A weekend in Talladega was definitely an experience for us… despite three days of generator problems, a broken air compressor, and the odd tornado warning, we were up and running Sunday making fantastic cuts for the three people who actually bothered to show up at the museum before the race on Sunday. Because Saturday’s activities were cancelled, Sunday offered a double header at the track, and apparently all involved were focused there. So, at noon when the race started, we packed up and went to the race to experience the thrill of Nascar live and in person and the race didn’t disappoint. Thrilling to the last lap, the Aaron’s 499 ended up 500+ due to the desire to finish the race under a green flag. It took three tries, but eventually ended in dramatic fashion.

The town of Talladega was a bit different. Having no prior experience or knowledge of the area, we were surprised to find it quite sleepy despite the fame of the nearby Speedway. The highlights of our time in the town were our daily breakfast at Tina’s home cooking, which seems to be the center of the morning scene, as we met the Sheriff, the Mayor, and old crazy Joe, the local homeless guy who shouted random things about eggs, coffee, and Nascar. Tina proved to be the one manning the grill, whipping up a fantastic Southern breakfast complete with grits and whatever else we wanted. Cassie, the waitress had a terrific handle on the place, with her pleasant smile, and very Alabama drawl, to making sure that Crazy Joe minded his P’s and Q’s.

Saturday’s stormy weather put a wrench in the day’s plans leaving us with little to do, so we went to a local tourist attraction called the DeSoto Caverns which was pretty cool, and the evening’s entertainment was a comedy show at the local theater. Henry Cho was the headliner and played graciously to the crowd of about 200 people. Most of us have seen him on TV, talking about his life as the only Korean family growing up in a town in Tennessee.