Bristol Motor Speedway’s Fan Appreciation Day July 30 will feature rides around the track – and rides of a different kind just outside the World’s Fastest Half-Mile.
A carnival has been added to the festivities, opening Tuesday, July 26 and running through July 30. The carnival will be free from 1 p.m.-5:30 p.m. on Fan Appreciation Day for anyone with a ticket to Thompson Metal Monster Truck Madness that evening at the BMS.
Fan Appreciation Day is being held in honor of Bristol Motor Speedway’s 50th anniversary. The first NASCAR Grand National race, as the series was called then, took place in Bristol July 30, 1961. Junior Johnson, who finished 22nd that day, while Jack Smith went on to take the checkers, will be on hand to give several lucky fans a ride around the World’s Fastest Half-Mile.
Johnson, a 2010 inductee into the NASCAR Hall of Fame and the 1965 winner of the Southeastern 500 at BMS, also will pose for photos with fans in Victory Lane.
The carnival will be set up at the main entrance of the Speedway, just off Hwy. 11-E.
A Ferris wheel anchors the carnival, along with Spinner, Skat, the Jitterbug Swing, a Euro bungee trampoline, Rat Race, obstacle course, fun slide, kiddie train, a NASCAR-themed kiddie car ride and a rock climbing wall.
Carnival hours are 4 p.m.-10 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday.
The Fan Appreciation Day in the BMS infield begins at 1 p.m. with track laps, which will take place until 3 p.m. Free hot dogs, chips, drinks and ice cream will be provided, while supplies last, and several big prizes will be given away, including a four-day Carnival Festiva Adventure Club Caribbean cruise, as well as a big screen television, groceries/gas for a year from Food City, IRWIN tools, suite seats and tickets to the IRWIN Tools Night Race weekend.
One fan who signs up that day for the Bristol Golden Giveaway will be one of three people selected who will win a trip to BMS for the Aug. 26-27 races, which includes suite seats for the famed IRWIN Tools Night Race and the Food City 250, along with pit passes, parking passes and BMS 50th anniversary merchandise. All three fans will attend the pre-race show for the IRWIN Tools Night Race and each will receive a key.
The fan with the key that starts the Official BMS pace car, which will have led the field for all NASCAR events at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile in 2011, will win the 2011 special edition Ford Mustang.
The celebration will continue until the infield is cleared at 4:30 in order to prepare for the Thompson Metal Monster Truck Madness, which features Grave Digger, the world’s most famous monster truck, along with Avenger, Brutus, Sampson, Gunslinger and War Wizard.
Tickets to the Thompson Metal Monster Truck Madness, which begins at 7 p.m., are $15 for anyone attending the Fan Appreciation Day or $20 that evening at the gate.
Race week at BMS kicks off Aug. 24 with a doubleheader that features the O’Reilly Auto Parts 200 Camping World Truck Series race, and the UNOH Perfect Storm 150 Whelen Modified Series event. The Food City Nationwide Series race takes place Friday night, Aug. 26.
Fans can enjoy both the IRWIN Tools Night Race and the Food City 250 for as little as $99. Should they be in town for the Wednesday night doubleheader, fans can take in all four races under the lights in packages starting at $129.
Single-event tickets for Saturday’s IRWIN Tools Night Race start at $90 while ticket prices for the Food City 250 begin at $45. Wednesday night doubleheader tickets for the O’Reilly Auto Parts 200 and the UNOH Perfect Storm 150 are $25 in advance for adults and $30 the day of the doubleheader.
Parents also can take advantage of reduced ticket prices for children as kids 12 and under can watch the Food City 250 for only $10 while children in that age bracket will be admitted free to the Wednesday night doubleheader.
