Story By: Erin Zollars and Sol Tucker
Photos By: Sol Tucker
Dover, DE–
As another week of NASCAR rolls around, this time in Dover, Delaware, it was time to look back at the past few weeks of traveling with the new RTIC NASCAR branded coolers and drinkware.
With the 75TH anniversary of NASCAR, we have seen quite a few partnerships that the racing series has pulled off, but this on ranks up there with one of the best so far. Not only are they some of the best products we have reviewed, but they are sure to make every NASCAR weekend, or any for that matter the life of the party. Yes, quite of few of the products will be tested will be used to toss in a cold one, or even for some weekend adventures. Whatever, it might be that NASCAR 75TH logo on the RTIC products are a keeper.
In conjunction with the NASCAR announcement, RTIC also unveiled a variety of officially licensed NASCAR and track-branded coolers and drinkware that are now available for purchase at rticoutdoors.com, with driver and team gear planned for the future. Fans can add their own touches to these co-branded products using RTIC’s personalization tool, MyRTIC. The partnership and collection enable RTIC to enhance race day for fans in attendance along with those at home, as NASCAR’s unique at-track experience allows attendees to bring coolers and drinkware inside the track, and even into the grandstands in many venues.
Here are a few of the branded products we tried and put to the test and the end results are amazing.
Travel Mug in Black
Cocktail Tumbler Grey Graphite
26oz Water Bottle in Navy
Soft Pack Cooler
52 Liter Light Cooler White Trim with Large 75th Logo
With so many races under our belts, we know many race fans who head out to watch races, usually pack their car or even huge RV with a few big coolers, but now you can have one that is not only built like a tank but keeps these beverages on ice for way longer than race day will last. When you come back from the grandstands, the 52 Liter Light cooler will have the drinks ice cold. We loaded our car for Martinsville for the 4-hour road trip late night before with two bags of ice and over 12 bottled waters, performance drinks and even some fruit. We were happy to report that by 7pm on race day, the 4 drinks that remained inside of our car were still ice cold over 16 hours later.
The 52-liter doesn’t feel as heavy as some of the traditional coolers this size when fully packed, perhaps it was the handles are more conveniently located and it was easier to lift and pick up. It also makes for one heck of a place to prop your feet up or sit after a long day. Open the drain plug and finish your day worry free. We also tossed it around when it was empty and the cooler wont dent or crack or even pop open like some of our old coolers, we have from a few years ago.
If you are looking for a quick day trip cooler or something you could take a few meals on the road, the soft pack cooler is amazing. We dumped a ton of water all over this thing and couldn’t get it to penetrate anywhere. This is sealed tight keep that cold inside and the food just like you took it out of your own fridge. It’s great for short flights and probably great for a few fitness competitions if that’s your thing.
One thing we can’t live without is a nice cup to fit in the cupholder on a long road trip. More importantly one that keeps coffee or even a soda cold through a couple rest stops. On this last NASCAR road trip, we are happy to say that the travel mugs keep the ice water cold the entire 4-hour ride and the ice finally melted about 10 laps into the race. Thats super impressive. It was also nice not to have to run back into the media center for a cold water when we were just getting settled in.
The Cocktail Tumbers are a great for multiple rounds of mixed drinks. In fact, we tried making couple Old Fashioned with the huge ice block and it seemed like that ice was never going to melt. These might be better suited for mixed drinks by a firepit, but why not try it this way and see how they worked out. Almost too cold for Whisky or Tequila over one big ice cube, but another mixed drink and this is your jam.
Overall, this partnership with NASCAR may be one of the best we have seen to date. We have seen quite a few duds over the last 25 years of covering the sport, but RTIC makes you want to run out and grab more than one and call it a party.
