Bristol's Fall Race, the only one on the Cup circuit that does not advertise its distance (500 laps) |
Nascar leaves the advertised distance of its races up to the individual tracks, which have traditionally done so in one of three ways: Miles, Kilometers, or Laps. Here's how each track does so:
(NOTE: an * asterisk denotes that the advertised race distances are exact, not rounded up)
Daytona: Miles*
Phoenix: Kilometers
500 Laps at Martinsville |
Las Vegas: Miles
Bristol: Laps*
California: Miles*
Martinsville: Laps*
Texas: Miles
Darlington: Miles
Richmond: Laps*
Talladega: Miles
Kansas: Miles
Charlotte: Miles
Dover: Miles/Laps*
Pocono: Miles*
Michigan: Miles*
Sonoma: Kilometers
Kentucky: Miles
(Slightly less than) 355 kilometers at Watkins Glen |
New Hampshire: Laps*
Indianapolis: Miles*
Watkins Glen: Kilometers
Atlanta: Miles
Chicagoland: Miles
Homestead: Miles
--The majority of races that are not exactly their advertised length (for instance, Homestead's race is the Ford EcoBoost 400) are 1.5 mile-tracks that are actually 1/2-a-mile longer than advertised (for example, Homestead's race is actually 400.5 miles long).
--Charlotte is the exact length for its 600-mile race, but is actually 501 miles for it's advertised 500-mile race.
--New Hampshire's earlier race is actually a lap longer than the fall race. This dates back to when Lenox (a tool company) was the sponsor, in which they promoted themselves as "Going The Extra Mile".
--Since Dover International Speedway is exactly 1-mile long, the advertised distance can be read in either miles OR laps.
--Talladega's spring race is known as the Aaron's 499 (stylized as Aaron's 4$99) to promote the number of items available at Aaron's "for 99 dollars". Despite this, the race is still just slightly over 500 miles in length, same as the fall race which IS advertised as being 500 miles long.