Start Your Engines: How to Plan a Family Outing to a Sports Car Race

So first things first, let’s address the elephant in the room. A question that I often get asked: Is there any diversity at these races? My honest answer is yes! I think many would be surprised to see how much of a family environment going to motorsport races can be regardless of your background. The atmosphere is actually family-fun (we typically go on days where they also have fireworks that my kid LOVES), and you often see many children of different cultures there who join together for the love of race cars.

1. Garages.

You have the ability to pay just a little extra for access to the garages. Access to the garages gives you the ability to see the cars up close as well as the race teams. It also varies based on the race car series. NASCAR typically has an open-garage where within certain hours the first 50 or so people can go into the garage for free whereas other series such as IMSA, allows the fans to go in at anytime as long as you have a garage pass.

2. Fan-Zone Experience.

The Fan Zone experience includes concerts, areas for you to purchase merchandise, displays of awesome cars, and depending on the track that you go to there are more opportunities to get involved with the cars displayed.

3. The Race.

Nothing beats being able to hear the “start your engines” and the sounds of the race cars on the track. The experience of watching a race in itself is exhilarating. You can purchase earphones before attending the race or you can get them at the track as they typically have some on sale there. They also have earphones that you can rent where you can listen to the race car drivers speak during the race.

4. Food.

Surprisingly—although the food can get a little pricey, is pretty good! From sandwiches, to burgers, to fries, to ice cream, Fair food—there are a variety of options to choose from! You also are allowed to bring in your own food.

5. Camping.

We plan on getting an RV soon for our race experiences, but this is awesome to have at the track as well. You can get extra views of the race track as fans can park right up against the track in their RV which could also save on any hotel fees.

6. The Fans!

I can’t even begin to count how many cool people I have met at the race track. We enjoy going to different races at various locations and conversing/having a good time over the love of racing! There is always something about each track that we love and certainly keeps us coming back for more!

I hope you find this post helpful! If you have any questions, as always, feel free to reach out and connect with me!