National Media Sing Praises for Eldora After Truck Race

Photo: Andrew Weber, USA TODAY Sports

Last night's much heralded return to dirt for NASCAR has been met with rave reviews. The truck series race held at Eldora was the first of any of NASCAR's series to race on dirt in 43 years, reportedly drawing fans from 48 states to watch the weeknight race in northern Darke County.

Jeff Gluck of USA Today wrote that "NASCAR should learn lessons of Eldora," stating that the environment, competition, and fun of the event should be "the kind of moment that lays the groundwork for the future."

Quoted in an Associated Press piece, race winner Austin Dillion said, "This is real racing right here,"  but perhaps this passage was the best of all:

There sure seemed to be more excitement for the Truck Series race than the Cup stop Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Leave Indy, get off the highway, and there's nothing but farmland, corn, a small town that could be mistaken for Mayberry -- and then, Eldora.

The question everyone seems to have now is when will they be back? The pure levels of anticipation of the event could have warranted more races, but the fact that the event seemed to blow all of those away seems to guarantee they will be back at some point.

Did you watch or attend the race? What did you think?