In celebration of my 58th year on earth I chose to celebrate by checking one item off my "Bucket List." Though I have never been to a NASCAR race, the idea of taking a car for a spin around Daytona was something I wanted to do.
I turned to the Richard Petty Racing Experience. It was an awesome experience and I highly recommend it. Due to time, what you do not see is me getting in and strapped down. It was hilarious! Being 6'4" or so and about 260 lbs I am not a small guy. Nor am I limber. Never have been. My hamstrings have never been stretched to the point of extreme flexibility which made getting in the window a lot of fun. Instead of getting my helmet and HANS device put on in the car, mine was put on outside which made fitting it in through the window opening challenging, too. They went with a smaller steering wheel (which I regret) and as a result I could not see the tach.
Something very important when hearing from your spotter...you will hear him and he was awesome. Lastly, due to my long legs dealing with the clutch was a problem because it was just too close. All told, I still had an amazing time and will do it again...just with a bigger car interior (yes, the cars are sized). I get to 150.25 @4800 RPM, sort of...did it by feel because I could not see the tach).