Zachary Peters

A dirty Bristol Motor Speedway is an aberration that needs to be cleaned up like a naughty Victorian child who soiled their Sunday best making mud pies. Is it entertaining? Yes, it was a fun distraction. Is it annoying? Also, yes, very annoying at this point.

My earliest memories of dirt racing are ancient in my life and random. I remember watching several of my then-uncle’s races at North Georgia Speedway in Chatsworth, GA. I must have been five or six years old, and I still remember the excitement watching those cars slide around the track. Shortly after that, I remember watching my cousins race karts on a short track next to North Georgia Speedway. Side note, I got stung by a bee, and my memaw was obsessed with finding some chewing tobacco to put on the sting.

Then there were long years with no dirt other than driving random motorcycles and four-wheelers in several friends’ backyards. That was until I moved to Cleveland, TN, for college, and Cleveland Speedway was down the road. I watched several races there over four years and loved it. I even took my wife there on a date once before she was my wife, and she didn’t hate it. Unfortunately, the track was gone the last time I checked.

I like dirt racing. It is fun, and it is ingrained into the culture of racing in the U.S. That includes NASCAR. I think NASCAR needs a dirt race, but leave the beautiful banked concrete at Bristol alone. It’s one of the most popular tracks, so don’t mess with it. Change the cars, the date, and the time, but leave the surface alone. Bristol is a gem that does not need fixing or gimmicks. Put the gem in the right setting, and let it shine.

Special Note: Big thanks to North Georgia Speedway for letting me use the picture. They are still putting on great racing today. Check it out if you are ever in North Georgia.