"the Madhouse" | |
---|---|
Location | 1250 S Martin Luther King Jr, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27107 |
Capacity | 17,000 |
Owner | City of Winston-Salem |
Operator | National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC |
Opened | 1937 |
Major events | Current: NASCAR Cup Series Busch Clash (2025) Myers Brothers 250 (1958–1971) Former: NASCAR K&N Pro Series East NASCAR Hall of Fame 150 (2011–2015) NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour (2005–2016) |
1/4 mile flat oval (1937–present) | |
Surface | Asphalt |
Length | 0.250 miles (0.402 km) |
Turns | 4 |
Banking | 0 Degrees |
Race lap record | 0:12.965 (Tim Brown, Team 83, 2016, Modified Division) |
The Madhouse, Home of the Modifieds | |
Location | 1250 S Martin Luther King Jr, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27107 |
---|---|
Coordinates | 36°4′58″N80°13′20″W / 36.08278°N 80.22222°W |
Owner | City of Winston-Salem |
Operator | Dale Pinilis |
Capacity | 17,000 |
Surface | Turf |
Construction | |
Broke ground | 1936 |
Opened | 1937 |
Tenants | |
Winston-Salem State Rams (NCAA) (1956–present) Wake Forest Demon Deacons (NCAA) (1956–1967) |
Bowman Gray Stadium is a NASCAR sanctioned quarter-mile asphalt flat oval short track and longstanding football stadium located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is one of stock car racing's most legendary venues, and is referred to as "NASCAR's longest-running weekly race track". Bowman Gray Stadium is part of the Winston-Salem Sports and Entertainment Complex and is home of the Winston-Salem State University Rams football team. [1] It was also the home of the Wake Forest University football team from 1956 until Groves Stadium (now Truist Field at Wake Forest) opened in 1968. Bowman Gray Stadium was a popular venue for high school football in the 1970s and 1980s. Parkland and R.J. Reynolds High Schools shared Bowman Gray Stadium as their home field for high school football until the two schools built their own facility (Deaton-Thompson Stadium) in 1994.
The stadium was built in 1937 as a public works project to provide jobs during the Great Depression. The first event at the new stadium was a football game in the fall of 1938 between Wake Forest College and Duke University. In the beginning, the stadium's sole use was for collegiate football until trotter horse racing was added on the 0.250 mi (0.402 km) dirt oval. The first auto racing at Bowman Gray was a type of midget car racing on the dirt quarter mile track from 1939 through 1949. The track was paved in 1947, after a promoter got the City of Winston-Salem to agree to pay to have the track paved in exchange for restitution of payments through a percentage of future income from races. However, after the track was paved the promoter fled before any payments were made to the city. [2] Stock car racing at Bowman Gray Stadium was started by Bill France Sr. and Alvin Hawkins, two men who were founding fathers of NASCAR. The track was NASCAR's first weekly track and the first paved track that NASCAR raced on. The track would run weekly NASCAR sanctioned events during the summer months.
The first NASCAR-sanctioned event took place on May 18, 1949, and was won by Fonty Flock. [3] The track was opened by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. and Alvin Hawkins, and remains operated by members of the Hawkins family to this day. [4] By the end of the inaugural Bowman Gray season 11 races had been run and five more were rained out. Tim Flock won the track championship with a season that included four wins.
As the racing had become extremely popular at the track, an additional 7,000 seats were added in 1953, raising the seating capacity from 10,000 to 17,000. [5]
The track has hosted numerous series throughout the years including the NASCAR Grand National Series (now NASCAR Cup Series), NASCAR Convertible Division, NASCAR Late Model Short Track Division (now NASCAR Xfinity Series), NASCAR Grand American, Dash Series, NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour, NASCAR Late Model Sportsman Division, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series. [6] The first Grand National event took place in 1958 and it was won by Bob Welborn. [7] Other winners include Glen Wood, Rex White, David Pearson, Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, Junior Johnson and Marvin Panch. [7] Richard Petty won his 100th race at the track. The Grand National Series first raced at the track in 1958 and hosted a total of 29 Grand National races through 1971.
