Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Daytona Factoids to help you walk the walk, and talk the talk at Bike Weak, er, make that 'Bike Week'

There was a time when Daytona really lived up to its 'World Center of Racing' hyperbole, at least as far as the motorcycle racing world was concerned. That time's long past, sadly, but it's still the focus of attention amongst American roadracers for the next few days.

In that dubious honor, I've compiled 10 bits of Daytona trivia. The first two will help you to...

Walk the walk (to the old beach monument)
If you can stand the bright morning sunlight outside – and the sound of waves crashing inside your head – the beach is a great place to walk off a Bikeweek hangover (and oh, you’ll have one.) No pilgrimage to Daytona is complete without a visit to the beach monument to early “200” racers. It’s located across from 100 N. Atlantic Avenue.

And, talk the talk
To create the impression you’re a seasoned Bike Week veteran, say, “I miss the old North Turn bar,” when you’re buying a round. In its original incarnation, the North Turn was a down-at-the-heels dive, located at the north end of the old beach course. Although it’s still there, it’s evolved into a tourist trap – a “Bubba Gump’s” for the leather set during Bike Week, and one of a thousand generic NASCAR-themed sports bars the rest of the year.
If you must go, the soulless new North Turn bar is located on the A1A highway in Ponce Inlet. (Appropriately named, if you use 'ponce' in the UK slang sense, instead of in the 'fountain of youth' sense.)

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