North Wilkesboro Speedway sold

[Lee Roy]

http://www.jayski.com/pages/tracks/misc.htm#NW

North Wilkesboro Speedway sold to real estate company: Speedway Motorsports Inc.'s Bruton Smith said he and Bob Bahre [owns New Hampshire Intl Speedway], who each own half-interest in North Wilkesboro Speedway, have signed a deal with a real estate company to negotiate a sale of the land on which the defunct track now sits.(Thatsracin)(1-25-2007)

[Mark in Oshawa]

I wonder if there was a clause in there saying the new owners have to keep it closed or are they free to do what they like, including reopen the facility as a working race track? From what I read on Jayski, the effort to keep it working race track is strong, but the real estate company that is buying the place up could just bulldoze it and put a golf course and condo's on there just as easy as selling it to someone to run as a race track. I guess we await more news...

[BobbyC]

That could easily be solved by having third and fourth parties involved to buy the land, then remove the clause, and sell it to a fourth party.

[Lee Roy]

An update to the story.

UPDATE" Smith talked about the possible sale of North Wilkesboro Speedway, which he bought half of about 10 years ago in order to launch Texas Motor Speedway in the Fort Worth-Dallas area. That move helped kick off 10 years of major expansion by the NASCAR Cup tour. Smith said that he and Bob Bahre, who bought the other half of the Wilkes County track and took that tour date to his Loudon, N.H., track, have agreed to put the track and land in the hands of a realtor, who, Smith said, thinks he can sell it. The price tag is, as it has been for several years, $12 million, Smith said. How to make a profitable return on such a $12 million investment has always been a question mark. Smith said it won't be for racing. "I don't think they're looking at it for racing, but rather other events, like a major national fiddlers' convention," he said. "I hope the buyer is successful in whatever he wishes to go. We'll have to wait and see. It was just a phone call with Bob. Bob and I have been getting along fabulously, contrary to what some have said. He just said 'Whatever you want to do....'"(Winston Salem Journal)(1-26-2007)

[call_me_andrew]

The price tag is $12 million, but according to the property taxes, it's only worth $4.3 million.

I'm expecting them to bulldoze it for housing.

I wonder how SaveTheSpeedway feels about this.

[Mark in Oshawa]

I think the ole Speedway is gonna be a subdivision real soon....shame....and I hope I am dead wrong on this one. That was a nice little track,with a lot of history...

[BobbyC]

If they do that, there will be outrage in Wilkes County and also in nearby Forsyth County. After all, the Triad is the #1 television market for NASCAR.