North Wilkesboro Speedway
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Established
1947 (78 years old)
Capacity
25,000
Build Cost
US$3,000
Architect
Country
United States
Location
North Wilkesboro, North Carolina
Timezone
UTC -05:00 Eastern Standard Time (EST)
Coordinates
36°8′32″N 81°4′21″W
18 May 
18 May 
Description
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North Wilkesboro Speedway is a 0.625 mi (1.006 km) paved oval short track in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. The track has hosted a variety of racing events since its inaugural season of racing in 1947; primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The facility has a capacity of 25,000 as of 2023. North Wilkesboro Speedway is currently owned by Speedway Motorsports, LLC (SMI) and led by track director of operations Ronald Queen.
In the mid-1940s, local Carolinian Enoch Staley built a track near the Brushy Mountains with help from Lawson Curry, John Mastin, and the Combs family. NWS was propped up with NASCAR Cup Series races soon after with help from NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. Until the 1990s, the track was owned by the Staley and Combs families with each controlling half-interest, in the process becoming ubiquitous for its connection to NASCAR's roots relating to moonshine runners. After Enoch died in 1995 amongst an explosion of popularity for NASCAR in the 1990s, Speedway Motorsports (SMI) owner Bruton Smith and businessman Bob Bahre each bought out half interest from the families. Due to a strained relationship between the two along with the facility's reputation of lacking amenities, NWS was left desolated by 1997 to extreme local uproar. SMI later bought full control of the track in 2007. After two decades of failed attempts to revive the track by various groups, Bruton's successor, Marcus Smith, led a successful campaign to reinvigorate the track after increasing pressure from drivers and North Wilkesboro locals in the early 2020s.
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