That’s Racing: Haulin’ ash at Bristol

A race fan got the ride of his life — make that his afterlife — last week at Bristol Motor Speedway.

According to the Bristol Herald Courier, just because the fan died in May didn’t mean he couldn’t take a ride around the track a few months later. The widow of the deceased arranged for a canister containing her husband’s remains to be carried aboard the No. 66 of Hooters Pro Cup driver Benny Gordon during a practice session.

Gordon, racer that he is, was glad to haul ash.

“This is obviously something that this man wanted, and he was a huge fan,” Gordon told the newspaper. “Without people like him I wouldn’t be able to enjoy what I do.”

“This is one thing that he always wanted to do all his life,” said the widow. “When he passed away I said I’m going to get him in a car, some way, somewhere.”

Just a thought: if a driver carrying a canister of cremated ashes wins the race, could you say he urned the victory?

I’ve always said that there are no fans like race fans, although college football crazies come close.

Humorist Louis Grizzard’s dying wish was to have his ashes scattered over the field at Sanford Stadium, home of his beloved Georgia Bulldogs. Only problem was, it was illegal.

That didn’t stop Grizzard’s wife Dedra and a buddy, who one night slipped in, climbed a fence, and spread Lewis around midfield.

They didn’t scatter the ashes last week at Bristol. They kept the lid on.

That was probably a good idea because a racetrack is not conducive to ash-spreading. The swirl of cars around the track would blow the dust everywhere, and after the first crash it would be mixed with the powdered Stay-Dry that’s spread on the track to soak up oil and water.

You don’t want your loved one swept away by a cleanup crew.

Bristol has always had a strong emotional pull on fans; sort of a motorsports Mecca for partying pilgrims.

Take weddings for example. Bristol’s front-stretch has been the site of several. Whether you’re acquainted with the young couple or not, it’s hard to keep a dry eye when they play “Here Comes the Bride” over the roar of engines in the pits.

The blushing bride walks down the asphalt aisle – being careful to avoid oil stains and grease spots – looking radiant in her Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s Home Improvement Racing jacket. The groom doffs his Budweiser cap, grins, and gives her a high-voltage smooch while his buddies hoot and holler.

NASCAR nuptials are exchanged: the couple promise to run side-by-side through life, and although there may be a few spinouts, blown tires and crushed fenders along the way, they’re in it for the long haul.

I suppose if it’s OK to celebrate the start of a new life at the racetrack, it’s fitting to play tribute to a departed one, as happened last week.

Race fans. They’re loyal to end. And then some.

Larry Woody is a veteran sportswriter in Nashville and has covered auto racing for almost four decades.