North Wilkesboro Speedway: Is it a place that looks like it’s a trip back in time to when NASCAR racing was still about moonshiners and good old boys and pretty trophy girls in skimpy outfits? Absolutely.
Does that mean that it needs to be a part of racing today? No.
LISTEN: Maybe It’s Time To Leave North Wilkesboro Speedway In The Past Once Again
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Maybe.
But, Jr motorsports and Budweiser just announced bringing Jr and the iconic red #8 Budweiser back to regional late model racing next year. Jr already committed to Florence. Love or hate the guy, he’s done a lot to shine a light on local tracks and regional series. He was pivotal while North Wilksboro sat idle all those years, to electronically map out N Wilksboro and get it to iracing format. Remember watching those during the pandemic years? Seems so long ago. That brought a lot of light, and life to that track. Is the track doomed again? I’m not sure. As I stated in another thread, for a lot of great reasons by other contributors here in this forum, I give the track a mulligan for this year.
Maybe convince Jr, and a few buddies to a late model and companion Smart/Nascar modified race next year, and maybe you have something. I’m sure there would be interest. Maybe that gets N Wilksboro back in a positive direction for its future. Maybe locals get interest back in their local track. Does it survive after that if that scenario were to play out? Only time would tell I guess. But at this point, I still feel it needs a little more nurturing, support, and star power. Would be a shame after all the effort and money that went into it’s revival, to see it all fail.
Keep it open. If those places don’t want to participate, they can go somewhere else
A track that was just rebuilt shouldn’t be abandoned after a couple bad races. They should probably give the track more of a chance to prove itself than that. If every track with a recent history of bad racing were simply cut from the schedule all the sorry tracks and road courses would be gone. I hope NASCAR fixes the cars before they decide to cut tracks. It’s not like any new race tracks are being built these days, just street circuits. Also the supposed “good reason” for leaving North Wilkesboro wasn’t the racing, it was NASCAR’s foolish expansionist agenda and SMI poaching both its race dates.
Marshall,
SMI didn’t poach both its race dates. Part of the ownership of the track sold a half share of the facility to SMI and another part of the ownership sold a half share to then New Hampshire International Speedway owner Bob Bahre.
@Shawn yeah, but SMI and Bob Bahre were definitely simpatico, and SMI wound up with that date after they bought NHMS, so now it’s technically a Las Vegas race. Either way it’s better for NASCAR to not be in the habit of dumping tracks so quickly. Fans were fine with losing Chicagoland and Kentucky because the racing sucked, but then they changed to a car that runs good on those types of tracks and bad everywhere else. What if they build a new car that runs great on short tracks but NASCAR has let North Wilkesboro fall to ruin again? What they should be doing with the exhibition races is really experimenting with their race package- take the reins off the teams a bit maybe, ramp up the horsepower, do something REALLY weird, rather than just a normal race with fewer cars and no points.
SMI got a lot of state money for this place. They won’t leave simply due to how much it would hurt their prospects of getting funding at their other tracks moving forward.
NWB needs a big short track event IMO.
The cars tour /smart triple header should have had great crowds and fell flat.
The NWMT was always going to struggle that close to the cars tour event as a single header. They were somewhat close to the make up cars tour race too.
i dont see NWB cutting events so soon though. the cars tour weekend has all the makings of a good weeked with or without the NWMT. and the sport desperately needs the reach out back to its roots.
I am glad that you used the word “Maybe” …. I do not agree with letting it slip back into the shadows after all the good will and effort that has been put into the facility… I really , honestly believe it would have been a great Modified Tour Race if there were more cautions or stage breaks with cold cautions at 45 & 100 lap markers..The track is fine and just needs time to come in like most new surfaces out there…If the top runners were able to Pit , The 51 would most certainly had challenges at the front …Big Money & the 1 & 64 and 7 along with the 16 & 23 could have mounted a run to the checker that would have everyone talking about what a great race it was… How many times did the 43 of Richard Petty stink up the show …??? It happens sometimes, green to checkers also happens too… I believe it was the low car count on the 5/8 mile that had everyone spread out like does happen at Thompson sometimes was the real culprit… If you had race breaks and or Cautions this would have been a barn burner going to the Finish line… So let’s hold off on putting this track aside, Speaking of tracks , Hickory Speedway has 5 times worse pavement than Thompson and they still have a Robust Schedule with plenty of shows .. They really need new pavement.. Will that happen ..? alot of NC tracks received Government funds and did improve the facilities like Tri County repaved the Corners etc..North Wilkesboro should do well in the future… Everything west of 77 was beat up real bad , so give it time to heal and see what shows work for the fanbase under normal circumstances …
Well gentlemen, great conversation.
Zig? If we can’t have the mystical Jr star power, then big event it is. After all, it’s really now about tv anyways. And no sarcasm Zig. I like it. Bring em back, see where it goes. But if its going to be a big event, let’s bring Marshall on board, and do the experimental thing. Denny Hamlin and others been very vocal about more hp. Let nascar think outside the box and use that experimental thing Marshall suggested. Maybe hp or something else. Now I’m guessing, some teams without resources might cry foul, but, I’m thinking that would be interesting as a one off, and see what happens. Maybe they actually solve some gen 7 sucky short track results? Best that could happen imo. Yup, issues making that scenario happen, but when was the last time someone or somebody, actually tried to save a racetrack? I’m on board, not that that would matter to Nascar…
I dont need to see any more race tracks succumb to the blade of a Cat D9. Jmo
How about you go drink a glass of Shut The H Up. This place has revitalized the economy of Wilkes. Idea don’t like it then don’t come here or don’t watch, otherwise shut up.