79 / 113
aving a convention at a track
like Charlotte Motor Speedway is
about as good as it gets. And having it
a second or third time gets even better.
You could never think of Charlotte as
the same-old same old. To start with,
the track, itself, is a monster, seem-
ingly erupting four stories out of the
fairly flat ground to dominate the
landscape. You make your way in
through a tunnel under the track and
come out into the infield. You see
bleachers in every direction. Two long
garages, built with NASCAR teams in
mind, command the center, sur-
rounded by a sea of asphalt. If you
want grass, dust and dirt you have to
venture out to the center of the infield
where, during a race, spectators park.
Winter 2016 76
– Rick Kopec
The SHELBY AMERICAN
H
™
We were excited to go back to North Carolina a third time. Even though Cobras and Shelbys never raced
there in the 1960s, everyone was happy to have a chance to scruff up that banking. Just like Ned Jarrett,
Cale Yarborough, Fred Lorenzen, David Pearson and Bobby Allison used to do.