Atlanta Motor Speedway: ready, set, come!
Is it the rush of adrenaline, the roar of a crowd, the sound of full-throttle engines or the smell of a concession stand that makes the Atlanta Motor Speedway so much fun? Maybe it's all of the above.
Race fans around the nation know of the Atlanta Motor Speedway because it's home to NASCAR's Kobalt Tools 500 and the Pep Boys Auto 500. But the 887 acres the speedway covers gives some inkling to just how the large impact it has both in the race world and as an Atlanta area event facility.
Driving up to the speedway can be a shock for the unprepared -- it's large, to say the least. The mammoth building, called Tara Place, looms tall behind the five-section grandstand. It houses over 140 private luxury suites, the Tara Ballroom, the Tara Clubhouse (complete with swimming pool and tennis courts) and the speedway offices. Atop the Winner's Grandstand sits Club One, a climate-controlled view of the track with a rooftop observatory. It's a motorsports fan paradise.
Numerous races are held year-round on several different portions of the track, including the 1.54-mile quad-oval, the lighted quarter mile and the 2.5-mile road course. Even the parking lots are transformed into raceways when needed!
But the speedway is more than just professional racing. Visitors here will find the Richard Petty Driving Experience, FastTrack racing school, Buck Baker's Racing School and teenage defensive driving courses. The space is also rented for private events such as weddings, concerts, circuses or even smaller needs like corporate meetings.
The facility is open to public tours every day that it is not being used for a race or is rented out. Speedway visitors are invited to hear a brief history of the track, see Petty Garden, take a tour of one of the track's luxury suites, get a look into the garages and Victory Lane, and take two laps around the 1.54-mile quad-oval in the Speedway van. The tour costs only $5 for adults, and it's an experience you won't get otherwise -- unless you're Jeff Gordon.
Call (770) 707-7970 to ensure availability of track tours.
- by Christine Foster, Atlanta Reporter for HelloMetro
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Christine FosterChristine is a freelance writer currently living in North Atlanta. She has worked as a reporter for numerous newspaper, magazine and online media companies, including the Florida Keys Keynoter and The Sunday Paper in Atlanta. When she's not working Christine enjoys baking and antiquing.
