DESC: This aerial panoramic photograph of Bristol Motor Speedway was taken by Christopher Gjevre. The late summer night race at Bristol Motor Speedway is commonly referred to as “the hottest ticket in NASCAR”. Demand for tickets far exceeds availability and a full house is always assured. Bristol Motor Speedway is located in Bristol, Tennessee, and held its first race on July 30, 1961, with seating capacity for 18,000 fans. Today, after several expansion projects over the years, the speedway has 160,000 available seats. The concrete oval track, with 36-degree banked turns, is known as the “World’s Fastest Half Mile”.