Jul 11th, 2011 by T.C.
There has been a lot of anger and outrage over the horrible traffic experienced by so many over the course of the Kentucky weekend. Horror stories of fans sitting on the interstate for hours and than getting turned away are prevalent. And nobody understands the frustration over the traffic better than the crew guys who worked in the garage and on pit road all weekend. In and among the throngs of cars filled with eager race fans trying to make their way into and out of Sparta were the rental cars and vans of the race teams. For many crew guys, the 45 minute drive from the track to CVG Airport turned into a several hour ordeal.
Anybody who’s ever been to a Cup race knows that traffic is just a part of the game. Some combat it by camping at the race track all weekend, and others wait the traffic out by continuing their tailgate after the race. But the crews don’t have those options. At the end of any race it’s a mad dash to get equipment and race cars packed up and get to the airport as quick as possible. Everybody wants to get home and middle seats on the airplane suck.
On Saturday night at Kentucky, the crews were given special egress passes. This happens at a few tracks on the circuit, and the passes are supposed to help the teams get out of the infield and onto the streets quicker. But the egress passes created more traffic than they alleviated. Two police cars checking passes in the infield turned four lanes of traffic into one trying to get through the tunnels. Just one example of the madness that everyone at the track dealt with.
It’s a shame that the only thing the inaugural Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway will be remembered for is the horrible traffic. And it’s also a shame that as of this post being written, the speedway has yet to release anything resembling an apology for the situation. They are already neck deep in a PR nightmare, why can’t they just admit they screwed up and apologize?
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