A trip to Talladega, Ala., is a good way to blend excitement and relaxation without tipping your gas gauge (or pockets) past the "empty" mark.

This quaint town can be a perfect place for lazy afternoon strolls or roaring engines and squealing tires.

RAINIER EHRHARDT/AP (ENLARGE)

For $12 you can take a half-hour van tour of the Talladega Superspeedway and visit the adjacent International Motor Sports Hall of Fame.

JULIE BENNETT/AP (ENLARGE)

A passenger-side view (above) from a car driven by NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. shows Turn 2 at the Talladega Superspeedway. Depending on the race season, visitors to the Superspeedway can catch zooming glimpses of drivers like Earnhardt or Brian Vickers (left) during NASCAR races. The next race at Talladega Superspeedway is the Aaron's 499 on April 29.

DeSoto Caverns Park (ENLARGE)

DeSoto Caverns have been used as a dwelling, hideout and storage facility.

If you're looking to start your engine, eager for the smell of burned rubber, or just curious about what all the NASCAR hubbub is about, your first stop is likely to be the Talladega Superspeedway (3198 Speedway Blvd., 256-362-5002, www.talladegasuperspeedway.com, open daily 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.).

From I-20, you can see the massive stadium seats rising from the oval racetrack where Bobby Allison, Dale Earnhardt and Darryl Waltrip made names for themselves. And it's where Dale Jarrett, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon have had recent notoriety.

It's also where Will Ferrell filmed scenes for his cinematic send-up of the sport in "Talladega Nights."

The home to the NASCAR Nextel Cup claims to be the largest and fastest motor sports track in the country. It seats more than 140,000 in its grandstand alone and has another 212 acres for infield viewing.

For $12 you can take a half-hour van tour of the facility and visit the adjacent International Motor Sports Hall of Fame (www.motorsportshalloffame.com) to see images of American motor sports history, as well as history-making vehicles.

Among them are the fastest boat in the world piloted by Tom Gentry in 1987 at a record speed of 149.24 mph in New Orleans, and the Budweiser Rocket car, the first vehicle to break the sound barrier on land.

In town, visit the Davey Allison Memorial Walk of Fame, a beautifully landscaped park and walking path paying tribute to the late Alabama NASCAR driver as well as curent NASCAR "all-stars."

Talladega's next race is the Aaron's 499 on April 29.

REFUEL AND SHIFT GEARS

For breakfast, lunch or dinner, stop into Mimi's Coffee and Pastry Bar (124 Court Square, 256-315-9914, opens 7 a.m. Mondays-Saturdays, closing times vary) on the town square. There you can enjoy excellent sandwiches and soups, as well as some of the freshest red velvet cake, turtle brownies or orange creme cake in Talladega County. Mimi's also hosts karaoke and live music on the weekends and boasts the "fastest Wi-Fi in Talladega."

On the northeast end of the town square, stop into the Chamber of Commerce office (210 East St., 256-362-9075, Mondays-Fridays 9 a.m.-5 p.m.) and pick up a tour map of the Historic Talladega Silk Stocking District. The free walking or driving tour begins just south of the square and includes more than 100 late 19th- and early 20th-century homes listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Fifteen of the homes date before the 1870s.

MORE ADVENTURE AWAITS

Just outside of town is DeSoto Caverns Park (5181 DeSoto Caverns Parkway, Childersburg, Ala., 256-378-7252; open 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.), where you can take an hourlong tour of the natural cave that is as deep as 12 stories and as large as a football field.

Marvel at the dramatic stalactites and stalagmites and learn the history of the Native Americans, Spanish explorers, Colonial traders, Confederate soldiers and Prohibition-era moonshiners who used the caverns for all manner of deeds. From April to October, an accompanying theme park with rides and games is also open to the public. Tickets are $10 to $15 for the cavern tour, and up to $31 for combination cavern and theme park admission.

HOW TO GET THERE

Talladega is about 140 miles southwest of metro Atlanta.

To get there, take I-20 west to Exit 173, Ala. 77. Turn left and take the state highway south into downtown Talladega.