Track Blog
A whole lot of racing for one low price awaits fans on Saturday
An overwhelming serving of racing awaits fans purchasing tickets to Saturday's Great Clips 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race under the lights at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race not only features multiple attention-grabbing storylines, but also a day filled with NASCAR track activity for one affordable price that will be capped off by that night's Nationwide Series race. Tickets for the Great Clips 300, available for as low as $30, not only allow fans to see the Great Clips 300, but also two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice sessions, Nationwide Series qualifying and Sprint Cup qualifying. Also, all kids 12 and under are admitted free if accompanied by an adult general admission ticket.
Fans with tickets to the Great Clips 300 can also see some of the best drivers in all of NASCAR battle it out under the lights for a low price! A total of 14 full-time Sprint Cup Series drivers are entered the Great Clips 300 – including last September's Sprint Cup winner at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Kasey Kahne. In addition to Nationwide Series points leaders Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth will also be among the drivers racing. Kenseth is no stranger to success on Atlanta's fast, high banks. In 10 Nationwide Series starts at Atlanta, Kenseth has two wins, seven top-fives, eight top-10s and one pole award.
And speaking of Edwards and Keselowski, the Great Clips 300 will mark both drivers' first race at Atlanta Motor Speedway since the late-race incident in March's Kobalt Tools 500 when Edwards made contact with Keselowski, whose car went airborne.
There will be no shortage of excitement Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway. And for just $30, you can be here to see it!
It's Finally Here! Race Weekend Is Upon Us at Atlanta!
After months of waiting, the time has finally arrived! You've planned for this. You've made your list of what to bring and mapped out your weekend of racing under the lights at NASCAR's fastest track. Well, you have to wait no longer - Labor Day Night Racing is back at Atlanta Motor Speedway. There's just something special about a race track as a race weekend begins - the air is filled with the smoke of grills and cookers in the early morning, and fans are already enjoying being here at the track! We've dubbed this weekend the Biggest Labor Day Party in the USA, and we'll be starting it out with a bang tonight with the Friday Fan Fest Presented by Your Georgia Best Chevy Dealers!
We'll have Q&As with Jeff Burton, David Ragan and Clint Bowyer, a concert by Drivin' N Cryin and a 150-lap late model race on the 1/4-mile track on our frontstretch!
Admission is free if you have a Saturday or Sunday NASCAR ticket. Otherwise, it's just $10!
Looking to know what's going on this weekend? Be sure to check out this link for a schedule of track activity, known driver appearances, the Coca-Cola Fan Stage schedule and a listing of who is set up in the vendor display lot!
And of course, we have tickets available for you to be part of this unforgettable weekend of night racing! Just call our ticket office at 877-9-AMS-TIX or go to www.atlantamotorspeedway.com!
President's Blog: Welcome to Race Week at Atlanta!
After nearly of year of waiting, the time has finally arrived! It's race week at Atlanta Motor Speedway! And not just any race week – it's time for NASCAR Night Racing's return to Atlanta Motor Speedway on Labor Day weekend! On behalf of our entire staff, it is my honor to welcome each and every one of you to Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Largest Labor Day Celebration the USA! Whether you're young or old, come from just a few miles from the Speedway or from as far away as Australia, we're very excited that you have chosen to or are at the moment making plans to join us for a weekend of night racing at Atlanta Motor Speedway!
As a staff, this weekend is what we work all year for – to put together a first-class event for each of our fans. One of the truly exciting things about being at the track as a race weekend gets closer is seeing how, in a matter of days, our facility, slowly and piece by piece, is transformed into one of the largest cities in the state of Georgia, filled with excited fans, competitors, and many others! We are committed to providing a first-class experience for you, whether it's your first of 50th time at Atlanta Motor Speedway!
We'll start our on-track action Friday night with the Friday Fan Fest Presented by Your Georgia Best Chevy Dealers. It'll include Q&As with Jeff Burton, David Ragan and Clint Bowyer, a concert by Drivin' N Cryin' and the Georgia Best Chevy Dealers 150 late model race on our ¼-mile frontstretch 'Thunder Ring." Best of all, admission is free if you have a Saturday or Sunday NASCAR admission ticket!
On Saturday, we'll get things going early with NASCAR Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series practice with qualifying in both series to follow. That'll set the table for that night's NASCAR Nationwide Series race, the Great Clips 300!
