Sticker Guy,
Dixie and I will be there. There's a lot more to see around the Des Moines area than you might think. Either that....or I am very easily entertained, which is also probably true.
We have two kids, so the some of the stuff we choose to do during the day won't appeal to everyone, but here's a list of things we've hit during the day over the past couple of years before we head to the track at night:
Hall of Fame http://www.sprintcarhof.com/ (Mike's comments are right on-take your time)
Living History Farms: http://www.lhf.org/ (cool place. You'll easily kill 1/2 a day...easy)
Adventureland http://www.adventureland-usa.com/ (mandatory if you have kids. Good roller coasters)
Iowa State Fair http://www.iowastatefair.com/ (worth seeing- it's one of the biggest fairs in the US)
Tour the State Capitol http://www.legis.state.ia.us/Pubinfo/Tour/ (this was way more interesting than I thought)
The house John Wayne was born in (now a small museum) http://www.johnwaynebirthplace.org/
Madison County Historical Complex http://www.madisoncountyhistoricalsociety.com/buildings.html (also more interesting than I thought it would be)
The Covered Bridges of Madison County http://www.madisoncounty.com/bridge_fest.html (my wife read the book so I was hosed and had to go drive around and see these things)
Scenic Valley Historical Railroad http://www.scenic-valleyrr.com/ (skip it unless you have small kids with you)
Pella (go to the historical center and Wyatt Earp's house) http://www.pellatuliptime.com/historical-village/
Never been to Dingus (but it reminds me of Chico when I walk by it), Slideways or Udders.
Other stuff:
Get there early on Wednesday night and start a "grid search" working your way out east from the main entrance of the track. Almost everyone in the area sells parking spaces on their front lawn. Find someone who looks organized and have he/she sell you a spot for the whole week.
The official Knoxville shirts and hats are pricey and Al is right....they run out, so do your shopping early. If you have a few extra bucks to blow on goodies, make some time to search through the t-shirt racks. You can score on some really cool shirts from out-of-staters who've switched rides and are unloading old stuff cheap
Enjoy! If I can help it....I'll never miss a Nationals. I hope my kids are taking me when I am old and senile (that's only a couple years out if you ask my wife)