Motorcycle races were run on a temporary dirt track at the stadium in 1970 and 1971. The stock car races were run first in the events before construction crews would lay dirt down during an intermission for motorcycles races the same night. [6]
Bowman Gray's nickname, the "Madhouse", is largely attributed to the racing antics that take place on the tight, quarter mile bull ring. In 2014, Bowman Gray's promoter, Gray Garrison described the events at BGS as part racing, part religion, and part wrestling. [8] While this is partially the reason for the nickname, it actually originated from a qualifying format the track used in the 1950s called the "mad scramble." [4]
In 2015, Bowman Gray celebrated its 1,000th NASCAR sanctioned race [9]
On November 14, 2018, it was announced that the Stadium would get a $9 million renovation. It will begin in 2019, with construction starting in 2020 and ending in 2022. It will include new restrooms, a track resurfacing, and a new name for the football field titled "Rams Field At Bowman Gray". [10] Currently, the track features four divisions: the modifieds, sportsman, street stock and stadium stock. The modifieds are the featured division at Bowman Gray, the division started in 1949 and the all-time wins list features some of the best NASCAR drivers including Lee Petty, Ralph Earnhardt, Ned Jarrett, Richie Evans, and Jerry Cook.
The football history of the stadium is also quite storied. Wake Forest University played home games in the stadium from its move to Winston-Salem in 1956, until the 1968 season when Groves Stadium (now Truist Field at Wake Forest) opened. Players such as Brian Piccolo, the 1964 ACC Player of the Year who led the nation in rushing and scoring, played their home games in Bowman Gray. Piccolo later became famous as the teammate of Gale Sayers with the Chicago Bears, and the subject of the 1971 film Brian's Song . The Winston-Salem high schools of R.J. Reynolds High and Parkland High also played their home games at the stadium in the late 1960s through the 1980s.
Bowman Gray's weekly racing tradition continues as part of the NASCAR Weekly Series, with races Saturday evenings from the end of April through August. [11] The track can seat 17,000 people in the stands, with an additional 2,000 standing-room around the wall above the seating areas. The weekly races during the year normally have an average attendance between 12,000 and 15,000 per night. Many events are standing room only, as some events have had estimated crowds of more than 23,000 show up. [6]
Weekly races include the modified, sportsman, street stock and stadium stock divisions. Bowman Gray is also a part of the special events including classic modified coupes and East Coast Flathead Ford Racing Association (ECFFRA), monster trucks, demolition derbies, chain races, skid races and INEX Legends Car and bandolero races. The History Channel show MadHouse was taped at the track during the 2009 season. The showed aired in January 2010 and ran through April 2010. On October 29, 2018, a new show titled "Race Night At Bowman Gray" aired on Discovery Channel. The show focused on the Modified Division. After the first few episodes, the show was moved to the Discovery Go App, after fear of cancellation. The show would later go on to eventually be canceled.
Spectators listen to the officials during the races on frequencies 461.200 MHz, 463.625 MHz, and 466.600 MHz on a scanner or "race radio." Many, if not all of the drivers also communicate via a two-way radio during the race. Most of them use a frequency between 450 and 470 MHz, but there are exceptions.
On October 11, 2021, NASCAR announced that they will be running a tire test at Bowman Gray for the Next Gen (NASCAR) car, in preparation for the 2022 Busch Clash, now in the L.A. Coliseum with a track layout similar to the Madhouse. This was the first time in over 50 years that NASCAR Cup Series cars ran on the legendary track.
For the 2022 racing season, along with the other previously announced renovations, new concession stands and drains in the apron of the turns were added to help remove water in the event of rain.
