My RIR Story: Dean Lewis

Dean Lewis has been watching races from RIR's Dogwood Section for over 30 years.

Dean has been coming to Richmond International Raceway since 1974, and camping with friends and family is one of his favorite traditions. He shares his Richmond experience as a part of the "My RIR Story" series.

--

Richmond is my favorite track. I’ve been to a lot of other tracks: Martinsville, Talladega, Daytona, Dover and Pocono. But Richmond is always different, especially the NASCAR season finale in September.

A race I will never forget is Kevin Harvick’s victory five years ago. I started out as a Junior Johnson fan when he was in the Budweiser car, and wherever that car went I would follow. I remember thinking (Dale Earnhardt) Jr. was going to be the greatest thing, but it was Harvick who sealed the deal for me.

My youngest son and best friend have been coming with me to every race for the last 20 years. I have three other friends who join us, too. We used to spend a lot of time together many years ago. While we’ve all somewhat moved in different directions of life, we still get together every race. The six of us have three campsites together right outside of Turn 1 and 2 in Lot F. It’s always a great weekend.

I love RICHMOND NATION because it locks in my seat every race. Most of the people in our campground sit around us in the Dogwood section in the same spot every year - and I love our seat. Being in RICHMOND NATION means we get to be at the race no matter what.

The fans who go to the races at RIR are really nice, and the track staff is great. I’ve never run into anyone with a bad attitude - even if their driver lost. Where else can you go where so many different fans and teams are together and still have a great time? A NASCAR race.

Dean Lewis
RICHMOND NATION Member