Watkins Glen Gets 'Heluva' Race Sponsor

There's not a doubt in my mind that NASCAR's Watkins Glen International Raceway just picked up one of the most, uh, interesting race sponsorship titles.

As has been the norm for the past few years at the 11-turn road course in the upstate finger lakes region of New York, the title of the August event has taken many flavors -- from boating companies to computer products manufacturers.

This year, though, there's no Centurion, AMD or Sirius Satellite Radio involved, rather, folks there are looking to have a Heluva Good! time.

What's with this absurd amount of "Heluva" use, you may ask? It's simple -- the August Sprint Cup Series event at Watkins Glen will now be known, thanks to a one-year contract, as the "Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at the Glen".

Doesn't that just roll off the tongue about as comfortably as a lecture given by a person with a lost voice?

Of course, the "Heluva Good!" part isn't going to make the race any better or any worse than it has been in the past, but I'm looking forward to the large tubs of sour cream dip that should be a mandatory champagne replacement in victory lane.

Instead of spraying everyone with the bubbly, how about we give the winner (last year, it was Kyle Busch) an oversized bowl of the dip and nice, large wooden spoon made especially for sour cream dip tossing.

Talk about a Heluva mess.

The August event won't be the first time Heluva Good! has been involved with NASCAR, as the fine sour cream dip folks from just about an hour north of the road course have -- to the best of my recollection -- sponsored a few Nationwide Series events here and there. I also know the name for two other reasons, including 1) at last year's fall Lowe's Motor Speedway events, I picked up a few product samples and 2) a couple that the father and I traditionally tailgate with at LMS won a contest for the rights to a suite during the Nationwide Series race for them and like 20 people.

Unfortunately, they didn't partake in the activities because the value of the prize meant they were going to be hit with a tax of a few thousand dollars. In other words, be wary of those sweet, sweet contests you are prodded to enter.

Regardless, good news that Watkins Glen got a race sponsor in this oh-so-fun economy, and I'm certainly looking forward to watching a Heluva Good! race there come August.

Yeah, I'll stop now.