In July 2023 the stadium played host to baseball for the first time as the Winston-Salem-based Carolina Disco Turkeys hosted Albemarle's Uwharrie Wampus Cats and the Winston-Salem Moravians in a series of games featuring independent teams. [12]
On March 21, 2024, NASCAR announced that they had acquired the lease of the track and would begin managing racing at the facility through 2050. [13]
On August 17, 2024, it was announced that Bowman Gray would host the Clash at Bowman Gray on February 2, 2025. [14]
Wins | Driver |
---|---|
6 | Rex White |
4 | Glen Wood |
4 | Richard Petty |
4 | Junior Johnson |
3 | David Pearson |
2 | Bobby Allison |
Wins | Driver |
---|---|
6 | Rex White |
6 | Petty Enterprises |
5 | Wood Brothers |
2 | Junior Johnson |
2 | Cotton Owens |
Year | Date | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Race distance | Race time | Average speed (mph) | Report | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Miles | Laps | ||||||||
1956 | Aug 3 | Curtis Turner | Pete DePaolo | Ford | 37.5 | 150 | |||
1957 | Apr 22 | Curtis Turner | Pete DePaolo | Ford | 35 | 140 | 0:58:42 | 35.775 | |
1957 | Jun 22 | Bob Welborn | Bob Welborn | Chevrolet | 37.5 | 150 | 0:57:46 | 38.95 | |
1958 | Apr 7 | Bob Welborn | Julian Petty | Chevrolet | 37.5 | 150 | 0:52:03 | 43.228 | |
1959 | May 23 | Glen Wood | Wood Brothers | Ford | 50 | 200 | 1:09:17 | 43.300 |
NOTES:
Year | Modified Champion | Sportsman / Amateur Champion | Street Stock / Hobby Champion | Stadium Stock / Blunderbust Champion |
---|---|---|---|---|
1949 | Tim Flock | |||
1950 | Jimmie Lewallen | |||
1951 | Billy Myers | |||
1952 | Bobby Myers | |||
1953 | Billy Myers | |||
1954 | Glen Wood | |||
1955 | Billy Myers | |||
1956 | Pee Wee Jones | |||
1957 | Pee Wee Jones | |||
1958 | Pee Wee Jones | Bill Scott | ||
1959 | Pee Wee Jones | |||
1960 | Pee Wee Jones | |||
1961 | Glen Wood | Robert Berrier | Shorry Riggins | |
1962 | Perk Brown | Leon Russell | ||
1963 | Billy Hensley | Bubba Beck | ||
1964 | Ken Rush | |||
1965 | Carl Burris | |||
1966 | Ken Rush | Bill Covington | ||
1967 | Pee Wee Jones | Ralph Brinkley | ||
1968 | Perk Brown | |||
1969 | Perk Brown | Al Hill | Wendell Edwards | |
1970 | Don Miller | Al Hill | ||
1971 | Max Berrier | |||
1972 | Max Berrier | Al Hill | ||
1973 | Ralph Brinkley | Al Hill | ||
1974 | Ralph Brinkley | Al Hill | Max Martin | |
1975 | Billy Hensley | Al Hill | Mitchell Warden | |
1976 | Ralph Brinkley | Bill Wilder | Ken Cheek | |
1977 | Paul Radford | Jimmy Johnson | Ben Jordon | Timmy Canard |
1978 | Paul Radford | Jimmy Johnson | Tony Hulin | Sherman Dalton |
1979 | Don Smith | Jimmy Johnson | Ben Young | Roger Craver |
1980 | Ralph Brinkley | Billy Kimel | Sherman Dalton | Dale Ward |
1981 | Ralph Brinkley | Jimmy Johnson | Spider Kimel | Dale Ward |
1982 | Ralph Brinkley | Jimmy Johnson | Billy Duggins | G.R. Merritt |
1983 | Satch Worley | Dink Osborne | Danny Trivette | Dean Ward |
1984 | Johnny Johnson | Spider Kimel | Danny Trivette | Dean Ward |
1985 | Satch Worley | Phillip Hill | Larry Eubanks | Ricky Gregg |
1986 | Ralph Brinkley | Bill Wilder | David Adams | Chris Ward |
1987 | Ralph Brinkley | Kenny Mabe | Ricky Gregg | Frank Ward |
1988 | Phillip Smith | Jimmy Johnson | Kenneth Stimpson | Mark Faust |
1989 | Phillip Smith | Ricky Gregg | Barry Edwards | Dean Ward |
1990 | Junior Miller | Ricky Gregg | Ronnie Clifton | Dean Ward |
1991 | Don Smith | Mike Miller | Barry Edwards | Rob Neely |
1992 | Junior Miller | Ricky Gregg | Bryan Weatherman | Brent Weaver |
1993 | Junior Miller | Todd Hunt | Bryan Weatherman | Tommy Neal |
1994 | Robert Jeffreys | Gene Pack | Tim McGlamery | Tommy Neal |
1995 | Robert Jeffreys | Gene Pack | Tim McGlamery | Randy Moore |
1996 | Tim Brown | Willie Newman | Rik Newsom | Charlie Curry |
1997 | Tim Brown | David Adams | Rusty Harpe | Ronnie Bassett |
1998 | Tim Brown | David Adams | Kyle Edwards | Matt Hill |
1999 | Burt Myers | Jason Brown | Mack Little III | Randy Moore |
2000 | Junior Miller | Jason Brown | Mack Little III | Johnny Burke |
2001 | Burt Myers | Barry Edwards | Jason Myers | Mitch Gales |
2002 | Tim Brown | Ronnie Clifton | Kyle Edwards | Charlie Curry |
2003 | Junior Miller | Ronnie Clifton | Steven Berrier | Kenny Bost |
