https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNn2g6u6tZo
Everyone knows that NASCAR stock cars travel at insane speeds. But, when you watch the races on TV, and you're sucked into the action, it's hard to really tell how fast these machines are going. To really get an idea of the horsepower these race cars are churning out, you have to be there in person. And, if you want the fullest experience, well, you'd need to be driving the stock car yourself. But, to get the second fullest experience, you need a front row seat.
In this fan video from several years back, we get to see an up-close 217 MPH Turn 1 drive-by of epic, camera-shaking proportions.
Now, due to current NASCAR-imposed restrictions, you won't see a car go quite as fast as 217 MPH these days, but if you ever got to attend a NASCAR race back in the day, you know exactly the thrill that all these front-row fans experienced.
"Couldn't handle the steadiness of my phone because of the high speeds," the video's uploader Mr. Slimmy Jimmy writes. "Man that's an insane drive by!"
Read More: Fan Video Shows Austin Dillon Smashing Through Fence at Daytona 500
An insane drive by is right, but to give even more perspective, one YouTube commenter broke it down a little more.
"At 200 miles per hour, they are covering a football field per second, split that hair," YouTuber Heaven Inc. writes. "Bumper to bumper traffic on the interstate going 80 mph is white knuckle driving for us non Nascar drivers, now add 120 mph to that and you get what the dude was trying to get you to process through the video clip. I will say it for you, wow!"
While the video's uploader didn't specify which track he was at, several commenters pointed out that it was Michigan International Speedway. Commenter Kevin Whitehead actually served as an usher there and got to see history get made.
"I was an usher there standing at the start/finish line when Jeff Gordon hit 213 MPH new track record," Whitehead writes. "What a rush. I was only 5 ft. from the fence, incredible speed."
Hell yeah! Seeing a NASCAR race up close really is a hair-raising, adrenaline-pumping experience.