About the Venue
Lowe’s Motor Speedway was designed and built in 1959; a 1.5-mile superspeedway on the outskirts of Charlotte, North Carolina and, in June 1960, the first World 600 was run at the track. In addition to the 1.5-mile quad oval, the speedway complex includes a 2.25-mile road course and a quarter-mile asphalt oval utilizing part of the speedway’s frontstretch and pit road; and a one-fifth-mile oval located outside turn three of the superspeedway.
In 1984 Lowe’s Motor Speedway became the only sports facility in America to offer year-round living accommodations when it built 40 condominiums high above turn one.
Many renovations have happened over the years to the speedway, some of the highlights include more than 10,000 stadium-style seats were built in turn four in 1995. In May 1997, the Diamond Tower Terrace grandstand was opened with 26,000 seats. And finally, a 10,860-seat expansion of the Ford grandstand on the frontstretch was completed in May 2000, bringing the speedway’s total seating capacity to 167,000.
Venue Pictures
City Guide
Charlotte
Lowe’s Motor Speedway is one of NASCAR fans’ favorite tracks. And the Dirt Track at Lowe’s Motor Speedway extends the season for race fans.
If you’re one of those fans, and you’re there for the paved track, you should get there early. It seats 167,000, and there’s a lot of staff here, too – it takes about twice the effort to host a race here than id does to put on there Super Bowl. It gets congested: tune into 130.7-FM WSOC for traffic reports on race day.
There’s free parking surrounding the Speedway, and drive-up camping is available on the property for $75 per space during NASCAR race weeks. You have to reserve the camping spots in advance, and it’s first-come, first-served. All camping areas are near restroom/shower facilities, or a shuttle stop that will get you there.
Once you’re settled, and your tailgate or campsite is in place, you can take a walk or shuttle to souvenir row for pre-race activities and to visit displays, vendor booths, and such. It’s a comfortable, friendly atmosphere building up to race time. And if you want to get into a heavy NASCAR conversation, the tailgaters around you are often described as some of the most hard-core fans in America, so you’re in the right place.
What to Do
DURING THE DAY
Carolina Raptor Center: Located within the Latta Preserve complex, the Raptor Center focuses on research and rehabilitation, helping injured birds heal and return safely into the wild. Visitors can stroll along the nature trail for a self-guided tour, observe raptors in their aviaries, and on weekends watch a presentation of live raptors. These birds - raptor species range from vultures to owls – are being nursed back into the wild, so don’t be surprised if you see these birds of prey catch and eat their meals. ($, 6000 Sample Rd., Huntersville, (704) 875-6521, www.carolinaraptorcenter.org)
Charlotte Museum of History and Hezekiah Alexander Homesite: This 1774 stone house is where Hezekiah Alexander and his wife, Mary, reared ten children. The oldest dwelling in the county, it’s on the National Register of Historic Places and decorated in period style which paints a vivid a picture of what life was like in the pre-Colonial Piedmont area. Exhibits showcase the region, its people and their cultural heritage. ($, 3500 Shamrock Dr., Charlotte, (704) 568-1774, www.charlottemuseum.org)
Discovery Place: With a nature museum that exhibits the animals and plants of the Piedmont (including the popular Butterfly Garden), an IMAX theater, aquariums, a three-story rain forest, and a hands-on science museum, you could easily spend a day here. Plus, they have Rat Basketball. Really tall rats… okay, they’re regular rats, but they shoot hoops. Please, no wagering. ($$, 301 N. Tryon St., Charlotte, (800) 935-0553, www.discoveryplace.org)
Fourth Ward Historic District: Built in the late 1800’s as a political subsection of town for electoral purposes, this beautiful old neighborhood on the edge of Uptown is made up of tree-lined streets and quaint Victorian homes. Pick up a brochure at the visitors center (330 South Tryon Street) take the walking tour of eighteen historic places of interest, including the Gothic Revival First Presbyterian Church, the Old Settlers Cemetery (with tombstones that date from the 1700s) Fourth Ward Park, and others. There are also restaurants and a market. (The area bordered by Graham, Brevard, Trade, and 11th Streets)
