North Wilkesboro Speedway: The Rebirth of a Town and a Track
By: James McCombs
The popularity of NASCAR in the 1990’s and 2000’s grew past the point of its roots, and left in the wake were race tracks that had been there since NASCAR’s inception in 1948.
One of these race tracks is North Wilkesboro Speedway. Nestled in Wilkes County, NC, the track was constructed in 1947, and it was built to last. North Wilkesboro Speedway hosted 93 recorded top-tier series races from 1949 to 1996, according to Racing Reference.
However, this track was abandoned by NASCAR as they attracted fans from across the United States. The track was bought out by Speedway Motorsports Incorporated after the 1996 Tyson Holly Farms 400, and its 2 race dates were given to Texas Motor Speedway, and New Hampshire Motor Speedway respectively. NASCAR has not raced there since, and the track has slowly fallen into disrepair.
Not only did NASCAR’s abandonment of the speedway hurt the track, but the small town of North Wilkesboro quickly fell into an economic slump as a result.
The .625-mile short track was the gem of the town, and taking its 2 races away also took millions of dollars in tax revenue from the town of North Wilkesboro, and Wilkes County. Since then, the area around the speedway has never recovered financially.
This hasn’t stopped Wilkes County’s most dedicated fans, though. Almost a decade after the track’s closure, Rob Marsden founded the “Save The Speedway” organization in 2005, which has most recently been headed by Steven Wilson.
I had the opportunity to talk with Wilson about the track, the town, and the future of both the facility and the county.
“For us, it was about trying to do something to bring back not only a track that was still standing… but to also kind of revitalize the town to some degree,” said Wilson on the mission of “Save The Speedway.”
NASCAR’s sharp decline in popularity since the late 2000’s has left modern tracks failing to reach more than 40,000 race fans for a Sunday race, a far cry from the 60,000 that packed in to watch North Wilkesboro Speedway’s final NASCAR event in 1996. This includes both Texas Motor Speedway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway, which poached the track’s race dates for the 1997 season.
Modern-day fans of NASCAR agree with the likes of legendary driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., and popular NASCAR content creator S1apSh0es, in saying that leaving North Wilkesboro Speedway was an error by NASCAR. Wilson elaborated on why NASCAR fans want to see the track that was abandoned so long ago, revitalized.
“Now, we’re seeing a generational interest of those fans that came either during or after that error, really wanting to see more of a heritage and retro kind of feel to the sport itself,” said Wilson.
This same outspoken fan interest has proven to be successful in the past, as NASCAR has promoted retro gimmicks to the sport’s fanbase. The most notable of the bunch is “Throwback Weekend” at Darlington Raceway, where teams wrap their race cars in retro schemes, paying tribute to the legends of the sport. Its popularity has helped Darlington, one of NASCAR’s oldest remaining tracks, to flourish in attendance.
Once again, this fan interest has proven to be successful, as the state of North Carolina granted $18 million toward improving the infrastructure of the track in January of 2022.
North Wilkesboro Speedway’s short track nature fits with the interests of current NASCAR fans, who are tired of seeing NASCAR racing primarily on 1.5-mile ovals. Wilson had this to say about what these modern cookie-cutter tracks have done to NASCAR and its fans:
“When you start doing the same things over and over again, and start going to the same places over and over again on the schedule, fans start losing interest over time.”
NASCAR fans are finally realizing their hunger for the contact heavy short track racing from years of old. NASCAR has responded.
With Speedway Motorsports Incorporated President, Marcus Smith, openly sharing the same ideas as fans for a return to the historic track, there is plenty of excitement to be had for the future of North Wilkesboro Speedway, the town of North Wilkesboro, and Wilkes County.
NASCAR is finally going back to its roots.
