This past weekend I attended the Toyota’s NHRA Sonoma Nationals, one of their many yearly drag races. You might be blinking thinking, G a car thing? What?! Well, a little fun fact is that while this was my first drag race, this wasn’t my first car event. Somehow I’ve always ended up at car events, a couple of them being the Monaco Grand Prix and the Baja 500 in Ensenada. I just love the loud noises of the car and the excitement of the crowd. So let’s just say I was pretty excited when Toyota reached out to partner with me on the event.
Getting to the Race
Heading to Sonoma from San Jose, I drove my ride for the weekend – Toyota’s C-HR XLE Premium. I probably drove a total of 9 hours over the course of 3 days (my bff and I did a little detour to Dixon to visit the sunflowers), and I was so comfortable. I’m an SUV gal at heart, so this cross-over was the perfect size for fitting all of our suitcases for the weekend!
Some of my favorite features:
- Bluetooth
- USB Port
- Blind Spot Monitors
- Rear-View Camera
- Dual-zone climate control
At the Toyota Nationals
1st Stop: The driver simulation
It’s all about AR/VR these days, so it was pretty cool to feel like a driver for all of 30 seconds. I mean, let’s be real – that stuff is way too scary for me – but I’m glad I was planted in a simulation and not actually driving. The footage was taken from Anton Brown’s race last year.
2nd Stop: Meeting the drivers
The team introduced me to 3 of the amazing drivers:
- Antron Brown – Fourth generation drag racer, three-time winner, sprinter and contender for 1998 Olympic Trials
- Richie Crampton – Joined Kalitta Motorsports at the U.S. Nationals
- JR Todd – 2017 Became the first African American to win in the Funny Car category at Sonoma
I got to chat with them as they got ready for their races, and get a behind the scenes look at their cars. It’s crazy to see how talented and passionate they are about the sport!
3rd Stop: The Start Line
Ummm okay so this was the HIGHLIGHT of the day. Armed with ear plugs, we made our way to the start line to watch the cars take off. We were about 5 ft away from the action and I can’t even explain the adrenaline rush of the situation. Watching the cars from afar is cool, but watching them up close? AH-MAZING.
Last Stop: The Media Room & Stats Room
Our last stop was up to the media lounge for some AC, lunch & a bird’s eye view of the event. All these behind the scenes activities made me seriously appreciate everything that goes into an event like this!
A special thanks to the Toyota team for making this all possible!
Photography: Michelle Ramey Photography
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Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by Toyota, however all opinions are my own.
