Having Second Thoughts About Las Vegas For NASCAR’s Awards Banquet
How does that old saying go, “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone”?
That’s kind of the way I’m feeling right now. In less than a month, NASCAR will celebrate its latest Sprint Cup champion at the annual awards banquet. But instead of New York City, where the banquet took place for the previous 27 years, this year’s ceremony will be held for the first time in Las Vegas.
While I like Las Vegas, the aura there just can’t match that of Manhattan. And while the Wynn Hotel is one of the classiest in Sin City, it’s no Waldorf=Astoria.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not putting down Las Vegas or the fine folks at one of my favorite race tracks, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which is playing host to several events during the Cup champion’s week, particularly a free fan fest.
But for the previous five years, I always looked forward to heading to New York City, a city I previously hated for a reason I can no longer remember, but one that I since fell in love with.
There was something about flying into either LaGuardia Airport or Newark Airport and coming into center city Manhattan. Seeing the tall buildings, the huge crowds and then pulling up in front of the Waldorf, with the huge Sprint banner flying from the flagpole, it literally gave me goosebumps.
There were also the fabulous parties during the week, the wives and girlfriends of those affiliated with the sport getting a private shopping tour of world-famous Tiffany’s, the annual Thursday afternoon luncheon at Cipriani’s, the victory lap around Times Square. I can go on and on about some of the memories I hold dear.
And while I know everything eventually changes, I have to wonder how much of a shock to the system it will be the switching of venues from NYC to LV this year. Sure, Vegas is a world-famous city, but it doesn’t have the cosmopolitan flair and international feel that New York has.
I mean, you could spend a week in New York and barely see anything. There’s just that much to see.
In Las Vegas, though, frankly, I divide what’s to see into two categories: big-name shows of celebrity performers and five zillion slot machines and poker tables. And after maybe a couple of days, one casino or showroom looks pretty much the same as the next.
Las Vegas doesn’t come close to matching culture with its counterpart nearly three thousand miles away. Nor does it have the same kind of special feeling that you get in New York.
Frankly, Las Vegas is neon, glitter and glitz, while New York is much more substance. Vegas borders on tackiness at times, while New York, for the most part, is all about classiness.
The irony of all this is that so many people spent the last four or five years complaining about being in New York for the NASCAR banquet, with criticisms ranging from outrageous prices on hotel rooms (they were, admittedly), to $20 hamburgers.
There were also complaints about occasional weather problems, the oftentimes arduous journeys to nightmarish tales of traveling to the Big Apple, the tons of traffic and people, the inability of walking down the sidewalk near Rockefeller Center on the same night the city’s Christmas Tree is lit as some of NASCAR’s top events take place.
I admit, I was guilty of some of those same critical transgressions. Still, as much as I advocated NASCAR moving the banquet to somewhere else – and I mentioned Las Vegas as a great choice – I now wish NASCAR was once again going back to New York rather than going to Las Vegas.
Some people would like to see the banquet held in Charlotte, in the heart of NASCAR country, where most teams and drivers live and or are based. That idea has warmed to me of late, particularly with the upcoming opening of the NASCAR Hall of Fame and Museum next year.
But for at least the next few years, I guess it’s hello Vegas, and thanks for the memories, New York.
Again, I have nothing against Vegas, but it’s a night and day difference between it and New York. As the song says, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. But if you make it in Las Vegas, all you have to show for your efforts is maybe a few plastic casino chips or an autograph from one of the hundreds of Elvis imitators around town.
So for all you folks who criticized coming to New York, or you native New Yorkers that didn’t appreciate NASCAR’s annual foray into your fine city – not to mention the millions of dollars dropped into the local economy – we’ll miss you next month.
While some attendees will get in the spirit and say “Viva, Las Vegas,” I have just one thing to say in response: “Sure, you can say “Viva, Las Vegas” all you want, but you’ll never be able to match what New York meant and brought to NASCAR for more than a quarter-century.
Not even close.
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