CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kevin Harvick crossed the finish line at Darlington Raceway a year ago and was struck by the stillness and silence of the empty grandstands.
NASCAR was one of the first major sports to resume competition early in the pandemic, setting its own path in a strange new world of health screenings, temperature checks and empty race tracks.
“I didn’t think it was going to be that much different, and then we won the race and it is dead silent out here,” said Harvick, who paused to take in the eerie silence that day. “It’s weird.