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National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum facts for kids
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| Established | 1992 |
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| Location | One Sprint Capital Place Knoxville, Iowa, USA |
| Type | Automotive |
The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum is a special place in Knoxville, Iowa. It celebrates the exciting sport of sprint car racing! This museum honors the best drivers, car owners, mechanics, and everyone else who made sprint car racing great. It's like a hall of fame for heroes of the track. Knoxville is also home to the famous Knoxville Nationals race at Knoxville Raceway.
The museum is run by a group called the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum Foundation. They started in 1986. Their main goal is to save the history of sprint car racing. They also want to honor its biggest stars. The museum building officially opened on January 4, 1992. It is located on the Marion County Fairgrounds.
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Exploring the Museum
The museum building has four floors. On the first floor, you'll find the Donald Lamberti National Sprint Car Museum. There's also a museum store and offices. The museum has about 25 restored "big cars" and sprint cars. These cars are on loan for everyone to see.
The exhibit space is about 8,000 square feet. It holds many cool displays. You can see trophies, paintings, photos, and plaques. There are also helmets and other items from sprint car racing history.
Honoring Sprint Car Legends
The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame honors amazing people. These include drivers, car owners, mechanics, and promoters. They also honor officials and media members. A special group of 72 people decides who gets into the Hall of Fame. This group includes historians and media members.
Other Facilities
The museum building also has a library. Here, you can research sprint car history. There's a theater with 40 seats. You can watch videos about racing. The building also has a kitchen and a banquet room. There's even a clubhouse with 150 seats. From here, you can watch races on certain nights.
In 2018, the Bryan Clauson Suite Tower opened. This is a five-story building next to the museum. It has 12 new suites for visitors. Each suite has a great view. There's also an observation deck on the roof. This deck is just for people staying in the suites.
How People Get Into the Hall of Fame
To be considered for the Hall of Fame, people must be nominated. Nominations are due by September 1 each year. The 72-member panel reviews these nominations. This panel is split into different regions across the United States.
Who Can Be Nominated?
People who can be nominated include drivers, owners, builders, and sponsors. Mechanics, manufacturers, promoters, officials, and media members can also be nominated. They must have been involved in sprint car racing for at least five seasons.
Sometimes, exceptions are made. This is for people who moved to other types of racing. For example, they might have raced Indy Cars or Stock Cars. A nominee must also meet one of these rules:
- They must have retired from racing for five years.
- They must be at least 50 years old by January 1 of the nomination year.
- If they have passed away, it must have been at least six months before the nomination.
Nomination Categories
The ballot for voting is split into four types of inductees:
- Driver-Oriented: This category is for drivers.
- Vehicle-Oriented: This includes owners, mechanics, builders, car sponsors, and manufacturers.
- Event-Oriented: This category is for promoters, officials, media, and event sponsors.
- Pre-1945: This is for people from all the above categories. Their main careers must have been before World War II.
The first round of voting narrows down the choices. The second ballot then features nine drivers. It also includes five people from each of the other three categories.
For someone to be inducted, they need enough votes. The top three drivers are chosen. The top two from the vehicle-oriented class are chosen. The top two from the event-oriented class are also chosen. Finally, the top person from the pre-1945 category is chosen. They must also get at least 25% of all the votes.
List of Inductees
See also
- Sprint car racing
- World of Outlaws