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Chris Christie's retail politics in high gear at N.H. races

LONDON, New Hampshire -- New Jersey isn't exactly NASCAR country, but Chris Christie worked the New Hampshire Motorway racetrack on Saturday like Dale Earnhardt.

Never mind that Christie admitted to not being a big NASCAR fan -- Saturday was a reminder of Christie's impressive retail politics skills, a forgotten trait since he's been overshadowed in the polls.

"I'm from Canada -- we even get you on the news up there," one man said as he shook Christie's hand.

"I'm enormous in Canada. It's amazing," Christie said, backslapping his way to a one handed bear hug of the NASCAR enthusiast as if they were old friends.

There were many hugs, intimate conversations and moments like these between the New Jersey governor, his wife Mary Pat and the fans who excitedly spotted the candidate as he leisurely toured the raceway's fan zone.

"He listens, he looks in your eye, which is nice. He was truly interested in our message and that's really important to us," Richard Greenwood of Concerned Veterans told CBS News. "We had a nice exchange of ideas. We didn't talk about politics. We talked about veterans and care for vets."

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Chris Christie at the New Hampshire Motorway Jacqueline Alemany / CBS News

Despite his attire of khakis and a pink button down dress shirt, Christie blended in with the legions of voters dressed in NASCAR superstore swag. With an expected 140,000 people attending the races this weekend -- many of them Republicans -- NASCAR was an excellent choice of a campaign stop for the candidate who has visited New Hampshire close to two dozen times and shows no signs of relenting.

"As the weather gets cooler and cooler, the campaign is going to get hotter and hotter," Christie told reporters after his stock car tutorial, with the sound of cars being revved up blaring in the background. "I'm not going to wilt when the lights get hot. That's the kind of person we need standing across the stage from Hillary Clinton next fall, someone who is going to be able to take the heat and still stay in it."

"NASCAR has a lot of people here -- a good Republican mix -- you have hundreds and thousands just living here for the week so it's a good place for him to be and a good honest atmosphere," said Herbert Richardson, a State Representative from Lancaster.

Richardson and his wife Rita gave Christie and his wife a tour of the Lancaster State Fair at an event earlier in September.

"You think Donald Trump would come down?" Rita Richardson asked. "He doesn't think we're good enough for him. And Chris is. And he's good enough for us."

Why so thin-skinned, Donald Trump? 02:01

The anti-Trump sentiment was not an uncommon thread among Saturday's New Hampshire NASCAR Republicans.

While waiting patiently for her photo with Christie, Annette Blanchard shouted words of encouragement, "You got to take down Donald Trump!"

"I don't like Donald Trump, he has no business being in politics, he would never fit in here today," Blanchard elaborated after her photo op with the governor. "Chris is down to earth, he likes people, he understands people, and Donald Trump has no clue. "

It was Portsmouth businesswoman and activist Renee Plummer's idea for Christie to make a campaign stop out of the weekend's NASCAR festivities, calling the mix of veterans, Republicans, and voters a no-brainer for any presidential candidate.

"Christie is a people's person, and you must see it, he is really connecting with people and they love it," Plummer said. "I love what he did on the debate -- saying 'Turn the camera around' because it's about the people. And that's his mindset: it's about the people."

Since his second GOP debate performance, Christie's polls have taken turn for the better -- his favorability ratings in the recent CNN/WMUR poll have jumped to 50 percent from 31 percent in June. Christie is still sitting at 5 percent overall but he did not appear too concerned about his numbers on Saturday.

"You know, as I've said over time to people, take your time and relax -- this will be fine. I understand the rhythms of campaigns and you don't want to rush to the front too soon," Christie said. "You want to rush to the front when people actually start to vote."

One supporter stood with the press as Christie engaged in a long conversation with a woman about her health problems, lamenting "I honestly don't know why he's not doing better in New Hampshire."

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