Local Carolina leaders step in amid NASCAR track – Sports News
Greenville-Pickens Speedway is a historic NASCAR track (Image: Getty)
The historic Greenville-Pickens Speedway has been briefly saved by native leaders after the NASCAR track confronted demolition amid a Pickens County developmental project.
Greenville-Pickens Speedway is a legendary NASCAR circuit, and whereas it hasn’t hosted the Cup Series since 1971, it stays a historic track. The South Carolina circuit was threatened earlier this yr as a result of the encompassing space was a development project, and designers wished to tear down the track.
However, NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr. confirmed his help for Greenville-Pickens Speedway and claimed he would compete in a CARS Tour race if the track survived. On May 11, the Pickens County Planning Commission voted towards the project plans to keep the track intact.
The commission voted 6-1 towards the project section, that means that Greenville-Pickens Speedway will stay. The resolution got here after nation commissioners voted on May 4 to create a non permanent preservation committee.
“What the people want is simple … preserve our history, protect a landmark that has stood since the 1940s,” one lady mentioned during the May 4 assembly. “This track is not just old pavement.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. campaigned for the track to survive (Image: Getty)
“It’s one of the oldest NASCAR-sanctioned tracks in the nation and holds many years of historical past … You can’t recreate that. You can’t substitute that, and as soon as it’s gone — it’s gone ceaselessly.”
The woman also secured 4,300 signatures from supporters of the track’s survival after raising awareness of the imminent destruction plans. However, that doesn’t mean Greenville-Pickens Speedway will be safe forever.
The vote against demolition may be a short-term win, but developers could submit future plans and attempt to have the track destroyed. The infield of the track is currently overgrown, and the facility has also been neglected in recent years.
While no Cup Series race has taken place there since 1971, the track has continued to host lower-level races. Greenville-Pickens Speedway hosted Cup Series races from the 1950s to 1970s, with NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty, Junior Johnson, David Pearson, and Ned Jarrett securing wins there.
The track reportedly closed in 2022, but the site hosted the first-ever live, flag-to-flag NASCAR race broadcast. Earnhardt Jr., a NASCAR legend and CARS Tour co-owner, vowed to ensure that the track didn’t close.
“If [Greenville-Pickens Speedway] can survive, the [CARS Tour] might be first in line to return, and I’ll be the primary entry,” Earnhardt Jr. posted on March 12. The track was also shown to be supported by South Carolina Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Alan Wilson.
“Greenville-Pickens Speedway is not only a track, it’s half of our state and national historical past, even the positioning of the primary televised NASCAR race,” Wilson posted in April. “I’ve mentioned it earlier than and I’ll say it again: our historical past shouldn’t be exploited simply to make approach for development. The people have made their voices clear. They need to protect it.”
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