Elliott reminisces old childhood playground, EchoPark challenge
James Gilbert | Getty Images
HAMPTON, Ga. -- Since its opening in 1960, EchoPark Speedway near Atlanta has undergone numerous changes, not the least of which is its name (originally Atlanta International Raceway).
In 1997, the track’s frontstretch and backstretch were “flipped,” and the original dedicated oval shape was transformed into a quad-oval with “hinges” on the new frontstretch. In 2021, the layout was modified again, increasing the track’s banking and trimming the racing surface in the turns, producing the super-fast design today’s drivers tackle.
RELATED: Weekend schedule | At-track photos: EchoPark, Lime Rock
For two-time EchoPark winner Chase Elliott, however, a more noteworthy change at the Georgia track occurred in the infield.
“They tore down my favorite playground,” Elliott said, quite seriously. “They had a killer playground here back in the day. You could climb up on the outside of it, like where you weren’t supposed to climb, and see almost the whole track. That was where myself and a lot of the other drivers’ kids watched the races from. Then we show up there one year and they had torn it down, and it was a bummer.”
Crestfallen, Elliott pushed on.
“That playground stood out for years, more than the racing did when you’re little,” he said. “You’re there to have a good time, and you’re kind of soaking it all in.”
While Chase played, dad Bill Elliott drove the high banks of Atlanta. Eventually, son would follow father onto the fast lanes of their "home track," the Elliott family having long roots in Dawsonville, Georgia, a hundred miles north of the 1.54-mile track.
This weekend the Elliotts return to Hampton on Sunday (7 p.m. ET, TNT Sports, truTV, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), where Chase won the Quaker State 400 last year and where his father won five times, all before Chase’s birth in 1995.
If Chase loved the playground, he also likes the track’s relatively new design. His 9.38 average finish in the nine races on the “new” Atlanta is the best of all drivers. He ranks fourth in most laps led on the new configuration.
With the redesign, faster speeds and jammed traffic packs, Atlanta was folded into the “drafting-style track” designation, one that also includes Talladega Superspeedway and Daytona International Speedway. Elliott, though, sees differences.
“I think it (EchoPark) is kind of like a mini-speedway more than anything,” he said. “I think everything just happens a little quicker than it does at Daytona and Talladega. It’s hard, particularly with this car in general, to control the race. In the previous generation car, you had guys that were really good at attaining the lead and keeping the lead, like dominating the race.
“You see that some in this car, but it doesn’t seem like quite the same. These cars are so ‘draggy’ that there are going to be times that there are runs that you can’t stop and people are going to pass you. So then the question becomes, where do I want myself positioned when that happens to stop it from happening in the first place?”
Although EchoPark's speeds are similar to the two bigger tracks, straightaways are shorter. “Things can pile up in a hurry,” Elliott said. “The runs are really big and the straightaways are short. There are times throughout the race where you kind of have to cut your losses and try and make the smart overall decision.”