After seven decades, historic Martinsville Speedway has “flipped the switch” with the conclusion of the “Light It Up Martinsville” project Thursday that made it the first major motorsports facility to install LED lights.
“Today is truly a historic day in the history of Martinsville Speedway,” Martinsville Speedway president Clay Campbell said in a statement. “This is a venue which has a long and storied past, but with these lights now in place, we’re looking forward to a bigger and better future — and certainly a brighter one.”
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The addition of Eaton’s Ephesus Stadium 750 LED professional sports lights, located around the perimeter of the facility and the infield of the track, will provide better illumination as well as greater flexibility and efficiency than traditional metal halide lights. This will help lead a better visual experience for the fans that attend the races and better clarity for those watching on television.
It had been announced in October that International Speedway Corporation would commit $5 million to equip the track with LED lighting, representing the largest capital investment by ISC into Martinsville to date.
Joining Campbell in the ceremony to mark the official lighting of Martinsville Speedway, which was broadcast on Facebook Live, were NASCAR Hall of Famer Leonard Wood, 2016 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series National Champion Matt Bowling, 2005 Whelen All-American Series National Champion Peyton Sellers.
During the ceremony, Bowling and Sellers turned laps under the lights for the first time, and Wood, at 82 years old turned laps in the 1937 Ford his brother Glen rove at Martinsville in 1960.
Racing returns to Martinsville Speedway March 31-April 2 and this year the track with the STP 500 and Alpha Energy Solutions 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Day.
@PeytonSellers & @mattbowling83 get the first laps under the lights! #LightUpMartinsville pic.twitter.com/A7myYCJv4C
— Martinsville Spdway (@MartinsvilleSwy) March 3, 2017