Unlike the race-goers surrounding him, the NASCAR lanyard that hangs from his neck doesn’t boast a VIP pass or a staff badge — it displays a picture of his deceased mother. “Our mom got us into NASCAR,” his sister, Amy Moy adds.
“We’re a big NASCAR family,” Aaron said. The inspiration for their mother’s enthusiasm? Stock car racing driver, Jeff Gordon, a four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion. “My first race? Jeff Gordon won that. It was a big memory,” said Aaron. “One of the rare times of seeing my mother excited was seeing that.”The first day of the weekend’s events was greeted by 80 degree weather with light bursts of rain throughout the morning.
“Chicago’s a driving city. It is what it is,” said Sam Balistrieri, a Milwaukee resident attending the NASCAR events for his 26th birthday. “I don’t think it’s gonna be a problem,” echoed Cody Alguive of Hampton, Illinois, who drove 3 hours to attend the race. A similar familial sentiment rings true for western suburbs resident, Bob Rath. “I’ve been a race fan all my life,” he said, recalling the first-race he ever attended: The Time trials in Indianapolis 60 years ago. “I used to live in Cincinnati, Indianapolis was just 90 miles from me, so my parents took us up,” he said. Fast-forwarding to today’s festivities, Rath expressed his excitement for the new street racing course.
Dispersed around Butler field, a variety of vendors and advertisers stationed themselves. Near the entrance, Toni Rossi welcomes race-goers to the “design your own Hot Wheels car” booth. As an events-worker and actor, he has served at a variety of Chicago events, including last weekend’s pride festivities. He recalled chatting with his fellow employees and expressing his excitement for events, such as NASCAR, “providing so many different jobs” to Chicago communities.
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