Driving the Glen

It’s not really a surprise that as we rounded turn six at Watkins Glen International, our Honda Accord’s tires screeching in pain as we took the sharp incline at 50 mph, I was screaming in the passenger seat. Tony Stewart (my favorite NASCAR driver who happens to be the winningest driver at The Glen’s Sprint Cup series), I was not. I was a wuss.

(Exhibit A: screaming)

I’m kind of an adventurous wuss, as I’m in pretty much willing to do anything at least once, but I don’t promise I won’t be a wuss while doing it. Thus the screaming (& giggling) throughout the drive.

(Exhibit B: giggling)

We were driving our very non-racer car on a genuine racing road course as part of their “Drive the Glen” program. For $25, you too can take your clunker around the famed road course three times. After the first two laps, you stop at the start-finish line to pose with your high performance driving machine sedan. I drove the first two laps – slowly, way under the track speed limit of 55mph, giggling the entire time – while B drove the last lap.

Before our hair-raising driving experience, we were able to take advantage of some of the cool, free things the track has to offer. On any given day, you can head to the track to watch Porches’ race or to climb in a real stock car to pose like Richard Petty. As a NASCAR fan, it was really cool to sit in an actual Nationwide stock car. Note: climbing in an out of a stock car is harder than it looks on TV!

Watkins Glen has a storied race history. The original open wheel races were run right in town – on city streets – with the start-finish line right in front of the courthouse. As cars got fast & crowds got bigger, it became increasingly dangerous & they decided to build a road course just outside of town. The track hosted Indy races until 2009, but still has two main events during the year: a stop on the NASCAR circuit for the Sprint Cup & Nationwide Series, as well as the big Six Hours at the Glen race.

A walk along the main street in Watkins Glen gives a hint to its storied past: memorial stones pay homage to some of the best drivers ever to grace its streets, while little spray painted race cars mark the original race course.

Having only ever been to a racetrack for a NASCAR race, I was surprised how many cool things there were to do at Watkins Glen not during a race. While our Drive the Glen experience was provided courtesy of Watkins Glen International, it was absolutely worth every penny of the $25 – even if you’re not a racing fan. Next time we’re in the Finger Lakes, we’ll definitely Drive the Glen again, but perhaps we’ll rent a sports car first.

Know if you go… 

– You can purchase your Drive the Glen tickets ahead of time or just right there at the gate. Driving is at noon & 5pm, but sometimes they get delayed. The day we were there, we didn’t start driving until close to 5:40pm. It’s all fine, just make sure you don’t have anywhere to be immediately afterward.

– Even if you’re not Driving the Glen, pop by to see if there is something happening on the track. There are several amateur racing clubs who use the track for their own activities. Even though they’re not professionals, it’s still really cool to see racing.