Salem Speedway, Oval

Salem Speedway is a high-banked 0.555-mile paved oval near Salem, Indiana, about 100 miles south of Indianapolis. The circuit opened as Salem Motor Speedway on 22 June 1947 and is defined by its dramatic 33 degrees of banking in the corners, which makes it one of the fastest and most intimidating short tracks in the country. Major touring series at Salem are the ARCA Menards Series and USAC, and the venue has also hosted the ASA National Tour, the X-1R Pro Cup and a NASCAR Grand National East race in 1973. The track suffered major storm damage in 1981 and sat unused until 1987, then closed again amid bankruptcy in 1995 before Owen and Beverly Thompson reopened it in 1996 with new buildings and expanded grandstands. As of 2019 Salem had held more ARCA races than any other track, dating back to its first in 1955. A long roll-call of American racing greats has competed here, including Parnelli Jones, A. J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Bobby Allison, Darrell Waltrip, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson. In 2018 Kody Swanson set the all-time USAC Silver Crown win record at the track with his 24th series victory.