Slots of fun in Penacook

Photo by Ben Conant / Insider Staff

Bob Bianchi has raced cars in front of 2,000 people, with flashbulbs pocking the air from the overflowing grandstand as he whistled across the finish line.

Of course, the people were all made of plastic. And the flash bulbs were tiny blinking Christmas lights affixed to the rows of seats.

Welcome to the world of slot car racing, where aficionados like Bianchi can enjoy the rush of racing without the concerns over twisted metal or bodily harm. It’s also the only world in which Bianchi can own somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 cars and in which participants can create and decorate their home tracks as they see fit, including full stands, natural scenery and plastic paparazzi.