People are aware of NASCAR veteran Dale Earnhardt Jr’s passion for lost old tracks and his dedication to bringing them back. The comeback of North Wilkesboro Speedway was all thanks to him. The NASCAR Cup Series recently hosted the all-star race at the track after it was shut down in 1996. In the 200-lap race, Joey Logano led 199 laps to take the checkered flag. Dale Jr has been a long-time advocate for bringing back the track that hosted Cup races for 50 years.

However, in 2019, he took matters into his own hands. The veteran led a group of guys to clean up the track for it to be scanned by iRacing (which makes simulators). Since Dale Jr is a director at iRacing this led to its inclusion in NASCAR’s virtual schedule during the pandemic. And eventually, the track received $18 Million of government funding for its revival. Recently, another iconic track was revived and fans believe it was yet again Dale Jr’s efforts that led to the track’s revival.

Dale Earnhardt Jr aids revival of ‘the greatest upset in racing history’ venue

Post his 2019 efforts to bring back North Wilkesboro Speedway, Earnhardt Jr. hosted a documentary series called, “Lost Speedways.” So far the series has aired two seasons where he explores abandoned race tracks throughout America. The veteran in the episodes shares the history and significance of the tracks that once roared with racing. In the second season, episode 2, called ‘Pennsboro Speedway: The Miracle,’ Dale Jr visits the legendary track.

The track dates back to the 1800s, first used for horse racing. Nearly 100 years past that, cars revved on the track. The legendary dirt track became known to have witnessed one of the greatest upsets in racing history. In the 1981 dirt track world championship race, Jim Dunn and his crew chief Rocky Carr were considered the underdogs. However, after starting from the rear (23rd place), Dunn climbed spots to eventually win the race, beating dirt racing legends like Rodney Combs, who was the favorite to win the race. The track was also known to offer the biggest race purse of the time, making the victory even sweeter. The Dale Earnhardt Jr hosted episode at the track featured Carr, who reminisced on the old days. Sharing stories from the track.

Probably everyone who watched the episode missed the iconic track that saw its last race in 2002. In the years that followed, the speedway was used for mini wedge races on its smaller track, but the big dirt track remained defunct. Almost a year after the episode aired, in 2022, it was announced that Pennsboro Speedway’s revival was underway and 2024 was set as the deadline. XR Events and the Ritchie County Fairgrounds teamed up to get the track back to life. And recently the track authorities shared the news of the track’s revival as it is set to host the Mason-Dixon 100. Dale Jr., closely following the revival process, shared the update on X, to which he wrote, “This is amazing.”

The track recently hosted a practice session which is scheduled to be followed by a three-day event. There will be two 25-lap preliminary races on Thursday (24th Oct) and Friday (25th Oct), each with a $10,000 prize. Finally, the event will conclude with a 50-lap race on Saturday (26th Oct). Dirt racing fans are delighted that the track has finally made its way back. And they have thanked Dale Earnhardt Jr’s efforts on the show for its speedy revival.

Fans laud Dale Jr’s role behind the track’s revival

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When he visited the track, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was awestruck upon hearing its history. Steve Davis, a board member of the Ritchie County Heritage Festival, was at the site when the episode was shot by the NBC film crew. He said, “He (Dale Jr) said this is way more than what he thought. Once he got in here and started walking around it and hearing all the history and everything that went with it, I mean, he was really floored with it. He enjoyed it.” 

Earnhardt Jr. enjoyed shooting the episode at the track, and even after everything was wrapped, he kept tabs on his revival journey, also keeping fans in the loop. In September, he shared an update, where he wrote on X, “Pennsboro Speedway is still tryin to revive itself. It seemed impossible when we were there to film “Lost Speedways” a few years ago. If they pull this off, it will be epic.” A fan crediting Jr. for the track’s revival said, “Man this is all thanks to you.” Another fan echoing the same emotion wrote, “Thank you Jr for the lost speedway show. I’m sure that was a catalyst for these raceways being reborn.”

The show gained huge popularity; it has received an 8.1/10 score on IMDB, which is massive. Naturally, the episode was widely enjoyed too, and people felt a sense of reconnecting to this lost race track. Perhaps this was the reason so many people approached XR Events, offering assistance in reviving the track. Barry Braun, CEO of XR Events, has recently said, “These people had lost their track for 22 years. We started working and they saw us putting in the effort here, but then the people of Pennsboro said, what can we do to help?” Another fan lauding Dale Jr wrote, “This is cool as s— @DaleJr.” Everyone loves a comeback story and fans are loving this. One fan, hearing the news, wrote, “Love seeing this being restored.”

Fans are also wondering when they will get to see a virtual version of the track by iRacing. The iRacing simulators are used by amateurs and pros alike. One fan eagerly waiting wrote, “Let me guess @iRacing next project.”

What do you think of the track’s revival? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.