Exploring the Remains of Raleigh Speedway: NASCAR's Second Super Speedway | S1ap on Location 3

One of NASCAR's nearly completely forgotten gambles is the Raleigh Speedway in Raleigh, NC. Being just the second super speedway ever run by NASCAR and having massive purses bested only by the likes of the Southern 500 in Darlington, Raleigh Speedway showed a lot of promise. However, being located in a residential area, the county council tried everything they could to under cut the track. Despite having many NASCAR, modified, and Indycar races at the facility, NASCAR's Bill France Sr. made the decision to leave the track and racing never returned to the speedway. Slowly over time, the track was redeveloped, but one part of it eerily rests beneath the pine needles, and it was the site of one of the track's worst incidents: Black Saturday.

Shot by Evan Tripp. You can check him out here:

Check out NASCARman History's video on Black Saturday here:

Also check out Brock Beard's channel here:

#NASCAR #Abandoned #RaleighSpeedway

Music in order of appearance:
DottiR - Born to Kill
Ross Bugden - Black Heat

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[hotdogs]

NASCAR history is so much more exciting than watching modern NASCAR.

[MrDannyboyhall]

I have never been a fan of nascar but since coming across your channel and watching all of your stories about the personalities and tracks and so on I have gained a new appreciation for the sport nascar can thank you for turning people into nascar fans

[superbird]

S1ap on Location 4: Lakewood Speedway.

Lakewood was a one mile dirt oval in Georgia opened in 1917 as a horse racing track. By the 1930’s, the track held car races too and became a prominent facility, nicknamed the Indianapolis of the South. Many NASCAR and it’s precursor’s races were held here, with final NASCAR race run in 1959. Lakewood slowly declined due to the construction of Atlanta Motor Speedway and closed its doors in 1979. The grandstands still remain. Turns 3&4 were replaced by a parking lot to an Amphitheater, the front stretch is now an access road, and turns one and two are crossed by another road. The lake giving it its name has been mostly filled.

Oh yeah and Jocko Flocko rode with Tim Flock.

[MrMatthias]

I love this series. Even though there's only a tiny shred of the track remaining, it's awesome to know that a piece of history was sitting there all this time waiting to be rediscovered

[jamesbowers]

"A one-mile paperclip is a pretty dangerous configuration" You just described New Hampshire Motor Speedway before the 2000s safety innovations

[_slickerzentertainment]

According to the NASCAR Chronicle, Raleigh was once called the paper clip before martinsville was called that

[PRRrailfan]

Very interesting. I've lived in this area almost my whole life and never knew Raleigh had a super speedway.

[CitySlicker]

No-one:


NASCAR: Let's leave NASCAR tracks to rot

[magnum]

This is awesome. I actually work just around the curve on Tarheel from there. I walked back there earlier this summer and brought home a chunk of the track.

[DavidSJ_DAP]

One day S1apSh0es will write the definitive history of NASCAR...

[peteowens]

I moved to the subdivision (Brentwood) just east of the Raleigh Speedway in 1969 when I was 11 years old. We use to ride our bike on the remaining sections of the old track but had no idea it use to be a speedway. In 1986 I returned to Brentwood buying a house for my family and lived there til 1992. Still never knew about the Speedway until I saw a post like this on Facebook about 5 years ago. Thanks for covering this again. It is all but forgotten here in Raleigh.

[hurricaneandrew]

I was just there a few weeks ago. The stretch of road at 8:16 I believe was a road to the right of the back straightaway. Looking at where the back straightaway was and where that stretch is doesn’t line up. I found some pieces of asphalt farther down and to the right that I believe were part of the track

[fishproductions]

Jocko Flocko

*Cars 3 has entered the chat*

[boggsty]

I love your channel and you have the perfect voice for this style of videos. You woke an interest in Nascar in me I never knew I had. Thank you!

[CodyHicken]

5:00 I cannot believe this is a real story lmao

[jokr]

I searched for new video minutes before this was posted... Thank you so much Slap. Thank you for all that you do

[SolidSock]

I had completely lost interest in nascar since when I wad a kid, but ever since I stumbled across your channel, I have began to fall in love with nascar again

[berdiel]

I'm honestly amazed. For the past five years I've been working where turn 1 once was. If it wasn't for this video I'd have no idea. This is an amazing piece of history. It's nice to know that at one point exciting things happened there.

[StickPeopleAndPuff]

My grandpa was a Raleigh Police Officer from the mid/late 60's to the early/mid 80's and he told me that sometime in the late 60's they cut grooves in the track to keep people from racing on it. Well, once in the 70's, apparently some drunk kids went out there for a joyride and hit one of those grooves (they were like 5-6ft deep) and got killed. Also, as I've grown up in Raleigh and live not 20 mins away, I've never been but have a yearning to go and see it!

Also: S1ap on Location: Occonneechee speedway

[TanTan-hruq]

One of the best YouTubers by far, been watching since day #1 man, keep up the insanely good content! Love all these videos!!