2004 | Tim Brown | Ronnie Clifton | Johnny Arnder | Kenny Bost |
2005 | Tim Brown | Ronnie Clifton | Steven Berrier | Kenny Bost |
2006 | Junior Miller | Ronnie Clifton | Steven Berrier | A.J. Sanders |
2007 | Burt Myers | Ronnie Clifton | John McNeal | Michael Wells |
2008 | Tim Brown | Ronnie Clifton | Ryan Nelson | Johnny Burke |
2009 | Tim Brown | Ronnie Clifton | David Sumner | Dale Barneycastle |
2010 | Burt Myers | Kyle Edwards | Matt Cotner | Jason Keaton |
2011 | Burt Myers | Robbie Brewer | John McNeal | Chris Lawing |
2012 | Tim Brown | Derek Stoltz | Billy Gregg | Charlie Curry |
2013 | Burt Myers | Mack Little III | Doug Wall | Chuck Wall |
2014 | Danny Bohn | Taylor Branch | Chase Hunt | Chuck Wall |
2015 | Tim Brown | Zack Clifton | Derrick Rice | Chuck Wall |
2016 | Burt Myers | Tommy Neal | Derrick Rice | A.J. Sanders |
2017 | Burt Myers | Derek Stoltz | Jacob Creed | Wesley Thompson |
2018 | Burt Myers | Kevin Neal | Spencer Martin | Wesley Thompson |
2019 | Burt Myers | Justin Taylor | Billy Gregg | Chuck Wall |
2021 | Tim Brown | Tommy Neal | Billy Gregg | Brandon Brendle |
2022 | Tim Brown | Tommy Neal | Billy Gregg | A.J. Sanders |
2023 | Brandon Ward | Chase Robertson | Christian Joyce | A.J. Sanders |
2024 | Burt Myers | Zach Ore | Christian Joyce | A.J. Sanders |
Modified and Sportsman car counts were thin during the latter part of the 1950s and the track combined the two and let the V6s run with the V8s and named it the "Modified-Sportsman Division". Leading into the 1968 season, the track dropped the Sportsman cars and title, hence officially named the featured division as the Modifieds.
The Amateur Division was the support division to the Modified-Sportsman and ran from 1950 to mid-1958, where the division dissolved and the track picked up the Hobby Division.
The Claiming Division was tabbed as a third weekly division in 1964. It was a division that cost only $99 to run, it was so popular that the track had to cut the fields down to two races with ten cars apiece. The division ran from 1964 to 1972. The track changed the name to what is now the Sportsman Division.
The Hobby Division, which was the predecessor of the Street Stock Division, ran from mid-1958 to 1974. Then the following year, the division was renamed to the Street Stocks.
Bowman Gray ran Blunderbust races as a fourth division from 1977-1989 until they replaced that division with the Buzzbomber Division in 1990. The following season, the track kept the cars, but changed the division to what is now the Stadium Stock Division.
Robert Arthur Allison was an American professional stock car racing driver and owner. Allison was the founder of the Alabama Gang, a group of drivers based in Hueytown, Alabama, where there were abundant short tracks with high purses. Allison raced competitively in the NASCAR Cup Series from 1961 to 1988, while regularly competing in short track events throughout his career. He also raced in IndyCar, Trans-Am, and Can-Am. Named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers and a member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame, he was the 1983 Winston Cup champion and won the Daytona 500 in 1978, 1982, and 1988.
Richard Ernest Evans, was an American racing driver who won nine NASCAR National Modified Championships, including eight in a row from 1978 to 1985. The International Motorsports Hall of Fame lists this achievement as "one of the supreme accomplishments in motorsports". Evans won virtually every major race for asphalt modifieds, most of them more than once, including winning the Race of Champions three times. Evans was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame on June 14, 2011. As one of the Class of 2012, Evans was one of the Hall's first 15 inductees, and was the first Hall of Famer from outside the now NASCAR Cup Series.
DeWayne Louis "Tiny" Lund was an American stock car racer. He was a journeyman racer-for-hire in the top level NASCAR Grand National Series, running partial seasons for a number of years, including a victory in the 1963 Daytona 500. Lund saw his greatest success in the NASCAR Grand American Series, where he was the season champion in three of the four full years the series was run – Lund won 41 of the 109 Grand American events that ran.
