By Jonathon Masters

If the past four decades of Winter Nationals racing at East Bay Raceway Park in Gibsonton, FL, have taught us anything, it’s that racers from the Northern states love to begin their year as early as possible. 

The urge to race brings many of them hundreds of miles from home to compete for several days in the Florida sunshine. The Midwest won’t see tracks open until mid to late March. The Northern states will wait until April to see any racing action. In the Deep South, however, the time has come for the Winter Nationals, which begin this Wednesday and wrap up Feb. 17, to get underway. 

Watch the 2018 East Bay Winter Nationals LIVE on FloRacing 

To the people of the South the “snowbird” invasion is nothing new. They see it on their beach shores and on their highways on a yearly basis. It has become a staple of the season for them and a usual component of Florida society. The novelty of racing’s “snowbird” invasion is it happens late in the cold season and only lasts a month. It is also by people spurred to work late nights and early mornings rather than lay in the sun and walk on the beach. It is a strange kind of reverse vacation.

The average racer from the Midwest will leave the weekend prior to racing’s kickoff at East Bay. If you’re a modified racer who practices on Tuesday and starts racing on Wednesday, then odds are you’ll be on the road Sunday before. If you’re a driver from the Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, or Illinois area, you’re looking at 900-1,100 miles' worth of drive time. You can nearly double that for the Northern racers, such as last year’s early-race winner Buzzy Adams of Cameron, WI. Following the long drive they may have a day to prepare and decompress before on track activity begins. 

After the racing begins it is a nonstop test of endurance for these drivers and teams. The nights are late, the mornings are early, and the days are long. You can tear up more equipment during a week of Winter Nationals than some team tear up in two months. It is one of the true tests of driver and teams. 

When it’s over many teams and drivers will pack up and move on to race a few more weeks at other Florida tracks, but some will begin the journey home. They will have two months to repair, restock, and get ready for the rest of the season. The question you have to ask yourself is what do these racers gain by making the long haul south to race in the winter?

The answer to this question for many is a 2-3 month head start on the competition. Racers, just like any athlete, can get rusty in the offseason or any long stretch spent away from the track. Drivers need a few laps to get their rhythm back and get the feel of the car back under them. Muscle memory needs a chance to return.

Crews often need a chance to see how a new car or motor combination will react to changes in setup. They also need a opportunity to see what changes other teams have made during the offseason and see what new innovations are changing the game. It is a constant progression of technology and trends.

The Northern drivers who make the trip south get a driving refresher 2-3 months quicker than those who decide to wait for traditional season openers. It is a simple fact that the more you do something and the shorter the time between doing those actions will result in improvement over somebody that hasn’t done the action as frequently. In easier terms, “it’s a chance to knock the rust off.”

Local or regional racers who go to the Winter Nationals also have the major advantage of getting a first look at what drivers from across the country are doing differently. The Winter Nationals bring in drivers from all areas of the country and are a great place to exchange ideas or see what might be working well outside your usual areas. You also get a chance to race against drivers you never race against and see how well you stack up.

You also have the added benefit of testing offseason changes before your regular season begins. Drivers switching chassis, motors, or shock packages have the opportunity to see how the new combinations work with their teams and eliminate any problems early. There have been countless cases of drivers changing their programs before Florida only to return to their prior equipment before the regular season begins after the switch didn’t work with their program.

If you are not able to make the trip to East Bay Race Park to watch your favorite “snowbird” invader, be sure to tune into FloRacing to see flag-to-flag live coverage of the Winter Nationals at East Bay Raceway Park.