Rusty Wallace Racing Experience
DETAILS:
Location: Various. Our SoCal event took place at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA.
This was extra special since it was basically one of the last events to be hosted on its original 2-mile track, before getting renovated into a smaller course.
Hours: Various dates & times are available throughout the country. Please check their website (below under “resources”) for current schedule and availability.
Parking: Free parking.
Cost: Prices vary, but the base package for our experience was $499 for 3 laps and base NASCAR. But they do offer numerous promotional discounts. I suggest only participating if you can take advantage of a discount. We were able to jump on a promotional sale that took the base prices down to $99!
Various $ add-ons include: insurance, ride-along experience with a professional driver, additional laps, car upgrade, go-pro footage, & commemorative photo plaque. Of these, I would definitely recommend the insurance & additional laps.
Insurance: $75 for long tracks. You’re still on the hook for any damages up to $1000. But this is much better than the potential of up to $15,000 responsibility without it. Your credit card/insurance will not cover any cost since the NASCARS used are classified as “non-registered, non-titled vehicles'‘. You can elect to purchase insurance day-of if you didn’t buy it during online signup. I decided to do so day-of after learning there had already been several accidents on the track before our session began.
If your budget allows, get more than 3 laps. Unless you have prior experience in a NASCAR, it will take at least 3 laps just to get a feel for the car and track with any comfort.
Time Commitment: Please expect to spend at least 3 hours at this event which includes the 30-minute - 1hr orientation, drive time (depending on how many laps you purchased), and most importantly, the wait time to actually get into your NASCAR. Our total time committed at the track during our experience was 5 hours!
Deciding to drive a NASCAR when having ZERO experience with manual transmission wasn’t exactly the smartest idea I’ve ever had. And no amount of YouTube surfing for tutorials (like I tried to cram in) will sufficiently prepare you for this unique skill set. It’s kind of like learning how to fly in a fighter jet, but the idea of getting behind the wheel of a real NASCAR was too juicy to pass up, so I (foolishly) endeavored forward.
Hosted by the Rusty Wallace Racing Experience, named after the famed NASCAR driver, I first started feeling some dread as we drove towards the Auto Club Speedway out in Fontana. That dread only grew upon stepping inside the stadium, witnessing all the NASCARS zipping by. And I was completely consumed by this sensation after learning that there had already been several accidents on the track before our arrival. What had I gotten myself into?! There was no feeling of excitement, no feeling of fun. I was absolutely terrified with buyer’s remorse. But I had already paid, so there was no turning back now.
I started to calm down during our orientation class. Here you get the basics; racing terminology, technique, how to maneuver various portions of the track, and safety instruction. To be honest, it’s information overload if you don’t have prior NASCAR or racing experience (it would’ve been nice if they sent video instructions days prior to better ingest this info) and you start building a new set of worries on how you're going to handle the track itself. But alas, no time was devoted to the actual operation of the car. Even though they accommodate all skill levels, the natural assumption (rightfully so) is that you have some clutch experience. Again, this is when I realized I was in trouble.
But there ended up being some saving grace. 1) Once you get the car into 4th gear, you’re done! In these NASCARS, the range in 4th gear is around 40-120mph (and for most drives, you won’t get anywhere near that upper range). So there’s no need to downshift. You can even come to a stop in pit row in 4th gear as well. Just clutch/brake and you’re back home! 2) And if you really need it, you can even ask for a push-start onto the track in fourth gear so that you only have to accelerate. In this case, you won’t have to shift at all… even if it risks losing your man card. But that’s still better than constantly stalling out in front of all the other participants waiting their turn. 3) If you end up forgetting any of the info taught during orientation, you’re not at a loss since you’ll have a 1-way earpiece connected to a personal spotter who will be giving instructions in real-time. But be warned, this earpiece can get really squelchy and hard to make out (this is also because you’re dealing with the extreme noise of the engine)
The drive will be intimidating if you’re a novice like me since you’ll be driving solo. There’s no instructor in the car with you… which is sort of crazy when you think about it, given that it’s most people’s first time. And there are other cars on the track to contend with so you have to factor in their presence as well. So your main focus is basically “I don’t want to crash the car”. And no matter how fast you think you’re going, you’re probably not going fast enough, which is counter-intuitive. But you’ll know this is the case because your spotter will be constantly shouting at you to “GO FASTER!”. While I thought it was merely an upsell, if time and money allow, it’s probably worth adding the drive-along experience since that’ll give you a sense of the track and how the handle it before you actually get behind the wheel. In hindsight, I wish I had done so. In fact, a lot of people opt for this alternative so they can experience being in a NASCAR without having to worry about the actual driving.
As mentioned earlier, if you can also afford it, I highly recommend getting more than 3 laps. Unless you have prior experience in a NASCAR, it will take at least 3 laps just to get a feel for the car and track with any comfort. Three laps will not be enough for you to relax and drive the car with any confidence instead of letting the car '“drive you”. To be frank, as a first-time driver (in a manual, much less a NASCAR!), I’m not sure how much I ended up enjoying this due to all my (self-inflicted) concerns. If anything, I feel like this was a much-needed primer for a fun second experience… if there ever is a second time. But overall, I’m glad I participated in this one-in-a-lifetime experience and the entire staff was friendly and accommodating. And at $99, it was a worthy investment that I will definitely remember for the rest of my life!
RESOURCES:
Rusty Wallace Racing Experience website.