Then, on Sunday, it'll be the Sprint Cup Series drivers' turn! After a few days of tailgating, friends and fun at the racetrack, it'll be time for the Emory Healthcare 500! But before the racing starts, we've got a very exciting pre-race show for our fans! One of the most legendary rock n roll groups of all time, Foreigner, will take the Pre-Race Party stage for a concert, and the introduction of the field for the Emory Healthcare 500 will follow right after that! Then, it'll be time for 500 miles of Sprint Cup night racing!
On Monday, the race weekend isn't over. We're hosting a Breakfast on Bruton, a free breakfast for fans with Emory Healthcare 500 tickets in the Nationwide Series garage. It's our way of saying thanks to our fans for their support for the past 50 years!
There's just something about night racing that sets it apart from any other type of racing in NASCAR. To start with, the temperatures are cooler at night. The cars just look different. Maybe it's the way that they look as the light reflects off of them. Perhaps it's how you can see sparks very easily as cars make contact with either one another, the wall or the asphalt. Night racing gives many of us a flashback to racing on the local short tracks that many of us grew up attending. It's almost as if it's the way that racing was meant to be!
We're very excited to have each of our fans with us for not only a weekend of night racing, but here with us as we celebrate our 50th anniversary. As a facility, we have seen some of the most historical moments in NASCAR at Atlanta Motor Speedway. We not only have some of the best racing, but we also have the best fans in all of NASCAR. It's you, the fans who have made Atlanta Motor Speedway a success, and we appreciate you for it.
Travel safely to Atlanta, and get ready for lots of great racing as you are part of the "Greatest Labor Day Party in the USA."
We look forward to seeing each and every one of you at the track this weekend!
Sincerely,
Ed Clark
President and General Manager, Atlanta Motor Speedway
Great Weather On The Way For Labor Day Weekend at AMS!
We already know that the racing will be great this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend with three nights of racing, capped off by the Emory Healthcare 500. We already know that the atmosphere will be great this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway with all the fun, tailgating and activities at the Coca-Cola Fan Stage that'll include concerts by Drivin' N Cryin' and Colt Ford. And now, it appears that the weather this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway will be nothing short of fantastic. One look at this weekend's weather forecast indicates that the weather will be nothing short of great, with partly cloudy or sunny skies and little chance of rain.
According to weather.com, Friday's high will be 95 with a low of 68. Saturday's high is forecast to be 85 with a low of 62 with Sunday's high expected to be 85 with a low temperature of 62 degrees. And best of all, there is currently a zero percent chance of rain all three days!
Brian Neudorff, a meteorologist in Rochester, NY who is also known as an unofficial "NASCAR Weatherman," offers this analysis of this week's weather patterns at Atlanta Motor Speedway on his NASCAR weather blog.
"With the exception of a weak cool front that crosses Georgia Friday night into Saturday there doesn’t seem to be much to talk about. That front will be dry, there may be a few more clouds during the day Friday and behind the front, cooler less humid air will arrive for the weekend."
It's shaping up to be a great weekend here at Atlanta Motor Speedway, even as far as Mother Nature is concerned! So come on out and join us for the Largest Labor Day Party in the USA!
For As Low As $69, You Can See Three Nights of Racing
Few things in all of sports match the thrill , excitement and all-out energy of night racing. Throw in night racing being on the high banks of Atlanta Motor Speedway, and there's a recipe for something you just cannot afford to miss out on being part of! Even better? That you don't have to break open the piggy bank to be at Atlanta Motor Speedway for a weekend of night racing! For as low as $69, you can see three nights of racing, plus get a free breakfast on Monday Morning! It'll be the largest Labor Day Party in the USA, and you cannot afford to miss out on it! NASCAR's best drivers will be here. An incredible atmosphere will be here. The only thing missing is you!
At prices starting at $39, you can be at Atlanta Motor Speedway to see the best drivers in all of NASCAR tackle Atlanta's high-speed surface for 500 miles under the lights! Be here as sparks fly and the stars of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series seek to be the first driver to the checkered flag after 500 exciting miles of night racing that will leave your heart pounding with excitement!
On Saturday, tickets as low as $30 not only get you tickets to the Great Clips 300 Nationwide Series race, but also NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series qualifying and Sprint Cup practice as well! In addition, kids 12 and under get in free on Saturday with an adult general admission ticket, and there is no limit to the number of kids that can get in with each adult ticket!
