The 67th Daytona 500 speeds into competition, then put on hold amid threatening weather

At the behest of the cry, “Start your engines,” by  Anthony Mackie, famed Marvel Comics actor, the Daytona 500 motored into competition Sunday at 2:07 p.m. at the Daytona International Speedway, despite possible rough weather ahead.

Fox Sports commentators at the speedway said winds were gusting more than 30 mph as what was believed to be a record crowd of more than 100,000 at the track were cheering on the beginning of the race. Those winds were gusting ahead of an approaching cold front. Some rain sprinkles caused the caution flag to be raised for racers in the 10th lap of the competition. As rain increased, the race was put on hold within  20 minutes of starting.

North Florida had already been hit by the effects of the front with high winds and heavy rains stretching from the Florida Panhandle into the First Coast. The National Weather Service (NWS) station at the Jacksonville International Airport (JIA) reported there were winds expected to reach 50 mph in some locales.

Even offshore in the Atlantic Ocean, gale force warnings were posted with gusts expected to reach 40 mph in the open waters.

Meanwhile, in Daytona, President Donald Trump showed up at the race track, fresh off his visit to New Orleans and Super Bowl LIX a week ago.

“I think it’s fantastic. It’s great for the country,” Trump said from the Daytona International Speedway infield in a pre-race interview with Fox Sports. “This is very exciting.”

Trump rode in the presidential limousine around the track prior to the beginning of the race. Also known as “The Beast,” Trump motored along the track in the 22,000-pound vehicle just before the 41 race cars with drivers from four countries engaged in the competitive spectacle.

“This is your favorite President,” Trump said via radio communication from inside the limo leading up to the start of the race. “… I’m a big fan. Have a great day. Have a lot of fun and I’ll see you later.”

It was Trump’s second trip to the Daytona 500. He stopped at the race track five years ago during his first term.

While the powerful cold front was causing trouble in large areas of North Florida, the same weather system wreaked havoc in other areas of the United States. The front draped from the Midwest to the Eastern Seaboard Sunday.

At least nine people have died in the most recent round of harsh weather to pummel the U.S., including eight people in Kentucky who died as creeks swelled from heavy rain and water covered roads.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Sunday that hundreds of people stranded by flooding had to be rescued.

Beshear said many of the deaths, including a mother and 7-year-old child, were caused by cars getting stuck in high water.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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