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NASCAR returns to Kansas Speedway for its spring weekend of racing, including some activity Friday at the 1.5-mile trioval track in Kansas City, Kansas.
With a third round of severe weather this week bearing down on the Kansas City region, Kansas Speedway President Pat Warren explained the severe-weather plan at the racetrack, which does not have a storm shelter on the grounds.
“We can use our restrooms and concession buildings, which are concrete block,” Warren said. “We can use the suite lobbies, but they're not gonna hold, if we had a full crowd, they're not gonna hold everybody.”
Those areas don’t need to hold a full crowd should severe weather threaten Kansas Speedway on Friday, when the ARCA Menards Series and NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series were scheduled to conduct practice and qualifying.
“Fortunately, today isn't a big day from a public perspective,” Warren said. “We will have, or depending on where the weather is, we would have the grandstands open for people to watch ARCA practice, so I don't anticipate there being a lot of people out here today. ... We don't anticipate having more than about 1,000 people out here. I would guess many of those will decide not to come if it looks like it's gonna rain.”
Warren said high winds and lightning are the biggest severe weather issues Kansas Speedway normally faces.
“We operate with the same lightning protocols as other professional sports,’ he said. “In our case, and I think this is true for the Royals and Chiefs, anywhere it hits within an 8-mile radius, you shut down and you have to wait 30 minutes until there's no lightning. You tell fans to seek shelter and you hope that nothing bad happens. The facility is grounded. Everything's as safe as it can be, but it's still a large outdoor facility.”
High winds can have an impact on camping at Kansas Speedway, which includes fans traveling in RVs and some who opt for tents. The track uses a variety of communication methods to alert fans about possible weather issues.
“If you're in an RV, or we even have some tent camping, winds can be a major issue,” Warren said. “We warn the campers by text message, email, others things, and usually people are paying attention on their own if they're used to camping.”
Warren estimated there are “1,500 to 2,000 people in the campgrounds — campers, so double that in terms of the number of people at least staying on property.”
Practice and qualifying won’t take place if there’s rain, which may tamp down the crowd size even more, but sheltering in place — even if it’s a personal vehicle — is another option.
“My understanding, I think it's the Red Cross suggests, if you're at a large outdoor event ... the recommendation is get in your car and turn the engine on because, then if something happens, the airbag and the car will protect you,” Warren said. “The car is grounded and the airbags will come on if you get blown around.”
O’Reilly practice and qualifying is set for 6 p.m. Friday.
The ARCA Menard’s Series Tide 150 is set for 11:30 a.m. Saturday (FS1), while the green flag drops in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series Kansas Lottery 300 at 6 p.m. on Saturday (CW).
The NASCAR Cup Series AdventHealth 400 takes place at 1 p.m. on Sunday and airs on Fox.
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