The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series rolls into Martinsville Speedway, the oldest track on the circuit, this weekend, with the Camping World Truck Series also sharing the weekend with its race on Saturday. Martinsville is located just north of the North Carolina/Virginia border, right between Greensboro, NC and Roanoke, VA, and is a favorite among drivers because of its classic short track racing and close proximity to most of their homes in the Charlotte area.
Earlier this week, weather models were suggesting a chance of showers on Sunday, but we can now rule that out. A front will pass through the Martinsville area early Saturday, with west winds behind it drying up the atmosphere and leaving skies mostly sunny for Sunday. We'll be racing the full distance, and rain will not be a factor. These west winds coming down the Appalachians will lead to some very warm temperatures. My forecast high temperature for Sunday is 80 degrees, but a nice breeze and low humidity will keep things comfortable for fans in attendance. Just bring the sunscreen!
Sunday, Auto Club 400 Sprint Cup Series race: Mostly sunny and breezy. 1pm ET Green Flag temperature: 79 degrees
Lets take a step backward in time and look at Saturday... The Camping World Truck Series Royal Purple 300 is scheduled for 2:30pm. There is still a slight chance of showers, enough to give this one a "yellow flag" (ahhh maybe just a quickie yellow?), but I will not at all be surprised if this one turns out drier than what a lot of forecasts show. Downsloping winds (winds out of the west coming down the Appalachian Mountains) may help to dry the atmosphere, or at least limit the amount of moisture available for showers and thunderstorms to develop. We'll keep an eye on this, but I am very optimistic that we'll get this race in without any issues. The only problem that could arise, with the race starting relatively late, is there are no lights at Martinsville, so any prolonged rain showers may make it tough to finish the race.
Saturday, Camping World Truck Series Royal Purple 300: Partly to mostly cloudy with a slight chance of a shower or thundershower in the afternoon or evening. 2:30pm ET Green Flag temperature: 77
No comments:
Post a Comment