Editor/Owner: Karen Pistone
Photographer: Sandi Goodall
I have been a race fan for over 25 years. My “home” track used to be Dover International Speedway. I spent 16 years camping at the track and attending the races twice a year- both the summer and fall races.
I was in attendance for the very first and largest sports gathering 17 days after the terrorist attacks in NYC on 9/11. I will always remember that race. It was the Cal Ripken 400. It was very quiet for 140,000 plus in attendance at the Monster Mile.
Here’s a piece of an article from the race that I often recall:
DOVER, Del. - Inspired by Old Glory and its flag-waving fans, America’s favorite
driver – Dale Earnhardt Jr. – won the Cal Ripken Jr. 400 as NASCAR raced for the
first time since the terrorist attacks. “To see that reaction is really overwhelming.
It’s good to be reminded sometimes of what to be thankful for,” he said Sunday
after one of the most popular victories in the history of the sport.
I started a few years after moving to Orlando, FL. I was working at the Orlando Sentinel as a Production Artist. I felt my local newspaper had very limited coverage of the biggest event that would take place at Daytona International Speedway – the Daytona 500. I suggested to them that race fans are looking for much more than what they were offering. They made a deal with me that I could start a fan guide titled “The Fifth Turn” on their sports page online prior to the big race in Daytona.
It became a hit! They saw an increase in traffic. Advertisers were requesting my page to advertise on leading up to the big race weekend.
Now they wanted me to start writing.
Back in 2010, I moved my blog off of the newspaper’s site and started under my own domain of Racingal.com.
I was given that one opportunity to start something I believed in. This is how Racingal.com was started and from this point on, will grow to be one of the top NASCAR news sites available to race fans.
So please be sure to “Like” my Facebook Fan Page, and follow me on Twitter @racingal – http://twitter.com/racingal