Steve Waid: At Rockingham, the old is appreciated by the new

By Steve Waid

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Article Rating: 5.0
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COMMENTARY

I attended the Carolina 500 ARCA race on May 4 at Rockingham Speedway primarily because, like many others, I caved into nostalgia.

I wanted to see the track and its first race in four years – which came about through the efforts of new owner Andy Hillenburg. He’s a former ARCA champion and the owner of a driving school and a man who is, in my opinion, one of the most humble people you will ever meet.
 
I was one of the media guys who routinely covered Rockingham’s NASCAR races for years. I went in the days when the grandstands were concrete slabs, the garage area consisted of a couple of tin roofs, the protective outer walls were guardrails, the few VIP lounges looked like storage pods and the small press box had one air conditioner.
        
Things changed dramatically over the years as the track sought to keep up with the times. Everything, including aluminum chair-back seating – and much more of it - a completely revamped garage area, a media center, handsome and modern suites, a state-of-the-art press box and control tower, were created. The track evolved into something far, far different than what it had been.

Even so, what used to be known as North Carolina Speedway wasn’t the biggest, prettiest and certainly not the most well-attended track in NASCAR. But the fans who came to see the Winston Cup and Busch Series races of the day routinely witnessed terrific competition.

The 1.017-mile track was wide enough to allow some side-by-side racing and clean passing. Restrictor plates were not required, of course, so for the competitors that eliminated the nerve-jangling tension that was part of Daytona and Talladega.

The track surface was gritty, much like Darlington’s before it was repaved. That meant as much as crew chiefs sought the proper combination of speed and handling, they also had to be highly concerned about tire management.

But, as I have said many times before, Rockingham suffered from its early spring and late fall race dates. It had to endure all types of bad weather – rain, cold, blustery winds and even snow.

A sellout was nearly impossible to achieve. Weather wasn’t the only reason, however. For years, those who controlled the destiny of “The Rock” never really cared to spend a lot of money in marketing and promotion. Fact is, they had to depart before the track made the improvements it so desperately needed.

When the speedway held its last NASCAR race in February 2004, it was not a sellout. It was the only event of that year, and afterward, it was gone. It became a place used for testing, racing schools and other activities.

Its owner, Speedway Motorsports Inc., eventually decided enough was enough and put the track up for sale at auction.

Hillenburg provided the winning bid and almost immediately said that racing, in one form or another, would return.

It did three days ago.

So I joined several other “grizzled veterans” – the term used most often for guys like me – to make a return to Rockingham. Among us were writers, broadcasters, drivers, crew chiefs and crewmen.

I was one of a few of the old-timers in the press box when the race started. I noticed that some kid was there, too, eating lunch.

I didn’t pay much attention to him at first, but then he waved at me, and I waved back as I recognized him.

It was David Ragan, the Roush Fenway driver who is all of 22 years old.

We chatted.

“Hey, I got a ride down here with Tony Stewart [the race’s official Starter],” he said. “It’s nice to know people in high places.”

He later said that he enjoyed his adventure. He thought Rockingham would be a great place for a Nationwide Series race. He thought the track looked better than some of the speedways currently on the Sprint Cup
schedule. He sat in the grandstands for a while and then visited the press
box and broadcast booth. He expressed the opinion that everything was first
class.

Interesting, don’t you think?

A bunch of old-timers go back to Rockingham to experience, in some way, how things used to be.

Then, a young NASCAR driver whom many consider to be on the rise and who never drove a lap in stock car at Rockingham, tells us how much he likes the track, its facilities and would welcome the opportunity to race there.

It’s not likely to happen. But you never know, right?

Still, think of it - a young Ragan says a lot of good things about an old track.

It suggests that “The Rock” still has a place in racing, whatever that might be.

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Comments

3 responses to "Steve Waid: At Rockingham, the old is appreciated by the new"
  1. 1
    Jim Carpenter said:
    May 7, 2008 at 1:40 PM

    I remember watching races at the Rock on TV and being impressed enough to make two trips down there from Lexington, Ky. I'm so glad I did, as I still think that was some of the best racing I've ever seen. Too bad the Rock didn't have better dates to work with.......

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  2. 2
    Pamela Call said:
    May 7, 2008 at 11:06 PM

    I went to the race and had a great time. I hope more people will come out next year.

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  3. 3
    Chad Manley said:
    May 8, 2008 at 3:28 AM

    I have an idea, first take the Labor day date back from CA speedway and give it to Darlington (where it belongs) the you take the Mother's Day date and give it to the ROCK!!!! The fans get better racing and CA doesn't have to worry about not selling out 2 dates a year.

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