Larry the Cable Guy may have starred in the movies Cars and Cars 2, but his love for NASCAR is no act.
On-site to help promote Prilosec OTC, he kept the jokes coming, but made it clear he loved being in Daytona and would probably be here if he didn't have to.
"There's absolutely nothing like coming to Daytona. I mean it's the Super Bowl, it is opening day baseball, opening day of college football - there's no experience like it," he said. "If you've never been to one, you absolutely have to come to one. The smell of the tires and the gas, it's just a great experience. All these people walking around, Richard Petty walking around - it's just a lot of fun."
While he loves being here for the Daytona 500, he's disappointed 72-year-old Morgan Shephard will not be in the race.
"I'm kind of disappointed Morgan Shephard didn't make the race," he said. "I had a bet with my brother that he would pass six cars in the race, I said he would pass five gallstones. Neither one of us will find out because he's not racing. The good news is he can go back to being a greeter at Wal-Mart, so that's always nice."
Before hitting the big time, Larry the Cable Guy enjoyed hitting the short tracks of Wisconsin to watch his cousin race. He became a fan of the late Dick Trickle when he walked into a local bar and Trickle had "96 beers in front of him and smoking cigarettes."
Needless to say, there was a joke or two to be said.
"I was a huge Dick Trickle fan," he said. "I had posters, cars, I had a Dick Trickle mailbox. Then my grandma actually ran into that with her car and knocked the Dick off the Trickle. I had to go down to the carpenter and get a new Trickle made for my Dick. Now it's all better.
"He was my all-time favorite driver, I really liked that guy."
Not the only celebrity roaming Daytona International Speedway this weekend, Larry has not yet run into 50 Cent, who is here with Parker Kligerman and Swan Racing.
"You know, my rapper name was 'Biggie Fries' back in the day," he joked.
Larry the Cable Guy greets race fans in the tricked out "Monster" utility vehicle, which is the grand prize for the "You Can't Beat Zero" sweepstakes (www.YouCantBeatZero.com), at the Prilosec OTC ZERO Experience.
Larry the Cable Guy plays games with race fans at the Prilosec OTC ZERO Experience at the Daytona 500.
