Richard Childress Racing drivers Austin and Ty Dillon joined Charlotte Motor Speedway officials as they waved the green flag on the speedway's Fall Season of Speed at the seventh annual Parade of Power on Wednesday.
Austin revved up his No. 3 Dow Great Stuff Chevrolet NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car and the crowd with a spectacular burnout as a variety of vehicles totaling more than 30,000 horsepower paraded down Bruton Smith Boulevard to officially kick off an action-packed season at the iconic speedway.
The Fall Season of Speed includes 56 event days and nights across all three of the speedway's major venues, highlighted by the NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway, Sept. 18-20; the Charlotte AutoFair at the 1.5-mile superspeedway, Sept. 24-27; and the Bad Boy Buggies World of Outlaw World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte, Nov. 5-7.
The main attraction, however, is Bank of America 500 weekend, featuring the only Saturday night race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, Oct. 8-10, where Austin Dillon said he would love to notch his first career Sprint Cup Series victory.
"To go and win the Bank of America 500 - to get our first Cup win - that would be huge. It would change my outlook on everything," he said. "I want to get a Cup win so bad, and to do it here at home would be special.
"Competing here is special to us. I like the track because you can really move around and find speed. You see guys move up to the top lane all the way to the bottom. Every lap, it's kind of changing. That's what makes it interesting. It has some character in (turns) three and four and (turns) one and two are just fast."
The Parade of Power also included a fan Q&A with the Dillon brothers and NASCAR analyst Wendy Venturini, with hundreds of fans from as far away as Pennsylvania, Ohio and Canada joining the fun. Fans also took advantage of an autograph session with the NASCAR personalities, special ticket offers, free monster truck rides, the Charlotte Motor Speedway Fan Van and photo opportunities with the various vehicles in the parade.
The complete Fall Season of Speed schedule follows. All events take place at the 1.5-mile superspeedway, unless otherwise noted:
Aug. 8: Circle K Monster Bash presented by Mello Yello, The Dirt Track at Charlotte
Aug. 29: Don Tilley Memorial Charlotte Half-Mile, The Dirt Track at Charlotte
Sept. 11: Laps for Life Blood Drive
Sept. 19-20: NHRA Carolina Nationals, zMAX Dragway
Sept. 24-27: Charlotte AutoFair
Oct. 8: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles' Pole Night
NASCAR Whelen Southern Modifieds Southern Slam 150
Oct. 9: NASCAR XFINITY Series Drive for the Cure 300 presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina
Oct. 10: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bank of America 500
Oct. 23-25: Goodguys Southeastern Nationals
Nov. 5-7: Bad Boy Buggies World of Outlaws World Finals, The Dirt Track at Charlotte
Nov. 21: Eggnog Jog 5k
Nov. 21-Dec. 30: Speedway Christmas (Closed Dec. 25)
Nov. 27: Black Friday Blowout
To purchase tickets or camping, or to learn more about any of the upcoming events at Charlotte Motor Speedway, call 1-800-455-FANS (3267) or visit the Charlotte Motor Speedway website.
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