Flat Rock Speedway

Pictured Above: Detroit Free Press advertisement for the first ever event at Flat Rock Speedway

August 14, 2023 -- Happy 71st Birthday! Flat Rock Speedway opened August 14th, 1953.

You have to be somewhat of an auto racing history buff to recognize the significance that Flat Rock Speedway played in the sport, beginning in 1953, the year the track opened its gates for the first race on August 14.  The names of Bill France Sr., Tom Pistone, Joe Weatherly, Curtis Turner, Lee Petty and many more made the hard left turn at the track in its early years.

Here's how it all began!  This aerial shot of Flat Rock Speedway shows the layout of the track, which ran its first race August 14, 1953--64 years ago!

The initial race date had to be postponed one week, due to a combination of heavy rains and a racoon drowning and getting stuck the tracks drainage system. Which resulted in the racing surface flooding!

The original construction featured grandstands in the front and back straight, as well as the turn 3 and 4 area.  Check out the infield--no Figure 8 track!  The Figure 8 course was installed to be ready for the 1962 racing season.  Dick "Little Richard" Simmons was the very first Figure 8 champion.

Notice the walking "bridge" located outside of turns 3 and 4, with a small ticket booth outside.  Fans entered through the gate in that location and walked up to the hill using the bridge to get to the turn grandstands.  The current grandstand system was installed in 1993, at which time the wooden plank and scaffold stands were demolished.

France, the founder of NASCAR, promoted races at Flat Rock in the 1950’s under the NASCAR banner, bringing in the big names of the time.  One of the races was a 500-lap race on the ¼ mile paved oval!

His right-hand man, John Marcum, entered the Midwest stock car racing picture also at that time.  Marcum and his wife, Mildred, helped the France family get NASCAR up and running.  At the urging of Bill Sr., Marcum moved his family to the Toledo, OH area and began MARC, the Midwest Association for Race Cars, the early predecessor to today’s ARCA, the Automobile Racing Club of America, which still sanctions racing at both Flat Rock and its sister track, Toledo, OH Speedway.  Marcum’s grandson, Ron Drager, now owns, operates and promotes both tracks and serves as the President of ARCA.