"I Thought I Was Dying" Michael McDowell Remembers First Dover Race

Let's hope Michael McDowell can have a better race at Dover than his first trip there. He recalls his first NASCAR race at the Monster Mile, and how it went from bad to worse really fast. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

As the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Dover this weekend for the All-Star Race, our very own David Styles sat down with Michael McDowell to talk about his first time racing at Dover. And let's say it just didn't go as planned. But for PRN's Garage Pats, this is Andrew Kerr.

SPEAKER_00 0:17

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SPEAKER_01 0:48

Michael McDowell, along with the rest of the Cub Series field, will be racing for one million dollars this weekend at Dover. It is a physically demanding racetrack. The G-forces are extreme. The transition from the banking to the straightaways, drivers describe it as riding a roller coaster. So, with all that said, it's a challenge, no doubt. Our very own David Styles sat down with Cup Series driver Michael McDowell, who talked about his first time racing at Dover, and let's just say it didn't go as planned. Take a listen.

SPEAKER_03 1:21

In 2007 and 2008, the races were still long, right? We hadn't like shortened any of them. So it felt like it felt like every race was 500 miles. It didn't matter if you're racing Phoenix or Dover or Poconot.

SPEAKER_01 1:34

I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 1:35

And Dover by far is one of the most physically demanding racetracks that we go to. Just the high G loads and the high loads on your body. It happens at Dover. This is my rookie year. I got into the fence a couple times. I mean, coming off of turn four, especially the old cars, used to hit it all the time. Knocked the crush panels out of it. And so I gassed myself out on my first Dover 5,000. That's what I called it 5,000. And I just remember that was my first time like having carbon dioxide where you're really struggling. And I got on that plane and I thought I was dying. Like everything was shutting down. I was crawling up in a little ball, and I was like, these guys do this every week. I mean, I'm gonna have to get I'm gonna have to get my life together.

SPEAKER_01 2:20

Um, but yeah, it's gotten better since then. Well, let's hope Michael can have a better experience this weekend at the All-Star Race. For PRN's garage pass, this is Andrew Curlin.

SPEAKER_02 2:31

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