Darlington to repave but without losing its character

Despite its strange egg-shaped configuration, claustrophobic against-the-wall racing groove and generally cranky disposition, much of what makes Darlington Raceway so tough to tame is the asphalt itself. The rough, bumpy surface devours tires at such a rate, Dale Earnhardt Jr. once joked that it was made of crushed seashells. Rub your hand against it, he warned, and it will cut you.

That worn, graying asphalt, eroded over the years by the sandy soil of eastern South Carolina, plays a starring role in the old track's overall reputation. And it presents a unique challenge to those charged with repaving the circuit, which will happen after the Dodge Avenger 500 on May 12.

ISC approves money for enhancments

International Speedway Corp. approved an additional $39.6 million for track renovations in 2007. Among the tracks to undergo changes will be Darlington Raceway.

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International Speedway Corp.'s board of directors on Tuesday awarded $10 million in capital improvements to the 58-year-old raceway, the largest one-time capital investment in the venue's long history. The centerpiece is the track's first repaving since 1994, which will include a resurfacing of the apron and concrete pit stalls in addition to the track itself. The goal is to repave without sacrificing the qualities that have helped make Darlington what it is.

"What we're telling the guys who are heading up this project is, we want this place as close as we can as far as the abrasiveness and how that translates into the show," track president Chris Browning said. "That's our challenge."

The work will be done by Sunmount, the same company that repaved ISC tracks Talladega, Richmond and Homestead, although the exact source of the new asphalt is still unknown. Browning said there will be no change in the banking, and he doesn't expect any changes in the racing groove. Crews will replace the top three inches of a racing surface that currently sports numerous patches in areas of increased wear.

"It's not being necessitated by the rough surface or the abrasive surface. It's being necessitated by the bumps and the slippage," Browning said. "The slippage is ever so slight, but what that does is create other problems. We've patched and patched, and we're at a point now where basically, it's not really practical to patch any more. We need to mill the track down, correct a couple of water problems, and repave it."

During a recent tire test, track officials received permission from Hendrick Motorsports to tap into the telemetry from Jeff Gordon's vehicle. It provided real-time information on how the Car of Tomorrow performs at Darlington, which project coordinators will plug into their computer models. It's part of an effort to remove the guesswork from the process, and get the new asphalt to mimic the old asphalt as quickly as possible.

"The bottom line is, it's really tough to replicate the abrasiveness of the racetrack. That's just something that has to come with time," Browning said. "We're kicking around some ideas right now of talking to some driving schools and working sweetheart deals with them, so they can come out here and run as much as we can get them to run once the pavement is down right before our race, so we can get it rubbed down and try to speed that process up a little bit."

The capital improvement funds will also go toward upgrading some suite areas, expected to be done before this year's event, and the construction of a new tunnel capable of handling team haulers and recreational vehicles. Browning said he's still unsure whether the track's current tunnel will be expanded, or another one will be added. There's also money added to give Darlington a head start on the next step in its master plan -- the improvement of the infield, the cornerstone of which will be new garages.

It's all part of an ongoing improvement project at the track, which has received around $20 million in capital improvement funds from ISC since 2004. The facility added a lighting system in 2004, and a 3,000-seat grandstand last year. Once a struggling track on the verge of obsolescence, Darlington is on the brink of its third consecutive sellout and looking toward brighter days ahead.

"Realistically, if they wanted to take the cheap way out or if there was a question about the future, all we really needed to do was [repave] the racetrack," Browning said. "They didn't have to approve the tunnel. They didn't have to approve pit road. They didn't have to approve the apron. Those three components of this repaving are several million dollars. That tells me a lot."