The Las Vegas Speedway

One of the cool things about Las Vegas is the Motor Speedway. Set on 1,600 acres of prime Las Vegas land, the "Diamond in the Desert" has been deemed the most remarkable race complex in the world. Sports Illustrated called it the Racing Capital of the West. There are more than a dozen venues, ranging from go-karts to the NASCAR Nextel Cup. Short track programs include The Bullring (a 3/8-mile paved oval), along with road courses, a dirt track, and a state-of-the-art dragway.

Simply put, if it has wheels, it can be raced at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. And with the many racing schools like the Richard Petty Driving Experience, Derek Daly Performance Driving Academy, 600 Racing, the Mario Andretti Racing School and Freddie Spencer's Riding School, fans can do more than watch racing.

I personally decided on the Richard Petty Driving Experience along with my friend Joe. After 1 1/2 hours of lectures and a couple of spins around the track with a professional driver, we were set loose to find out what our personal bests would be. Much to Joe's chagrin as this was his second attempt, I blasted him off the track with a sizzling 136 miles per hour. Perhaps not NASCAR speed, but certainly as much as I was capable of holding on the track around hair pin turns for a first time out.

But Kevin Harvick, who has raced at Las Vegas for much of his career, wasn't excited about the shift to 20-degree banking and the newly paved track surface after testing there in January. "Las Vegas is one of those places where I grew up racing," he said. "I had a lot of fun there. The track is kind of worn out and you can move around the race track a lot and do a lot of different things. It's too bad they repaved it and screwed it up for the next four or five years."

Welcome to my Las Vegas Lifestyles Blog!

Las Vegas is more than just the gambling capital of the world. It is a terrific place to live, with loads of parks, beautiful master planned communities, golf courses, walking and biking trails, soccer fields, world class shopping, great restaurants and a vibrant energetic lifestyle. Because of the temperate weather, residents can enjoy the great outdoors all year long.

I am hoping to introduce others to the variety and wealth that Las Vegas offers. After over 24 years as a Las Vegas real estate agent, I have learned a lot about the different lifestyle venues that our Valley has to offer and take it from me, there is certainly something for everyone!