There's some sort of NASCAR race going on Joliet at the "Chicagoland Motor Speedway." The NASCAR people like to pretend the event is in Chicago, even though Joliet is 45 miles away.

I always thought it was a bit of an unspoken secret that people watch NASCAR not because they like to see cars go around in circles, but because of the prospect of a potentially lethal crash. I imagine Dale Earnhardt brought more people to the 'sport' by dying than through any of his competitive accomplishments. But I did hear a commentator last week say "The fans like to see the big crashes." They may pretend they're in Chicago, but maybe they don't deny auto racing is part death sport.

I don't really know anything about NASCAR and I don't care, but if I ever, Ganesh forbid, get involved in a technical discussion on the subject, I'll just say the words "restrictor plate" and I'll sound like I know what I'm talking about.