Purported moonshine cave unearthed at North Wilkesboro

NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. — Crews at the historic North Wilkesboro Speedway say an inspection unearthed a purported moonshine cave under the frontstretch grandstands.

Operations staff say they were cleaning and inspecting the grandstands. That is when they discovered cracks in the original concrete in Section N toward turn one.

Crews began removing seats to inspect the damage and prepare for repairs. As they did, they found an open area around 700-square-foot-large under the concrete.

“When we began renovating and restoring North Wilkesboro Speedway in 2022, we’d often hear stories of how an old moonshine still was operated here on the property under the grandstands,” said Steve Swift, senior vice president of operations and development at Speedway Motorsports. “Well, we haven’t found a still [yet], but we’ve found a small cave and an interior wall that would have been the perfect location to not only make illegal liquor, but to hide from the law as well. We don’t know how people would have gotten in and out. But, as we uncover more, there’s no telling what we might find.”

Crews have removed around 600 seats in sections N and O. SMI staff are now looking at what they need to do repair the foundation and replace the concrete.

They only have so much time, however. The NASCAR All-Star Race weekend is May 14-19, just over a month-and-a-half away.

“Now we have a race before the race,” Swift commented. “The area that’s been affected by the sinkhole is a frontstretch grandstand area with some of the best views of the track. We’ll have a lot of work to get done before NASCAR All-Star Race Week.”