USA 2016: NASCAR Richmond

Before flying to the Wild West, we concluded our week on the East Coast in Richmond, Virginia. There, we attended a NASCAR race on Saturday evening. The Federated Auto Parts 400 was the drivers' last chance to secure a spot in the championship race, the Chase. The noise from the cars was immense. Now, I'm used to a lot from attending multiple races. But here you have 40 cars, each with a V8 engine of around 850 hp, simultaneously lapping a stadium at speeds of around 300 km/h. In short, you simply couldn't hear the stadium speakers, and talking was impossible. That evening, under the stadium lights, the racing was intense. There was plenty of action throughout, and quite a few incidents. Towards the end, the race was even stopped due to a major crash, which caused several cars to catch fire. Fortunately, everyone got out unharmed. The race was won by Denny Hamlin in his Toyota.