Asheville–Weaverville Speedway
 | This article needs more citations. (October 2026) |
 Asheville-Weaverville Speedway (1964) | |
| Location | 890 Clarks Chapel Rd Weaverville, NC 28787 |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 35°44′19″N 82°33′31″W / 35.738671°N 82.558649°W |
| Capacity | over 7,000 |
| Opened | August 20, 1950 |
| Closed | 1969 |
| Major events | Grand National Series |
| Oval | |
| Surface | Dirt (1950–1957) Asphalt (1957–1969) |
| Length | 0.50 mi (0.8 km) |
The Asheville–Weaverville Speedway was a half-mile oval racetrack near Weaverville, North Carolina, that hosted 34 races in NASCAR's top division, then called the Grand National Series, between 1951 and 1969. Winners at the track included Richard Petty, Lee Petty, Rex White, Fonty Flock, Bob Flock, and Fireball Roberts. The site is now occupied by North Buncombe High School.
History
[edit]Local businessman Gene Sluder built the track on his property north of Weaverville after NASCAR founder Bill France visited an airfield Sluder had built there in 1949 and suggested he add a racetrack beside it. Sluder graded a half-mile dirt oval with 25-degree banking in each of its four turns.[1] The track was billed as the fastest half-mile in the nation,[2] and it opened on August 20, 1950.[1] It held its first Grand National race on July 29, 1951, when Fonty Flock won before a crowd of more than 8,000.[2][3] Spectators could park above the backstretch and watch from their cars, and some called it the "world's first drive-in speedway."[2] The track was paved in 1957,[3] and Sluder added lights for night racing in 1959.[1] The annual Western North Carolina 500 often drew around 10,000 fans.[2]
Besides its winners, drivers who raced at the track included Banjo Matthews and Junior Johnson,[1] as well as Ralph Earnhardt[4] and Cotton Owens.[5]
Sluder handed management of the track to the Land of Sky Racing Corporation in 1966. The final race was the Western North Carolina 500 on August 24, 1969. The property was auctioned in November 1971 to Raymond Parks of Atlanta, and in April 1974 the Buncombe County Board of Education bought the 100-acre tract for $115,000 as the site of a new North Buncombe High School. The board found the track easy to convert into an athletic field and the 1959 lights still in good condition.[1] The school's football field now sits where the track was.[1][2]
In the 1970s and 1980s the track was used as softball fields and sports practice fields. The track itself had been disabled by first placing earthen barriers on opposite sides of the track, and later, concrete barriers at 8 locations around the track.[citation needed]
Winners of the circuit
[edit]Winners of Grand National races at the track, by NASCAR season. The second race of the 1962 season was held on November 12, 1961.[3][6]
| Year | Winner | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Fonty Flock | Oldsmobile |
| 1952 | Bob Flock | Hudson |
| 1953 | Fonty Flock | Hudson |
| 1954 | Herb Thomas | Hudson |
| 1955 | Tim Flock | Chrysler |
| 1956 | Lee Petty | Dodge |
| 1957 | Buck Baker | Chevrolet |
| 1957 | Lee Petty | Oldsmobile |
| 1958 | Rex White | Chevrolet |
| 1958 | Fireball Roberts | Chevrolet |
| 1959 | Rex White | Chevrolet |
| 1959 | Bob Welborn | Chevrolet |
| 1959 | Lee Petty | Plymouth |
| 1960 | Lee Petty | Plymouth |
| 1960 | Rex White | Chevrolet |
| 1961 | Rex White | Chevrolet |
| 1961 | Junior Johnson | Pontiac |
| 1962 | Rex White | Chevrolet |
| 1962 | Joe Weatherly | Pontiac |
| 1962 | Jim Paschal | Plymouth |
| 1963 | Richard Petty | Plymouth |
| 1963 | Fred Lorenzen | Ford |
| 1964 | Marvin Panch | Ford |
| 1964 | Ned Jarrett | Ford |
| 1965 | Ned Jarrett | Ford |
| 1965 | Richard Petty | Plymouth |
| 1966 | Richard Petty | Plymouth |
| 1966 | Darel Dieringer | Mercury |
| 1967 | Richard Petty | Plymouth |
| 1967 | Bobby Allison | Ford |
| 1968 | David Pearson | Ford |
| 1968 | David Pearson | Ford |
| 1969 | Bobby Isaac | Dodge |
| 1969 | Bobby Isaac | Dodge |
Convertible Division
[edit]Winners of NASCAR Convertible Division races at the track.[3]
| Year | Winner | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Curtis Turner | Ford |
| 1957 | Bob Welborn | Chevrolet |
| 1958 | Bob Welborn | Chevrolet |
| 1959 | Bob Welborn | Chevrolet |
New Asheville Speedway
[edit]The Asheville–Weaverville Speedway is not to be confused with the New Asheville Speedway, a 1⁄3 mi (0.54 km) oval on Amboy Road in Asheville, about 12 miles south of the Asheville–Weaverville Speedway. Built in 1960, it ran until 1999.[7] The environmental nonprofit RiverLink bought that track, then known as the Asheville Motor Speedway, in 1998 and turned it into Carrier Park.[8] The asphalt oval was kept as part of the park and is now used as a bicycle track.[7]
The track's owner sold the property partly to avoid trouble with a strengthened city noise ordinance. About a month after the land was transferred to the city in October 1998, supporters delivered a petition with more than 20,000 signatures asking for one last season of racing.[9]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Bowen, Jenny (February 15, 2024). "High Speeds and High Stakes at the Asheville-Weaverville Speedway". Buncombe County Special Collections. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Parker, Clint (August 20, 2022). "Remembering Weaverville Raceway 1951-1959". Biltmore Beacon Tribune. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Asheville-Weaverville Speedway". Racing Reference. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- ↑ "1962 NASCAR Grand National race results: March 4, 1962, Asheville-Weaverville Speedway". Racing Reference. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- ↑ "1959 NASCAR Grand National race results: October 11, 1959, Asheville-Weaverville Speedway". Racing Reference. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- ↑ "Asheville-Weaverville Speedway Stats, Results & All-Time Winners". DriverAverages.com. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- 1 2 Muller, Michael (September 23, 2010). "Speedway Memorial dedicated at Carrier Park". Mountain Xpress. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- ↑ "RiverLink announces another step toward completion of Karen Cragnolin Park". Mountain Xpress. Retrieved October 12, 2026.
- ↑ Arnaudin, Edwin (September 16, 2021). "Asheville Motor Speedway's legacy endures". Mountain Xpress. Retrieved October 12, 2026.