Saturday Night Speed Demons

For those who want to liven up Saturday night with an adventure where the entire family can gawk at the craziness, take a drive northwest out of Birmingham up Highway 78 to Sayre Speedway. The racetrack—formerly known as Heart O’ Dixie Speedway—bills itself as “the South’s Action Track.” With roaring engines propelling race cars around a tiny, quarter-mile, banked asphalt speedway, the close racing here makes Sayre Speedway an intimidating, intimate place to watch automobiles crash, spinning out of control as they slam against one another.

 

Scenes from a recent night’s events at the Sayre Speedway. (Photos courtesy Steve Lasseter.) (click for larger version)

 

 

 

 

Tiny tracks like Sayre (pronounced:say-ree) are where the NASCAR stars of tomorrow get their first opportunities to compete. Racecars at Sayre span several classifications, including sleek, open-wheel modified racers, as well as compact Hondas and Toyotas souped up for quick bursts of speed. Some cars have professional paint jobs; others look as though they haven’t been painted in years, are full of dents, and can be identified with huge duct-tape numbers on the side of the car.

	(click for larger version)

Sayre Speedway is also a great place to watch people—it’s a culture unto itself. The aroma of burning tire rubber fills the night air. There is a sign forbidding alcohol consumption, though any honest-to-goodness racing fan worth his suds can no doubt find a way to skirt that rule. Otherwise, the concession stand offers the typical fare one might find at a little league baseball game: soda pop, burgers, chicken sandwiches, hot dogs, et cetera. Shoes for children are optional, with bare-footed kids dashing through the stands as their screams of joy compete with deafening engines. Teen girls dressed in cheerleader outfits sell raffle tickets for a local school. Tonight’s big prize is half the gate receipts—nearly $1,000. Some people even bring exotic pets: One night I sat in awe observing two racing fans in different areas of the grandstand, each holding in their lap a spider monkey dressed in a little nightgown. If that’s not excitement enough, tempers are guaranteed to flare on any given Saturday night between drivers when the action on the track gets out of hand. For details visit www.sayre-speedway.com or call (205) 648-2041. Racing begins at 8 p.m., with most events ranging in length between 20 and 50 laps. You’ll be home before midnight. &