And if you buy tickets to either Saturday or Sunday NASCAR events, you get in free to the Friday Fan Fest Presented by Your Georgia Best Chevy Dealers! It'll start with Q&As with NASCAR drivers David Ragan, Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer and will be hosted by Rutledge Wood of SPEED! After that, we'll have a concert by Drivin' N Cryin' and the Georgia Best Chevy Dealers 150 – a 150-lap late model race on the ¼-mile track on Atlanta Motor Speedway's frontstretch!
Now, you probably think when the Emory Healthcare 500 ends, it's the finish of race weekend. But it won't be over! Monday morning, from 7 to 9 a.m., we're inviting all fans with Emory Healthcare 500 tickets to Breakfast on Bruton, a free breakfast in the Nationwide Series garage in appreciation to our fans for their support over the past 50 years!
For just $69, you can three nights of racing plus a free breakfast! You'd be hard-pressed to so much fun for so low of a price!
Make sure you are here for the Largest Labor Day Party in the USA! Call 877-9-AMS-TIX or go to www.atlantamotorspeedway.com!
The Top 10 Reasons To Be At Atlanta on Labor Day Weekend!
Can you feel it? The anticipation is building! Like a fire that gets warmer the closer you get to it, the excitement is rising as NASCAR Night Racing's return to Atlanta Motor Speedway gets even closer! The Emory Healthcare 500 will be the highlight of the biggest Labor Day party in the USA, and you don't want to miss it! And for as low as $39, you can get your seats for the Emory Healthcare 500! And if you want to sit on the frontstretch, those tickets are just $59! To ensure that you are here, in person for night racing at Atlanta, call 877-9-AMS-TIX or go to www.atlantamotorspeedway.com. To help you get stoked for race weekend, here are the top 10 reasons to be at AMS on Labor Day weekend!
10. No commercials! Have you ever been watching a race only to have the action interrupted by a commercial on TV? No worries at Atlanta Motor Speedway! If you're at the track, it means that there are no breaks in the action since you are there live!
9. Three days of racing for $69! For just $69, you can take in three days of racing! For a combined price of $69, you can get tickets to the Great Clips 300 and the Emory Healthcare 500! Plus, tickets to either Saturday or Sunday get you into the Friday Fan Fest Presented by Your Georgia Best Chevy Dealers! The Fan Fest includes NASCAR driver Q&As, a Drivin' N Cryin' Concert and a 150-lap late model race featuring the Southern Superstars Short Track Series!
8. The Pre-Race Party featuring a concert by Foreigner! The legendary rock band will be firing up the crowd with a rockin' concert that will get fans hot-blooded for the Emory Healthcare 500! After that, it'll be time for Sprint Cup Series driver introductions! Stagefront passes are $49!
7. Great finishes! Atlanta is renowned for its thrilling finishes to its races. Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards and Dale Earnhardt Sr. have each won in photo-finishes at AMS – you don't want to miss the next one!
6. Have a driver that you can't stand? There's always a chance that they'll have their night end early.
5. Kids FREE on Saturday! If you have kids 12 and under, they get in free on Saturday to the Great Clips 300 if accompanied by an adult general admission ticket! Plus, there's no limit to the number of kids you can bring!
4. Free Breakfast! Your Emory Healthcare 500 tickets admit you to Monday's Breakfast on Bruton, a free breakfast thanking fans for their support of Atlanta Motor Speedway!
3. Being with more than 100,000 of your closest friends, whether it's in the grandstands, tailgating or camping!
2. The anticipation as the field takes the green flag. You've waited all weekend for it, and as you see the pace car duck off and the field work its way through turn four, few things can match the excitement knowing that it's time for the green flag!
1. Being part of one of the most exciting things in NASCAR – night racing! The air is cooler, the light reflects off the cars and the atmosphere is electric!
Come On Out To Atlanta Motor Speedway, Bring The Kids!
Every single one of us working here at Atlanta Motor Speedway, no matter what we do, are in the line of work we're in because we're passionate about racing. We have a genuine love not only for the sport of stock car racing, but for giving each of you a first-class experience whenever you make a decision to join us for a race. But that passion had to start somewhere, and for many of us it began when we were young. All it took for us, and many fans to be hooked on racing was getting exposed to it when we were young. That's why we're so excited about our NASCAR Fans of Tomorrow ticket special for the Great Clips 300!
If you have kids 12 and under, they get into the race free if accompanied by an adult general admission ticket. Plus, there's no limit to the number of kids that you can have with you that get in free, so bring the entire cub scout group, sports team or any other group of kids 12 and under if you wish!
