Call it a repeat performance. For the second consecutive year, NASA MidAmerica has been named “Best Racing Program” in the sports and recreation category by Missouri magazine.
This year, the magazine received more than 475,000 votes from across Missouri and beyond, setting a new record for participation. According to the magazine, “Each vote represents a voice in celebrating the people, places, businesses, and services that make Missouri such a special place to live, work, and explore. From your favorite coffee shop and hometown boutique to the best family attraction or wedding venue, your votes helped shine a spotlight on the very best our state has to offer.”
A purely editorial function, the contest is not based on who buys the most advertising, but voting from the state’s residents. NASA MidAmerica’s Donna Lane says racing is a big attraction in Missouri, from the World of Outlaws to NASCAR, IndyCar and NHRA, and, of course, NASA.
The award is accompanied by stories about the winners and a red-carpet event at the Margaritaville Lake Resort at Lake of the Ozarks in February.
“I don’t want to solicit for it. It’s up to the people who vote. Now last year was shocking because I didn’t realize all the people I guess that I’ve touched in racing in this region, and I think that makes a difference,” Lane said. “But as a team, just the love motorsports is what we’re all about. The community that we’re building, the family that we’re building. So it’s just that motorsports community that I think this area was desperate for, and I didn’t know it when we started, but I just think it was desperate for this grassroots aspect that we bring to racing.”
The contest features more than 300 categories, from best things to do, to the city’s favorite cuisine and cocktails. There is something for everyone. For Donna and Randy Lane, this kind of recognition is the culmination of a lot of hard work and cultivating an atmosphere of family at each event. It’s also something that would not have been possible without their staff and volunteers that make NASA MidAmerica as special as it is.
“All our staff is wonderful, and their love of this sport and their gratitude for being able to participate and see drivers grow and build racecraft is, I mean, they live for this stuff,” Lane said. “This year, to me, it is just an absolute reflection of our commitment to motorsport in this part of the country. I’ve got between my core staff and my instructor staff, well over 40 people now, and every single person is so committed to racing.”
Now everyone in Missouri knows that.
