Sunday, April 25, 1999
Kentucky Speedway taking shape
'Race wall' around track partly finished
BY TOM GROESCHEN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Drop by the Kentucky Speedway construction site on a given day, and odds are you'll find race fans with cameras.
The lure is an early glimpse of Jerry Carroll's 11/2-mile superspeedway, under construction in Gallatin County, Ky., near the Sparta exit off I-71. The track is to be completed by May 2000.
“We're starting to see it take shape and look like a racetrack,” Carroll said. “It's exciting to see.”
Carroll said that construction, which began last August, is on schedule. Workers are on the site six days a week, with two shifts covering a 16-hour day.
The cement “race wall” is up between Turns One and Two, and the back straightaway wall is also up. The 14-degree banking is in place for Turn Two, and for now is a dirt surface. The track eventually will be paved.
The pedestrian tunnel, which will connect fans from outside the main grandstand to the infield garage area catwalk, is taking shape near the start-finish line. Outside Turn Three, the race-team truck tunnels (22 feet high) are in place.
By July 31, when Carroll stages a “Racefest” which invites the public to view construction, workers should have the race wall extended all the way around the track and the initial paved surface should be down.
The track hopes to lure major races such as NASCAR Winston Cup, CART (Championship Auto Racing Teams) and the IRL (Indy Racing League).
A NASCAR Craftsman Truck race is probable for 2000, and Carroll has enlisted NASCAR legend Darrell Waltrip as a consultant to help lure a Winston Cup event.
It is possible that Kentucky Speedway will open in May 2000 with an ARCA (Automobile Racing Club of America) race. ARCA is a stepping stone to tours such as Winston Cup and Busch.
Carroll and four partners are spending $152 million on the track. Carroll believes in the project so much that he recently sold his Turfway Park horse track.
“If there's a negative in this (speedway),” he said, “I haven't seen it yet.”
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