As Labor Day approaches, we are getting more and more exciting about welcome many of our fans for the Biggest Labor Day Party USA, whether they be young or young at heart!
President's Blog: The Road To The Chase Runs Through AMS
Each February, when the air is chilly and windy, hope springs eternal for each team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. With the start of each season, every team feels that it has a shot at qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 10-race playoff format – The Chase for the Championship. Now, as the season works its way through the latter part of the summer, the clock is ticking for many teams looking to make their way into The Chase. And for many of those teams, the road to the Chase runs right through the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Night Race at Atlanta Motor Speedway!
As if Labor Day race weekend under lights at Atlanta wasn't exciting enough, now there' s the factor of the race being a must-run well for teams if they want to make it into the Chase. It'll make racing under the lights on Labor Day weekend all the more exciting!
The final race prior to The Chase is the one following our race, at Richmond. Teams on the bubble of either barely making or missing the Chase can ill afford to have a bad night at Richmond. For that reason, running well under the lights at AMS will be all the more important. A bad finish at Atlanta could force one driver to need to finish within the top five at Richmond to make the Chase, while a good finish by another could all but lock them into the Chase, allowing them to coast into the final ten races.
Last year, for example, we saw Kasey Kahne rebound from a tough race at Bristol to win our night race. As a result, he all but locked up a spot in the Chase.
For many teams, making the Chase can define whether or not a season is successful. These next few races could end up being some of the most exciting of the year because of how much is at stake, and we're excited to be in the middle of it here at Atlanta Motor Speedway!
There are so many things that make race weekend exciting at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Labor Day weekend. You've got the gathering of old and new friends in the parking lots, grandstands and campgrounds; the atmosphere of a night race and just getting to have a great time on Labor Day weekend. Add in the fight to get into the Chase to the mix, and you've got a race weekend that you've got to be a part of!
Our staff is continuing to work to provide a more than full weekend for our fans on Labor Day weekend, giving them an experience that they will never forget! With this in mind, we're excited to announce a great event for our fans on Friday, Sept. 3 of Labor Day weekend – the Friday Fan Fest Presented by Your Georgia Best Chevy Dealers! We'll kick things off around 6 p.m. with a NASCAR driver Q&A session hosted by Rutledge Wood of SPEED and it'll include David Ragan, Jeff Burton, Clint Bowyer and other drivers to be announced later! Then, we'll have a concert by Drivin' N Cryin' followed by the Georgia Best Chevy Dealers 150, a 150 lap late model race on the ¼-mile "Thunder Ring" featuring the Southern Superstars Short Track Series!
Best of all – this is a FREE event if you purchase either Saturday or Sunday NASCAR tickets! All other admission is $10.
Here at Atlanta Motor Speedway, we want to give our fans an experience they will never forget while they are with us. We cannot wait to have all of you with us for Labor Day weekend under the lights at Atlanta Motor Speedway!
See you at the track!
Ed
There's Nothing Quite Like A Night Race
Hey everyone! This is Ed Clark, President and General Manager of Atlanta Motor Speedway! For most race fans, whether you have grown up going to your local short track or attending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events, the summertime means Night Racing! Looking ahead, the NASCAR schedule is peppered with night races, all of which will set the table for the NASCAR Night Race Weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Labor Day weekend! For quite some time, we worked with NASCAR to have a night race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and the response of you, our fans last September made the decision for host a night race one that we absolutely are glad we made!
There are few things in racing that are both as electric and magical as a night race. To begin with, you've got the atmosphere. Fans have been tailgating all day (with some having been at the track even longer) and have been having good times together. All of this builds up to that evening's activities inside the track for the night race. When you turn on the lights at the track, the feel is just different. The weather is cooler and the lights of the track reflect off of the cars as the fly around the track at the lightning-fast pace. If you look close enough, you can see sparks light up the dark night as cars either make contact with each other or the track's outside wall.
And of course, night racing tends to bring out something else – hot tempers. For whatever reason, night racing is synonymous with driver confrontations – maybe it's a throwback to racing on Saturday nights that so many drivers grew up doing and many of us fans are used to. Some of the more-famous driver run-ins have happened during night races, from Terry Labonte and Dale Earnhardt Sr. at Bristol to Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. a few years back at Richmond.
When those races were over, the action of the night before was a very hot topic. When the Labor Day night race weekend is over at Atlanta Motor Speedway, you'll want to say that "I was there. I was a part of the Largest Labor Day Party in the USA."
