It is official. The cars of the NASCAR Winston West will return to the unique curves and turns of the renowned Laguna Seca raceway in the beautiful Monterey valley. It has been nearly 2 decades since the track played host to the series.
For some drivers the absence of a roadcourse on last year's schedule was a disappointment. The announcement of Laguna Seca was well received by these same drivers. Perhaps no one has dominated the roadcourse venues better than Butch Gilliland, but plenty of others have given us glimpses of their roadcourse talent over the years, Scott Gaylord and Sean Woodside for starters. To list all the drivers you would have to name half of last years competition.
Along with the excitement of some comes the skepticism of others, claiming the technical track is not designed for stock car racing. They wonder how the cars will handle the famed "corkscrew". They are about to find out come the weekend of May 20-21 when the rolling thunder of 30 to 40 stockcars storms out on the 2.238-mile permanent road course.
Roadcourse racing has been a part of the NASCAR Winston West series since it's beginning in 1971. The first Winston West roadcourse event was held at Riverside Raceway on January 10, 1971 and Ray Elder was credited with that win. It was at Laguna Seca in 1973 when Sonny Easley gave Ford it's first win in the series.
The return of roadcourse racing to the series has put a smile on a number of faces. And what better location than the beautiful Monterey Peninsula to travel to? This is a race not to be missed. It gives fans, drivers and crews a chance to watch not only a great race on a classic road racing venue, but visit one of the most magnificent areas in the country. Monterey is known for it's music festivals, restaurants, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Cannery Row and the majestic beauty of it's coastline. Drive a little farther south and Big Sur awaits, with it miles and miles of hiking trails.
This event may well be worth the wait. Was it NASCAR that perhaps coined the most fitting saying of all, "Be There!"
The photo was taken by Tom Paul at turn 8 near the entrance of pit road on the old Laguna Seca layout. That's Roy Smith in the car closest to us. He is father of current NASCAR Winston West regular, Gary Smith.
