The renovation process at Gresham Motorsports Park got underway in earnest Tuesday with groundbreaking on the site of the former Peach State Speedway.
“We got the permits completed to do the dirt work and we’re off and rolling,” said GMP General Manager Dan Elliott. “We’ve broken ground and we’ve begun the excavation for the new entrances, the grandstand and the lowering of the infield. It’s a big day around here.”
When completed this fall, Gresham Motorsports Park will feature a totally refurbished asphalt racing surface, fencing and retaining walls for the half-mile oval.
“I believe we are going to have one of the nicest, fastest, and best racing surfaces in the country,” Elliott said. “We’re putting a lot of time and consideration into the planning process for the racing surface. A
lot of tracks compete for attention on several levels and we certainly think we have come up with the best package of speed, safety and excitement for our competitors and fans. The new racing surface will have a great deal to do with that.”
The repaving of the half-mile track will be the first in more than 20 years.
Preliminary demolition of the old track over the past month has removed all the old catch fencing and interior steel guardrails. According to Elliott, actual repaving of the track will take place later this year.
“The old track really became a problem in recent years,” said Elliott. “It was resurfaced in 1986 and patched several times after that. The old track was so worn that it really didn’t allow for side-by-side racing in some divisions. Meanwhile, the walls surrounding the facility really needed attention. The new track will address all of that. The new racing surface will not only increase speeds making Gresham Motorsports Park the fastest half-mile oval in the Southeast, but the some of the other improvements will also make it one of the safest.”
Because of the increased speeds, Elliott also indicated the management team at GMP is also considering some enhanced driver safety initiatives.
“We want to be sure we make things as safe as possible for the competitors, so we are considering implementing a mandatory head and neck restraint rule,” said Elliott. “We’ve been looking at several types of driver restraints and no decisions have been made yet, but we want to make sure that everyone who races here is protected as much as possible.”
There will also be a completely new quarter-mile oval track constructed on infield of the half-mile speedway to host Legends car and various other types of racing. Additional improvements include the relocation of the main grandstand to the former back straight, refurbished rest rooms, and new concession areas.
According to Elliott, the wide-ranging project will be a challenge for all involved.
“The scope of what we are doing here is going to tax everything I ever did in racing,” said Elliott, a former NASCAR Sprint Cup championship-winning crew member. “Some of the things we are attempting to do have never been done before, so we definitely have our work cut out for us to finish on time and within our budget.”
Gresham Motorsports Park is scheduled to reopen with the 26th-Annual World Crown 300 November 12-15, 2009.
For more information, log on to www.greshammotorsportspark.com.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald or The Braselton News.
