The dream of North Wilkesboro Speedway began in the mid-1940s, when Enoch Staley found inspiration in a stock car race that Bill France had promoted in South Carolina before the formation of NASCAR. The story goes that Staley and his partners ran out of money to create their perfect oval, leaving the track with an uphill slope on the backstretch, and a downhill slope to the finish. Such was born one of the most unique short tracks in NASCAR history, a .625-mile oval that hosted the premier Cup Series twice a year until 1996.
From the second that last checkered flag fell, race fans clamored for the return of North Wilkesboro. After a series of restoration efforts, the track was digitally restored to its 1987 state for iRacing in 2020, giving iRacers the opportunity to go back in time and relive the iconic North Carolina short track as it existed in its heyday. Such was the popularity of its virtual return that real-world NASCAR Cup Series racing returned in 2023 with the annual All-Star Race, and the track received numerous site upgrades, including a repave. Now, iRacers have the option of running both modern and vintage versions of the track.
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