Per Nando Net & the AP: Charlotte Motor Speedway spent about $400,000 to make a number of improvements to accommodate the IRL cars. The bulk of the cost was to tear out steel guard rails that prevented cars from sliding onto the infield, and replace them with a 26-inch-high concrete wall that stretches more than 5,000 feet. The IRL cars are less likely to be torn up by a smooth concrete surface than by the poles used to support the guard rails. The speedway also replaced the asphalt in the pit stalls with concrete because the IRL cars’ on-board pneumatic jacks simply sank into the old surface. And the speedway created acceleration and deceleration lanes to allow for safer access to the pits(7-26-97)
