North Wilkesboro to be bought?

This weekend 11 years ago, the NASCAR now Nextel Cup, next year Sprint Cup Winston Cup Series visited North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina for the last time. The then 50-year-old track was sold to other racetrack owners, who mothballed the facility after the 1996 racing season. Time has stood still at North Wilkesboro Speedway since that chilly September day. Banners still hang and tables are still set, and the track office is still filled with old ticket stubs and brochures. It's like the world locked the door to the track behind them that evening, and tomorrow never came. But rebirth for the speedway could be right around the corner if a land developer gets his way. Worth Mitchell, 33, says he's got a plan in place to buy the track within six months. After talking quietly for seven months with the track's realtor, Andy Stancil, Mitchell stands ready to revive the 61-year-old track. "This isn't the biggest deal I've put together, but this is a lot more than a deal," Mitchell said. "This is about reviving a town." The small towns of Wilkesboro and North Wilkesboro lost millions of dollars to its local economy when the track closed. Since then, residents have watched many individuals and groups come in and try to reopen the racetrack, but none have been successful. But Mitchell has what the others didn't: money. "I know this track isn't going to be given away," Mitchell said of North Wilkesboro Speedway's $12 million price tag. "But it has all the potential in the world." Stancil says he's confident Mitchell can strike a deal with the track's owners, Bruton Smith and Bob Bahre. Smith and Bahre own several racetracks that NASCAR currently races on and bought North Wilkesboro Speedway in 1996 to take the track's dates away to bigger facilities – Texas Motor Speedway and New Hampshire International Speedway. The track went on the real estate market late last year. Mitchell says he's still looking for a few partners and ideas on what to do with the track. He said he would like to open up a neighboring hotel and retail center and host local concerts and festivals at the track as well as racing. Ocala Star-Banner