By Roger Amsden
The Union Leader (Manchester NH)
Copyright 2006 Union Leader Corp.
LOUDON, N.H. — Yesterday’s high heat took its toll on the 100,000 fans gathered at New Hampshire International Speedway for the Nextel Cup Race.
Temperatures in the mid 90s and a glaring sun sent many fans to hospitals in Concord and Laconia for treatment while hundreds of others were treated for heat exhaustion and dehydration by paramedics stationed throughout the Speedway’s grandstands.
Canterbury Fire Chief Jeff Burr said he had no idea how many people were affected by the heat but knew that it was a “substantial number.” He said that a private ambulance service under contract with the Speedway made numerous hospital runs throughout the day.
As he spoke at 7:30 last evening the Loudon Fire Department was responding to a medical emergency along Route 106 in which an elderly race fan walking back to his car had collapsed.
Track physician Christopher Fore said he didn’t any have any final tally on how many people were treated but knew that many people had required medical assistance.
Loudon Police Chief Bob Fiske said the warm weather apparently helped keep a lid on excessive partying by race fans. Only 25 people had been arrested by last night, compared to more than 100 at last July’s race.
As temperatures soared for the third straight day, ice was in great demand across the state.
At the Belmont Village store owner Tracy Brovitz was receiving her second delivery of the day at 1:45. She said it was her fourth delivery in just two days.
Nick Abbott of Laconia Ice Company said that he and Zach Carter had started making deliveries at 5 a.m. yesterday and they would be working until at least 7:30 last night. “It’s one of the busiest race weekends that I can remember,” said Abbott, who has been with the company for 10 years.
He said the company brought six-tractor trailers of ice to New Hampshire International Speedway for the weekend, each loaded with 22 pallets of ice. At 360 bags per pallet, that amounted to about 47,000 bags of ice. He said there are 55 ice vending machines at the Speedway which the company services on race weekends.
Fiske said pre-race traffic moved smoothly with Route 106 cleared of traffic at 11:53, more than two hours before the start of yesterday’s race.
Fiske said remote parking areas which were on standby in case traffic headed to the Speedway backed up south of the track were not needed for yesterday’s race. He said for the first time in his memory the traffic didn’t back up on Route 393 in Concord, eight miles south of the track and pre-race traffic moved at a slow but steady pace on Route 106 north to the track.