Labor Day weekend will be an incredible time here at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The closer it gets, the more excited we are about it. It consumes all of what our staff is doing right now and we hope you'll join us to be part of it!
For Courtney Kemp, everything really is "Better in Metter." We'd like to congratulate Courtney as the winner of our "Celebrate the 50th with 50" promotion. Courtney, of Metter, Ga., has won fifty frontstretch tickets to the Labor Day weekend NASCAR Sprint Cup Series night race at Atlanta Motor Speedway! It's safe to say that she will now have a lot of brand new "best friends" wanting one of her tickets.
We've also launched our latest fan promotion, "Best Video to Victory Lane." Fans can submit a Youtube video (consisting of video or still images) from their experience at NASCAR event at Atlanta Motor Speedway and enter at www.atlantamotorspeedway.com/50. Don't forget to include a link to your Youtube video! We're looking forward to seeing the videos that our fans will be sending in of them enjoying the racing and the atmosphere around NASCAR at Atlanta Motor Speedway!
Get ready for the fireworks! You don't have to wait until July Fourth for fireworks! Just come on out to Atlanta Motor Speedway on July 1st and 2nd for what will one of the Atlanta area's earliest and biggest fireworks displays! We'll have fireworks on July 1 sponsored by Marco's Pizza after Thursday Thunder. Then on July 2, we'll have them again prior to Friday Night Drags! We hope to see you at the track as we celebrate America's Independence!
I hope to see you at the track very soon! If you see me, be sure to say hello and feel free to pass along any suggestions of what we can do a better job of!
President's Blog: Getting Ready For The Big Party
Hey everyone! This is Ed Clark, President and General Manager of Atlanta Motor Speedway! Well, it's June, the time that some of us like to grill out, spend time with family or just have a good time! But the times we have during the summer are nothing compared to what will happen on Labor Day weekend right here at Atlanta Motor Speedway! When NASCAR returns to Atlanta Motor Speedway, it won't just mean that night racing is back in Atlanta. It'll mean that finally, after months of waiting, it will be time for the biggest Labor Day party in the USA! If there's one thing that we saw last September, it's that there is far more to a weekend at the track than the racing alone..
The overall experience is what makes a race weekend fun for our fans! We saw it last year with our fans starting to arrive nearly two weeks before the race itself. These fans were here not just for a race, they were here for all that comes with being at the track on a race weekend – the gathering around a grill where all of your friends are cooking up their favorite foods, making new friends and seeing some old ones and just have a great time all around!
Last September, our fans sent a clear message that they just enjoyed being at the track. So in response to that, we've made the weekend bigger and better! On Friday, we'll have a fan event that will include a concert, interactive activities for fans and a 150-lap late model race! We want to make race weekend as much of a fun experience for our fans as possible. Staging Friday's event is just another part of our goal of doing that. Plus, admission to Friday's event is free if you have tickets to either the Great Clips 300 or the Sprint Cup Series race. Otherwise, fans can get in for just $10!
Here at Atlanta Motor Speedway, we see our Labor Day race weekend as not just a race, but as an event. Of all events throughout the country, this is the one going on that you cannot afford to miss out! You won't want to be sitting around on the Monday following our race weekend wishing you had been a part of it! Plan to join us for the biggest Labor Day party in the USA!
And it's easier than ever to be here! Sprint Cup Series tickets start at just $39!
Last week, we announced that Foreigner would be playing at the pre-race concert prior to the Sprint Cup Series night race. We spent some time with the band last week and I'll tell you this much – from what we saw from them, they will be putting on one heck of a show on Labor Day weekend! Plus, these guys are pretty big race fans as well! You won't want to miss it!
We are placing a lot of emphasis on creating atmosphere around the racing on Labor Day weekend. Having a band of the caliber of Foreigner here will undoubtedly play a big role in doing that!
Fans can watch the pre-race concert from stagefront and get a close-up view of driver introductions with a pre-race party pass for just $49! This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to not only see a legendary rock band from a great point of view, but also see your favorite driver from a pretty close vantage point as well!
In case you can't tell, we're all very excited about the Labor Day night race weekend! We hope that you, like all of us, are making big plans for the weekend just like we are. We are continuing to make this the largest event in the history of Atlanta Motor Speedway and hope that you will join us for the Largest Labor Day Celebration in the USA!
I hope to see you at the track very soon! If you see me, be sure to say hello and feel free to pass along any suggestions of what we can do a better job of!
See You At The Track!
Ed