The Columbus Motor Speedway (CMS) was a 1/3 mile asphalt oval and figure-eight racing track located south of

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

within the town limits of

Obetz Obetz is a village in Franklin County, Ohio, United States. The population was 5,489 at the 2020 census. History The community (originally Obetz Junction, in honor of settler Charles Obetz) was formed in 1838 as a stagecoach junction, and incor ...

History

In 1945, John Nuckles and

Robert Roseberry The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

purchased of land for site of the future race track. The track opened in 1946 as a dirt track for motorcycles. In 1950 the track was given lighting and in 1957, the track was paved for the first time as car racing, specifically

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...

, became more popular.

sold his portion to John Nuckles after the paving was complete. The track was run by the Nuckles for many years, and was owned and operated by the Nuckles family. Among the drivers to make their names at the CMS are Neal Sceva,

Dick Freeman Dick, Dicks, or Dick's may refer to: Media * ''Dicks'' (album), a 2004 album by Fila Brazillia * Dicks (band), a musical group * ''Dick'' (film), a 1999 American comedy film * "Dick" (song), a 2019 song by Starboi3 featuring Doja Cat Names ...

Benny Parsons Benjamin Stewart Parsons (July 12, 1941 – January 16, 2007) was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst/pit reporter on SETN, TBS, ABC, ESPN, NBC, and TNT. He became famous as the 1973 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion, ...

, and Ralph O'Day. Among those killed at Columbus Motor speedway is Bessie E. Amos. Columbus Motor Speedway - Track View

The track was one of three tracks in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

to be granted a

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

sanctioning agreement. It hosted

Whelen All-American Series The NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (formerly the Whelen All-American Series, Winston Racing Series and the Dodge Weekly Series) is a points championship for NASCAR sanctioned local short track motor racing around the United States and Ca ...

(formerly the Dodge Weekly Racing Series) races sanctioned by NASCAR. It also hosted many exhibition events, which are some of the most popular attractions, including trailer races, school bus figure-eight races,

demolition derbies Demolition derby is a non-racing motorsport usually presented at county fairs and festivals. While rules vary from event to event, the typical demolition derby event consists of five or more drivers competing by deliberately ramming their veh ...

, "roll over" contests,

monster truck A monster truck is a specialized off-road vehicle with a heavy duty suspension, four-wheel steering, large-displacement V8 engines and oversized tires constructed for competition and entertainment uses. Originally created by modifying stock p ...

stunt rallies, "powder-puff" races, and NASCAR "legends" races which feature famous Sprint Cup drivers. Due to the relatively high compensation required to secure Sprint Cup driver participation in the NASCAR "legends" races, said events were discontinued before the track was closed. In late 2016, the Nuckles Family decided to sell the track to Obetz. The

Fortress Obetz Fortress Obetz is a multi-purpose sports and entertainment complex in Obetz, Ohio. Its bleacher system holds 6,500 people. Including standing room for events such as concerts, Fortress Obetz can hold nearly 20,000 people. It opened in 2017 on t ...

now sits where the speedway was. The speedway hosted a

NASCAR K&N Pro Series East The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly Busch East Series, Busch North Series, Camping World East Series, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and ...

event (the NAPA 150) from 2011 through 2016. The winners of the races were notable

drivers, like

Bubba Wallace William Darrell "Bubba" Wallace Jr. (born October 8, 1993) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 23 Toyota Camry for 23XI Racing and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity S ...

, Cale Conley,

Daniel Suárez Daniel Alejandro Suárez Garza (born January 7, 1992) is a Mexican professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Trackhouse Racing Team. He previously drove in t ...

, Sergio Peña,

Rico Abreu Rico Emanuel Abreu (born January 30, 1992) is an American professional dirt track and sprint car racing driver. Abreu won the 2014 USAC National Midget Series championship, and previously competed in the K&N Pro Series East in 2015 scoring one w ...

and Justin Haley. Also at Columbus Motor Speedway,

NASCAR Midwest Series The ARTGO Challenge Series was a late model short track racing series that ran in the Midwestern United States from 1975 until 1998. Many race car drivers have used the ARTGO series as a stepping stone to get into ASA, ARCA, and NASCAR. Art Fr ...

ran a race in 2004 and was won by

Justin Diercks Justin Diercks (born April 4, 1980) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He previously drove the No. 70 car for ML Motorsports. He made his Busch Series debut in 2006 in the Circuit City 250 at Richmond International Raceway. He ...

ARCA Racing Series The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...

also ran two races at the track, one in 1982 and the other in 1993. The track closed at the end of the 2016 season; the village of Obetz purchased the land from the Nuckles family in order to improve facilities for the

Columbus Crew SC The Columbus Crew, formerly known as Columbus Crew SC, is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as one ...

and a local rugby team.

2009 platform collapse

The race track made national headlines on April 11, 2009, when the concrete platform that supported the announcer's box collapsed shortly after the gate opened. One person was temporarily stuck in the rubble and six people suffered minor injuries at the season-opening event. Local rescue workers were called to the scene and the events were canceled for the evening. After the incident, the platform was repaired and reinforced.

Sources

Columbus Motor Speedway
at cityguide, Retrieved June 23, 2007

at na-motorsports.com, Retrieved June 23, 2007

External links

*
Columbus Motor Speedway race results
at Racing-Reference {{coord, 39, 53, 11.01, N, 82, 56, 35.28, W, display=title Buildings and structures in Franklin County, Ohio Motorsport venues in Ohio NASCAR tracks ARCA Menards Series tracks Tourist attractions in Franklin County, Ohio Defunct motorsport venues in the United States 1946 establishments in Ohio 2016 disestablishments in Ohio Demolished sports venues in Ohio