'Start Your Engines!': Verhaeghe hits up Daytona International Speedway

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Carter Verhaeghe is known as a speedster on the ice.
So, it's only fitting he'd eventually end up at a racetrack.
Receiving one of the highest honors in NASCAR, the Florida Panthers forward served as the Grand Marshal of the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday.
"I've never been to a speedway or anything like this before," Verhaeghe said. "It's my first time, so it's definitely a new experience. It was pretty cool to see the track and everything so close."

Far more than just a visitor to the historic 2.5-mile track, Verhaeghe began his eventful day at Daytona by getting to talk shop with some of the drivers, including 2018 NASCAR Cup Series Champion Joey Logano, who grew up playing hockey before fully turning his attention to racing.
"He's definitely a hockey fan," Verhaeghe said of Logano, whose parents have owned and operated an ice rink in North Carolina for more than a decade. "I was talking to him a little bit."

After snapping photos with a few fans, Verhaeghe then walked onto a stage near the center of the track, grabbed a microphone and shouted the four most-important words in all of NASCAR.
"Drivers, start your engines!"
Immediately after that, Verhaeghe hopped into a nearby pace car and was driven around the track as the entire field of 40 racers followed behind in tow. Following a few warmup laps, his car then quickly veered off into the pitlane and the 160-lap race was officially off and running.
"The pace car was really cool," said Verhaeghe, who was especially impressed by the incredibly sharp 31-degree banking of the track's turns. "It was definitely really cool to be on the track and see what the drivers see and seeing the fans in the stands. It definitely was a cool experience."
It also left him with a newfound appreciation for the drivers in NASCAR.
"They're going so fast down there and it's so loud," Verhaeghe said. "I don't know how they fit all those cars on that tiny track. Just being out there in the pace car to purchase your tickets today!*