NASCAR Weekend Weather Forecast
By Mike Fuori
Another full weekend of NASCAR racing is on tap as we head to Dover, Delaware for the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races, while the Camping World Truck Series event takes place roughly 2500 miles away in Las Vegas, Nevada. There will be no shortage of racing to watch as we squeeze it all in to just over a 24 hour period Saturday and Sunday. There is some chance of the four-letter R word in the forecast at the Monster Mile, but not enough to ruin the weekend, and as for Vegas… It never rains in the desert, right? Here are the details…
June 3, 2012; Dover, DE, USA; A general view of the track during the FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-US PRESSWIRE
We’ll start off the forecast in Dover, where a cold front will be passing through the area Saturday morning. The green flag doesn’t drop until 3:45pm ET for this one, so with drier, northwest winds coming in by Saturday afternoon, I think we’ll be able to get this race in without a hitch. Skies will be cloudy most of the day, but may begin to clear out a bit by race time. For those attending, temperatures in the morning will hold in the 60s as the front is passing through, and may top out around 70 in the afternoon and hold there for the drop of the green flag. Cooler air will start pouring in though by evening with temperatures falling into the low-mid 60s by the end of the race, and low temperatures Saturday night/Sunday morning will be in the mid 50s. These aren’t unusual temperatures for Dover this time of year, but may require jackets for some of you.
Switching gears for a minute and heading to the other side of the country, the next race on the schedule is the Camping World Truck Series Smith’s 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway at 8:30pm ET Saturday night. OK, so it’s not true that it never rains in the desert, but it won’t be raining this weekend. It will be hot though, with green flag temperatures Saturday around 95 degrees (It’ll only be 5:30pm local time in Vegas, just coming off their high temperature for the day). With the sun going down, it’ll cool off nicely with temperatures dropping into the mid 80s by the time the checkered flag flies. No chance of rain, all clear skies this weekend in the desert.
Back to Dover on Sunday for the Sprint Cup Series AAA 400, which is scheduled for a 2pm ET start. I think we’re going to be a bit lucky on Sunday, as there will be an approaching low pressure system that will bring an increase in rain chances late Sunday night. Dover should be sitting underneath what we call a “dry slot”, which is exactly what it sounds like… a stretch of dry air that often gets wrapped into the southeast side of an upper level low pressure system, and usually prevents any showers from developing. While there is a small statistical chance of showers Sunday afternoon and evening based on computer models, I’m going to say we’ll get the race in without any major weather issues. Skies will be mostly cloudy, with green flag temperatures right at room temperature- 72 degrees!
Next week, the Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series will be sure to put on a show as they head to the biggest track on the circuit, none other than Talladega Super Speedway. You won’t want to miss a thing, so be sure to check in next week for the forecast!