Is The Brickyard The Real Deal Or Just Hype?

By Mark Young

The Brickyard.  While growing up in the Midwest during the 80's  and early 90's  that was all that mattered.  To be honest I hardly knew that NASCAR existed back then.  We didn't have cable TV,  Satellites were something only NASA had, and the Internet was just an idea.  The only race I knew existed was the Indy 500 and it was the coolest thing in the world for me.  But then in 1994 I found NASCAR and was hooked.  I still watched the Indy 500 but it lost it's luster for me.  Strangely enough that was the first year of the Brickyard 400 as well so there was balance in my world.  But that makes me ask the question.......Is the Brickyard 400 the real deal or is it just hype?

I will be the first race fan to say that the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is not best suited for 3,400 lb. race cars.  The racing action is not the best either but for me it is just as important as Daytona, Bristol, and Darlington.  Indy is hallowed ground for racing and to have NASCAR there just seems right.  I also believed that Formula-1 just seemed right as well.

But I want to hear what you fans think about Indy.  Is it all hype with bad racing?  Is it a place that NASCAR needs to be?  Let me know what you think..........