![Sawyer, promising action, announces track overhaul By Harold Pearson Times-Dispatch staff writer For the last couple decades, Paul Sawyer has tried to bring to Virginia a superspeedway for all kinds of racing. Three times he was shot down. But yesterday, in concert with Atlantic Rural Exposition Inc., Sawyer announced: "We are going to build an action track." The track will not be of superspeedway length (one mile or longer), but Sawyer emphasized action. "We are in agreement with our landlord [ARE] on a long-term lease for r the operation of the raceway," added Sawyer, who has in the racing business at his present site for more than 30 years. What Sawyer, president of Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, and ARE, which owns the Fairgrounds property, said is that, by September of next year, a totally new racing facility would replace the present, outdated facility, site of the area's two NASCAR Winston Cup events. Estimated cost of the expansion will be $2.5 million. "We have signed a joint agreement," Dr. Wyndham B. Blanton said, "which will allow NASCAR Winston Cup racing's continuation in the Richmond area. It fits the ARE plans and will allow us to expand our activities at the Fairgrounds. "The benefits will be not only to the racing fans but also to the entire com- New track, a high-banked trioval, will be longer, wider, up to date munity. The economic impact will be tremendous, [because] race fans not only bring considerable dollars but also numerous friends to enjoy our area. I can see an increase in the sales in shops as well. "Also, exposure of this area on national television can do no harm." All should increase dramatically when the new facility opens for the September race next season. The contrast with the present facility almost certainly will be striking. Consider: The present facility is a .542-mile oval, constructed in 1948 as a dirt track and paved in fall of 1968. Sawyer said that the new track will be three-quarters of a mile around and a trioval, like some of the circuit's superspeedways (Daytona, Talladega, Charlotte). The new asphalt track will be 60 feet wide with 12-foot apron Continued on page 7, col. 1 WINSTON](https://img.newspapers.com/img/img?id=831084258&clippingId=177612824&width=860&height=715&user=11901667)
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