they might do.
And speaking of bumping and banging ... you all know I'm not a fan of ovals, right? There's one exception to that rule, and that's Bristol. The track that drivers compare to flying a jet fighter inside a toilet bowl. It's that small. Someday I have to get to that race in person, and in the meantime, I don't miss it on TV. The track is a half mile long. That's it! Forty-three cars on that = chaos.
This weekend should be monumental, for all kinds of race fans. We'll all get a look at what this season will bring with new cars for known teams, new competitors in the field, new drivers, and changed allegiances. We'll all have to get used to new paint schemes and numbers associated with drivers.
But that's the joy of the new season.
At Sebring, I know I'll be rooting for Corvette Racing and Flying Lizard Motorsports as usual. I tend to be ABF (anything but Ferrari) after so many years of Porsche loyalty and then writing about Corvettes, but it's hard to kick someone when they're down, and my favorite villains (Risi) won't be there this year.
In Formula 1? Well, I'm a McLaren and Hamilton fan, when he behaves. We'll see what the new season will bring there....
NASCAR? Smoke.
So tell me who you'll be rooting for and what race(s) you'll be watching? Are you as excited as I am for the weekend to come?
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