Martinsville in no danger of losing race dates

A quick note before we get started today: As you delve into the text below, ignore your initial reaction. This is not a broken record, rather a pertinent addition to an important, ongoing debate.

As you're all well aware, one of this season's most heated topics of discussion is the Speedway Motorsports/NASCAR lawsuit, and the traditional racing venues projected to suffer as a result of it.

	Marty Smith

The fate of International Speedway Corporation tracks in Rockingham, N.C., and Darlington, S.C., are reportedly at stake, here. It's sickening. And adding to the nausea, of late, is the fact that some folks have begun to lump Martinsville Speedway into the discussion.

Fortunately, some folks are clueless.

Listen up, class: Martinsville Speedway is in no danger of losing a race date.

All together now! "MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY WILL NOT LOSE A NEXTEL CUP DATE."

Well done. Now, flip open your shiny new Nextel, page your comrades and add positive links to the chain of knowledgeable NASCAR fans. Educate them, people! It's your duty as lobbyists for preserving the traditional base this exploding phenomenon is built on.

So many people complain about "cookie-cutter" tracks. Well, Martinsville ain't one. It's unique. It's quirky. Some drivers hate it.

You gotta love that.

Sure, like Rockingham and Darlington, Martinsville was erected years ago in a rural Southern town. But that in no way indicates that it will soon be contracted. Quite the contrary, in fact.

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Unlike it's middle-aged brethren in the Barbecue Belt, Martinsville sells out its grandstands. The track just announced that Sunday's Advance Auto Parts 500 will be packed to the gills, 91,000 strong.

Moreover, Clay Campbell and his staff have done an admirable job of continually upgrading the facility and its surroundings, both for fans and competitors.

Since 1992, they've added more than 40,000 seats, 25 corporate suites, 100 acres of parking, concessions and restroom facilities galore, a new scoring stand, new press, radio and television booths, an infield tunnel, an infield garage area for teams, a new infield care center and new entrance/exit routes to and from the speedway, and remodeled dual front and back stretch pit roads into a single lane.

And they're not done. Plans are underway to move the railroad tracks located on the backstretch in name of further expansion. They also plan to pave the track and install SAFER barriers.

All said, Campbell figures he's spent $16 million in upgrades, all the while maintaining an unwavering focus to keep ticket and concession prices affordable for fans. Undoubtedly, the most consistent gripe I hear from fans is the ever-escalating cost of attending NASCAR events.

You can attend a race at Martinsville for $40. The most expensive seat in the house is $75. At some tracks the most affordable seat in the house costs more than $75.

Parking is free. Two pleasantly pink Martinsville hotdogs (arguably the most divine on the planet and affectionately known throughout the industry as Mart Dogs. No, that's not where I got the nickname) and a drink runs you five bucks.

And while event prices are critical, they are not the main reason Martinsville's status as a future Nextel Cup host remains certain. The fact is, the France family -- not International Speedway Corp., as some think -- owns a 50 percent share of the track.

In other words, it's gravy. For the Frances, it's that "have my cake and eat it, too" cliché you've always heard, in the flesh. Or concrete and aluminum, as it were.

Why would they ever even think of taking that away?

Martinsville losing a race date? Yeah, right.

When Mart Dogs -- or MartDawg -- fly.

Marty Smith is a senior writer for NASCAR.COM. His column appears each Thursday. The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.