South Boston Speedway, or "SoBo", is a short track located just outside South Boston, Virginia. SoBo is located approximately 60 miles (97 km) east of another area familiar to most NASCAR fans, Martinsville. It is owned by Mattco, Inc., the Mattioli family trust that owns Pocono Raceway, with general manager Brandon Brown operating the track, replacing Cathy Rice who retired in 2021 after serving in that role for 21 years and Chase Brashears who was in the role for two years. NASCAR's three national series have raced at the track, though the Cup Series has not done so since 1971, while the Busch Series last raced there in 2000. After the Busch Series left the schedule, the Craftsman Truck Series competed at SoBo for a few years between 2001 and 2003. The SRX Series visited the track in 2022.
Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway is a 6/10 mile motorsport racetrack located at the Nashville Fairgrounds near downtown Nashville, Tennessee. The track is the second-oldest continually operating track in the United States. The track held NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup races from 1958 to 1984.
Concord Speedway was a motorsports facility located in the town of Midland, North Carolina, southeast of Concord, North Carolina. The complex featured a 1⁄2-mile asphalt tri-oval and a 1⁄4-mile asphalt oval.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (NWMT) is a modified stock car racing series owned and operated by NASCAR in the Modified Division. The Modified Division is NASCAR's oldest division, and is the only open-wheeled division that NASCAR sanctions. NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events are mainly held in the northeastern United States, but the 2007 and 2008 tours expanded to the Midwest with the addition of a race in Mansfield, Ohio. The tour races primarily on short oval paved tracks, but the NWMT also has made appearances at larger ovals and road courses.
Dominion Raceway is a motorsport complex currently operating in Thornburg, Virginia. The facility includes 4/10-mile oval track, a 2-mile road course, and a 1/8-mile drag strip. The track hosts NASCAR, SCCA, and Superkart events along with amateur road course and street racing events.
The 1962 Myers Brothers 200 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on June 16, 1962, at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Trenton Speedway was a racing facility located near Trenton, New Jersey at the New Jersey State Fairgrounds. Races for the United States' premier open-wheel and full-bodied racing series of the times were held at Trenton Speedway.
Jimmie Lewallen was an American stock car racing driver from High Point, North Carolina, United States. He competed in NASCAR's Strictly Stock/Grand National division from its first race at Charlotte Speedway in 1949 until 1960.
Burt Myers is a race car driver on the SMART Modified Tour. In 1999, at the age of 23, he became the youngest Bowman Gray Stadium track champion in history and would go on to win 10 more titles in 2001, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2024. He has won more pole awards than any other driver in the Whelen Southern Modified Tour's history. Myers has 19 career wins and won the 2010 and 2016 NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour Championship.
The 1971 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season began on January 10 and ended on November 20. Richard Petty was the champion for this Winston Cup season. After 20 years of being named the NASCAR Grand National Series, R. J. Reynolds first became the primary sponsor in a decade where the growing anti-tobacco movement banned its advertisement on television and motorsports was the ideal place to place their advertisements. Through NASCAR, Winston merchandise was unveiled to live viewers of the races. This kind of merchandise would also be given out at stores that sold cigarettes in subsequent years. Race car drivers were encouraged to smoke cigarettes until the mid-2000s brought in strict drug testing policies in addition to a smoking cessation program by Nicorette, a GlaxoSmithKline brand.
The 1969 Myers Brothers 250 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on August 22, 1969, at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
The 1966 Myers Brothers 250 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on August 27, 1966, at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
The Winston-Salem Fairgrounds was a dirt oval track spanning 0.500 miles (0.805 km) in addition to its primary purpose as a fairground. During the times of the year that it wasn't expected to host a stock car race, this fairground was the home of the annual Winston-Salem Fair/Dixie Classic Fair for Northwest North Carolina along with other events related to the Piedmont Triad area of North Carolina. The annual fair would traditionally take place in the first week of October. On December 1, 1969, the Winston-Salem Foundation gave the Fairgrounds, the Memorial Coliseum, and $75,000 to the City of Winston-Salem.
The 1971 Myers Brothers 250 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series event that took place on August 6, 1971, at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. This race was the final NASCAR Cup Series event at Bowman Gray Stadium.
The 1960 International 200 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on June 26, 1960, at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Barry Dodson was an American stock car crew chief. He was the crew chief for Rusty Wallace's 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship for Blue Max Racing. He pitted for several drivers who won a combined 19 Cup races.
The 2025 Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium is an upcoming NASCAR Cup Series race that will be held on February 2, 2025, at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Contested over 150 laps, it will be the first exhibition race of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)