James K. Polk Memorial: This state historic site just south of Charlotte is on the 400-acre farm where the 11th U.S. president was born in 1795. It houses period buildings (although not ones Polk lived in) and offers a view of life in the nineteenth-century south. Guides in period clothing help lead tours. (Free - US 521, Pineville, (704) 889-7145, www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/polk/polk.htm)
McDowell Nature Preserve: This spectacular natural park preserves habitat for 119 species of birds, 21 species of mammals, 21 species of reptiles, and 14 species of amphibians, plus rare and endangered plants. There are water activities, playground, fishing, hiking, picnic areas, camping, and more. ($, 15222 York Road, Charlotte, (704) 583-1284, www.charmeck.org – click on “Leisure & Recreaction,” then on “Nature Centers & Preserves,” and then on “McDowell)
Mint Museum of Craft + Design: This modern museum (in a building that was built as Wadsworth Livery Stable) is one of the country’s major crafts museums, with permanent collections of ceramics, glass, fiber, jewelry, metal, and wood. Exhibits highlight the area’s rich craft tradition, celebrate the art in design, and feature works by well known artists like Dale Chihuly, Tom Patti, Stanislav Libenský and Jaroslava Brychtová, whose architectural commissions in glass are on display. ($, 220 N. Tryon St., Charlotte, (704) 337-2000, www.mintmuseum.org; save your receipt, it’s good for free admission to the Mint Museum of Art.
Checker Flag Lightning: So you think you can handle a race car. You tell your buddies Jeff Gordon’s got nothing on you. Well, slide in behind the wheel of a real NEXTEL Cup car simulator and prove it. Checker Flag Lightning is in Concord Mills Shopping Mall and has 14 fully equipped, 750-horsepower interactive stock cars to take it for a virtual spin. You’ll feel like you’re at the track. Even when you wreck. ($$, Concord Mills Shopping Mall, 8111 Concord Mills Blvd., Suite 202, Concord, (704) 979-3000)
SHOPPING
Antique Shopping: There are stores in Charlotte, but locals will tell you the towns of Waxhaw, Pineville, and Matthews are where you want to go for antiques. Thirty-six miles south of downtown, and with a population of just 2,600, Waxhaw’s antiques stores are easy to find in the city’s downtown (which is on the National Register of Historic Places). Matthews is a Charlotte suburb just southeast of town; head to Mint Hill Road for the best selection. Twenty-one miles southwest of Charlotte is Pineville. The antique shops are in the city’s historic downtown.
Founders Hall: Look for the big building downtown. That’s the Bank of America Corporate Center and Founders Hall is connected to it. This unique shopping destination features boutiques (Burke & Co., Belle Ville), a bookstore, apparel stores and gift shops. WBTV's Center City Studio is here (it’s Charlotte’s CBS station and you can take tour of the studio) as is the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center. (100 North Tryon Street, Charlotte, (704) 386-0120, www.foundershall.com)
NoDa (North Charlotte’s Historic Arts District): This was a dynamic community in the North Carolina Textile Industry from 1903 to 1975. Then the last mill closed and North Charlotte was all but forgotten until the 1980s. That’s when young artists moved in and rebuilt the community. Now you’ll find galleries, theater, clubs, restaurants and shops. Many are trendy, eclectic boutiques like Everyday Essentials for nature based products, Sunshine Daydreams for jewelry, gifts, vintage clothes, and Real Eyes bookstore. If you’re there when the sun goes down, visit Evening Muse, a listening room, art gallery and café featuring live music 5+ nights a week (From downtown, head north on North Davidson Street; park at 36th Street, and explore toward 35th Street and beyond, www.noda.org).
The content for this city is an excerpt from The Ultimate Tailgater's Travel Guide. For more information on The Ultimate Tailgater's Travel Guide or to buy the book visit www.theultimatetailgater.com.
