NASCAR hauler parade kicks off big race weekend

By Rich Coleman

Thursday, March 3, 2011 | 9:25 p.m.

If you weren’t a NASCAR fan, you may have thought Thursday night’s snarl on the Strip was the traffic jam to end all traffic jams.

But the cheering, smiling crowd on the sidewalks wearing NASCAR hats, jackets and T-shirts knew what all the horn-blowing signified.

With the annual car-hauler parade, NASCAR Weekend is in full swing.

About 50 haulers — 18-wheelers that carry the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race cars and equipment — drove north on the Strip from the South Point on their way to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

People from all over the country flock to Las Vegas for the races.

“This was super. It’s the lights, the sounds, just the idea that you know they’re here. They brought in those fantastic cars that are going to run this weekend and all that horsepower,” race fan Marty Gibbs said as she stood outside the Tropicana watching the parade.

Gibbs, her husband, Floyd, and their son have been NASCAR fans for years. They flew in Thursday morning from Ohio to celebrate their first NASCAR weekend.

For Lewis Potts of Vancouver, Wash., it’s the friendly atmosphere that NASCAR fans create that makes the parade, and the whole weekend, all the more enjoyable.

“If you have a NASCAR hat on, doesn’t matter who you’re affiliated with, you’ve got a friend,” Potts said. “Eye contact’s made. Boom. You’re talking.”

Not everyone was fortunate enough to catch the parade. Oregon natives Mike and Bonny Kessler stood on a pedestrian walkway near the Tropicana and peered north on the Strip looking for the haulers.

After hearing that they missed the parade by a matter of minutes, Bonny Kessler shouted, “I knew it!”

This is the couple’s second year in Las Vegas for NASCAR weekend, but they’ve yet to catch the parade, which lasted about 10 minutes.

But for Mike Kessler, the races and welcoming attitudes of other NASCAR fans are the highlight.

“I’ve been to NASCAR races all over the place and when it comes to NASCAR stuff, people are friendly. They’re not rude, they’re not pushy. Everybody’s here for a good time and relaxed,” he said.