Bristol, Tenn. - It's no secret that rain can affect driving conditions for any NASCAR race, but Bristol Motor Speedway is specially monitored because of its unique track.
The Food City Dirt Race takes place on Sunday at the prestigious Dirt Racing Facility in Northeast Tennessee.
Deep in the dirt, or rather red clay, there's about two inches of sawdust to protect the concrete racing surface of the nearly half-mile track.
NASCAR says that 5,330 cubic yards of dirt topped off from Bristol's first attempt in 2000-01, followed by 4,008 cubic yards of dirt from the campground as well as lime-treated soil.
With layers to maintain the track, Steve Swift, Motor Speedway's VP of operations, says rain isn't the only thing they monitor.
“We really look at dew points,” he says, “that the relative humidity is a really important factor in how much moisture you put on the track to try to seal the track and how much moisture you need to add throughout the day. needed to make it a perfect racetrack."
Knowing the moisture content helps the crew get ready for the race.
"If the humidity level is really high, the track gets really good. We don't need to add as much water before it's dirt on the concrete," Swift said.
And it is not just limited to the day of circumstances. The personnel monitor the weather months in advance.
It's the months of winter and spring leading up to the race that Swift says gets tougher.
"We can get some systems that blow through it that can produce snow and cold weather that doesn't dry out," he said.
After all, what matters most is the humidity in the atmosphere on race day.
"It's still science. It's dirt, it's rain, it's water," Swift said. "So, you can't really depend on all of those things, but we really play on that moisture."
And even though conditions are expected to be dry to start the race, overnight rain in Bristol increases, leading to increased humidity.
NASCAR's Easter Sunday race will be the first since 1989, when the February race in Richmond was postponed for the holiday.