For Parsons, it was always about No. 3.
The No. 3 and NASCAR racing have become synonymous over the years yet in this case it was not about the late Dale Earnhardt.
The No. 3 Terri Parsons was most concerned about was the third item on the bucket list created by her late husband, Benny, when doctors informed the NASCAR Hall of Fame driver and broadcaster he was dying of cancer.
Since Benny Parsons passed away Jan. 16, 2007, Terri had managed to scratch off nine of the 10 items on what had become a crinkled, faded piece of yellow legal pad paper that had been folded and unfolded hundreds – perhaps thousands – of times.
“I got everything left on the list done but I kept coming back to this No. 3,” she said.
Now, none of the items on the list were easy by any means – No. 1 was getting the home in Wilkes County the couple had started to build finished, and it was only 40-percent complete at the time.
Yet, No. 3 was definitely going to be a challenge. It read something like, “See about getting North Wilkesboro Speedway reopened for this county.”
“Oh, reopen a speedway. How hard can that be?” Parsons said with laugh.
How hard indeed.
A brief history
North Wilkesboro Speedway, opened in 1947, and was one of the eight tracks on the original NASCAR Cup schedule in 1949.
Won by Bob Flock, the then-dirt track eventually shifted to asphalt in 1957. It continued to host the Cup Series until 1996. That 93rd and final race was won by now-Hendrick Motorsports executive and Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon.
After a majority interest in North Wilkesboro was purchased in part by Speedway Motorsports, led then by the late Bruton Smith, its coveted Cup Series dates were sent to other tracks owned by the company in Texas and New Hampshire.
Without the NASCAR races, the track had no lifeblood to sustain it and essentially shuttered as did many of the county’s businesses.
Many have tried and failed over the years to create a viable return of racing to the dormant speedway.
The track briefly reopened in 2010 and hosted races from the now-inactive ASA Late Model Series, USARacing Pro Cup Series, and PASS Super Late Models, but closed again in the spring of 2011.
A glimmer of hope struck in December 2019 when Dale Earnhardt Jr. sparked interest in the track when he asked to have it scanned for use in the iRacing Series.
Then, with the COVID-19 pandemic in full swing the next year, NASCAR incorporated the track in its eNSACAR Pro Invitational Series that was broadcast nationally while in-person racing was placed on hold and the virtual race proved wildly popular.
Not long after, Marcus Smith, Bruton’s son and now leader of Speedway Motorsports, spelled out plans at the Wilkes County Chamber of Commerce's 75th Membership Celebration in January 2021 to reopen the track for competition and the "real possibility" of hosting a Truck race one day. The renovation effort received another boost when $18 million in infrastructure improvements at the facility were approved by the N.C. legislature and N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper in the state's 2021-2022 budget.
The track hosted a month of asphalt racing last year and catered to large and enthusiastic crowds, which included an appearance by Earnhardt Jr. in a CARS Tour late model race. The success of that event opened the door for even more possibilities.
Convincing the owners
Parsons, though, knew no one – the community, state and local government officials and perhaps even fans – would take an effort to reopen the speedway seriously without the involvement of the speedway owners.
It been a tough sell for Parsons to get Bruton Smith to allow anything to take place on the track, even a film crew, let alone a racing series.
After Bruton’s death in June 2022, she found Marcus – an admitted history buff particularly in terms of NASCAR’s history – more receptive.
It didn’t hurt that she shared Benny’s list with him in their first face-to-face visit. “He had tears in his eyes,” she said.
There was no one turning point that finally convinced Marcus Smith to make the necessary improvements required to make the reopening of North Wilkesboro a reality.
“It just all came together at the right time,” Terri Parsons explained. “You had Steven Wilson and the Save the Speedway Foundation, you had Dale Jr., you had our efforts at the Chamber of Commerce. You had the money from the state.
“All of this was – everything that has been done over the last 17 years or so – was a steppingstone. Everything was done for a reason. We had to take a lot of baby steps to get to the big one.”
The ‘big one’ came last September when Marcus Smith, flanked by state and local government leaders during a press conference in Raleigh, N.C., announced NASCAR racing would return to North Wilkesboro in 2023.
Following a whirlwind schedule of renovations, the track would host the 2023 NASCAR All-Star Race Weekend, which included late model races, a Truck Series race and NASCAR’s $1 million-to-the-winner All-Star Race.
Now seven months later, Parsons and everyone who has taken a vested interest in a lasting, viable reopening of North Wilkesboro, can enjoy the fruits of their labor.
Open for business
Preparing for the return of NASCAR necessitated a delicate balance.
The speedway required technological upgrades but in doing so, Smith and those who supported the speedway’s reopening wanted to try to preserve its place in the sport’s – and state of North Carolina’s – history as much as possible.
The entire infield was cleared except for two historic buildings and paved to house garages for the Truck and Cup series. The lone access to the infield – a crossover gate on the backstretch – was updated and expanded.
Renovations were made to the track’s suite boxes, a portion of pit road was re-laid, and SAFER barriers were installed on the walls surrounding the track. A temporary 5,000-seat grandstand was added to the backstretch.
But with every change, care was taken to preserve North Wilkesboro’s legacy. The hand-operated lap counter board was rebuilt. Many of the original logos and paint designs were kept.
“It actually may be better if fans don’t notice what we have done,” explained Smith. “We tried really hard to make this place feel classic and nostalgic but make it work like it was just built.
“We’ve got the best audio system of any track. We’ve got a new Wi-Fi system throughout the track. We have brand new LED lights. We have a new digital screen (on the scoring tower) that actually looks like the old one.
“We just tried to make sure we continued to embrace the history and the character of the speedway. That’s what made it special.”
It was all on display Wednesday night in a grand opening celebration that included showcasing the completed renovations, dedication of grandstands, a light show, car displays and visits from drivers in the various series that will compete during next week’s All-Star Weekend activities.
Two of the grandstands were dedicated – one to Hall of Famer Junior Johnson who was born in Wilkes County – and the other to Benny Parsons.
“I feel like there is a surge in appreciation for the history and nostalgia of NASCAR now,” Smith said. “Racing has a lot of history in it.
“NASCAR fasns do like the history of the sport and appreciate it and coming back to it isn’t something you get to do very often. It’s pretty cool to bring it back.”
Mission accomplished
So, with North Wilkesboro set to host NASCAR competition again, is Parsons satisfied? Not even close.
“Of course, we want a points-paying (Cup) race. We were shocked to get the All-Star Race but it kind of makes you greedy after that,” she said. “It’s like, ‘Oh that’s great, but how about a points-paying race?’
“We want to show Marcus Smith, (Speedway Motorsports) and NASCAR that we are something they can be proud of and that we are capable of supporting this. That’s the only way this works.”
And as for the tattered bucket list of Benny’s that included the unfinished item No. 3?
“I put it in a trash can on my back porch and burned it,” she said. “All done.”
