The Benzik 500: One Man’s Mission to Bring Pinball to the Michigan International Speedway
Everybody loves Matt Benzik and it makes ME SICK. Who is he? You probably already know. I met him when he approached me about doing something with the homebrew community – of which he’s a member. But then I started to talk to other people and they all already knew Matt and liked him. Like a lot. And I kept seeing him. Expo, a random Scott Danesi party, he was everywhere. The first time we hung, He proceeded to dominate the Nudge crew in several games of Total Nuclear Annihilation. All this, plus his mustache and hair are incredible. It sucks.
I mean, look at this handsome piece of shit. Alright, let’s hear him out.
Why I brought TNA and Iron Maiden to the Michigan International Speedway
I had a simple dream: bring pinball machines to the infield campground of a NASCAR race. At least it was supposed to be simple, but then I contacted Doc, and he’s like, “Hell yes dude. Do it and don’t forget to bring some disposable cameras because they’re the backbone of nudge!” (Editor’s note, this feels not exactly like something I’d say. Like, ‘the backbone of nudge?’ makes me sound like a dickhead). Not a NASCAR fan? It’s ok. Let’s get into it.
NASCAR is actually kinda dope these days
OK, let’s get into it. Yes, NASCAR is still a thing. In fact, it’s been surprisingly rad the last two years. They’ve tried to address a lot of the controversies surrounding NASCAR culture. It’s mostly corporate culture, superficial stuff, but they did manage to finally get rid of the Confederate Flag. I know, feels late – but still. It’s something.
Need a sec: Here’s a NASCAR CULTURE Primer
For the purposes of this article what do you need to know about NASCAR culture? Well, the big draw for a lot of the folks is the fact that NASCAR lets you camp inside the track. The infields of the tracks are known for insane parties that rage all weekend long. It’s frickin’ nuts.
Giant campsite villages constructed of everything from custom-painted school busses converted to party deck RVs and million-dollar motor coaches. All of them hosting some of the most random people you could ever meet. They all have exactly two goals: drink and watch fast cars. That’s it. Now you’re a NASCAR expert.
The Plan: Bring Total Nuclear Annihilation and Iron Maiden to a NASCAR Race. That’s it.
The crossover between pinball and NASCAR is definitely the party culture. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that people who like fixing cars also might dig the mechanics of a pinball machine. I own a few pinball machines and decided that people who love fast, hard stuff might get their rocks off to some TNA and Iron Maiden. A Scott Danesi classic and Elwin’s first. Plus, Iron Maiden sorta seems like NASCAR culture, right? (Editor’s note: DEFINITELY.) We loaded them up into our giant trailer, and lugged them to the center of the track. After a little leveling, they played great.
So why go to the trouble? Well, and I can’t stress this enough: Because YOU CAN. Someday you’re gonna be dead. Shouldn’t you go out and do some stuff and meet some cool ass people? Cause that was basically the plan. And you know what? It worked.
Every person that walked by said something to the effect of, “Holy shit you got pinball! Can we play?” In the best case scenarios they had beer or weed to bring to the party, at worst case they just tell some story about how they loved pinball as a kid – and then go off on their way like some Skyrim NPC. No matter what you’ve got pinball, a camp fire, your own booze or weed, and hopefully a chill crew to play some stall ball with. Nothing beats some stall ball under the stars.
