WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. -- Mileposts and memories matter in times like these.
A calendar year becomes more than an abstract concept when reconciling pain.
Tony Stewart’s return to Watkins Glen International this weekend therefore will be considered a major marker in two years of personal and professional tumult for the 44-year-old, three-time Sprint Cup champion.
Retracing footsteps on tarmacs and drives around the old familiar green vistas beyond the upstate road course will undoubtedly conjure memories. Some will undoubtedly be distasteful as the one-year anniversary approaches Saturday of an incident that altered Stewart’s life forever.
Watkins Glen’s significance in this chapter of Stewart’s lettered career goes another year beyond that.