Talladega Superspeedway is the
biggest, fastest, most competitive motorsports facility in the world.
Records for both speed and competition have been established at Talladega.
Talladega Superspeedway can accommodate more than 143,000-seated guests and
thousands more in the 212-acre infield. The track offers van tours to
visitors daily during working hours except on weeks around events. Adjacent
to the track is the International Motorsports Hall of Fame and Museum, which
is also open daily.
Track Facts:
Acreage
∙ Originally built in 1969, Talladega Superspeedway property now
covers approximately 3,000 acres including the track site and parking areas.
∙ The infield area is 212 acres.
Track
∙ Talladega Superspeedway is a 2.66-mile tri-oval course.
∙ The north and south turns are banked 33 degrees and the grandstands
tri-oval is banked 16.5 degrees.
∙ The track is 48-feet wide with an apron that is an additional 12 feet in
width.
∙ The frontstretch is 4,300′ long, while the backstretch is 4,000′ long.
Records
∙ Talladega Superspeedway holds records for the fastest 500-mile
stock car race(188.354 mph, May 10, 1997, winner: Mark Martin), the most
lead changes in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event (75, May 6, 1984) and the
most leaders in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event (26, twice, July 27, 1986 &
April 22, 2001), earning it the distinction of being "NASCAR's Most
Competitive Track."
Location
∙ Talladega Superspeedway is located on Speedway Boulevard, which
runs parallel to Interstate 20. The track is 40 miles east of Birmingham,
Ala. at Exit 168 and 95 miles west of Atlanta, Ga. at Exit 173.
SAFER Barriers
∙ SAFER (Steel and Foam Energy Reduction) barriers are designed to
absorb some of the energy and therefore lessen impact for the driver on
contact.
∙ The SAFER wall project began in the fall of 2000 and remains an ongoing
safety initiative for NASCAR, the Indy Racing League, Dr. Dean Sicking and
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The barriers were first used in May 2002
for the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
∙ In October 2002, Talladega Superspeedway became the second track hosting
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events to begin installing the barriers. Although
SAFER barrier technology had not yet advanced at that time to enable their
use along the outside of the high-banked turns at Talladega, the track was
able to install the barriers in the inside retaining wall at the exit of
Turn 4 and the entrance to Turn 1 of the track.
∙ In April 2004, advances in SAFER barrier research had progressed
considerably, and Talladega Superspeedway was able to add SAFER barriers on
all four turns, the tri-oval and the inside retaining wall of the
backstretch.
∙ The SAFER wall at Talladega Superspeedway is 40 inches high and extends
through the turns and tri-oval about 30 inches from the track wall.
Racing Activity
∙ Talladega Superspeedway presents five separate racing shows each
year as host to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the NASCAR Nationwide Series, the
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA).
∙ The facility is used for various automotive testing purposes as well as by
driving schools. Driving schools that regularly visit Talladega
Superspeedway include Dale Jarrett Racing Adventure, Richard Petty Driving
Experience and Racing Experience, Inc, Racing Experience, Inc. and Jeff
Gordon Racing School.
∙ The facility is occasionally used by film production companies for
television commercial and motion picture shoots.
Grandstands
∙ Talladega Superspeedway's grandstand seating capacity is 143,231.
∙ There are reserved grandstands on both the east and west sides of the
track.
∙ The grandstand seating area on the west side of the track is one mile in
length. It includes Gadsden, Lincoln, Anniston O.V. Hill North, O.V. Hill
South, Birmingham, Moss-Thornton and Talladega Grandstands, Gadsden,
Lincoln, Anniston, O.V. Hill North, O.V. Hill South, Birmingham,
Moss-Thornton and Talladega Towers, as well as Tri-Oval and Start/Finish
Line Suites.
∙ Along the east side and out of the track's second turn is the Allison
Grandstand, named for the famous Alabama racing family that includes racers
Bobby, Donnie, Clifford and Davey Allison.
Pit Road
∙ Pit Road at Talladega Superspeedway is 1,730′ long from entrance
to exit.
∙ Each of the 47 stalls on pit road at Talladega is 32′ by 18′.
∙ The area behind the wall of each pit stall is 30′ by 21′.
Garages
∙ The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage at Talladega Superspeedway is
a 32,400-square-foot structure with a total of 62 bays. Each of these bays
is 14′ by 24′ and has electrical outlets for each team.
∙ The NASCAR Nationwide Series/Camping World Truck Series garage at Talladega
Superspeedway is a 23,250-square-foot structure with a total of 68 bays.
Each of these bays is 12′ by 21′ and has electric outlets for each team.
∙ The ARCA RE/MAX Series Paddock is located behind the NASCAR Nationwide
Series/Camping World Truck Series Garage.
Scoring Tower
∙ The scoring tower located in the track's infield is 148′ tall and
displays the positions of all of the cars on track. The first 10 positions
during a race are always displayed on the tower, with positions 11-43
rotating on the bottom two spaces.
∙ There are 7,440 light bulbs used for the scoring position displays.
∙ The power it takes to run the scoring pylon throughout a race day could
also power approximately five 3-bedroom homes for the same period of time.
