Winchester Speedway is known as the “World’s Fastest Half Mile.” Which is beyond appropriate.
This nickname is the result of intense, 37-degree banking in the corners of the asphalt oval located in Winchester, Indiana, about 90 miles northeast of Indianapolis. That banking makes Winchester the steepest banked active race track in the United States.
And the high speeds Winchester produces make it one of the toughest tracks the ARCA Menards Series visits.
The series has raced on the high banks at Winchester 29 times dating back to 1957. Its all-time wins leader Frank Kimmel also has the most Winchester victories with six, including three in a row in 2002, 2003 and 2006.
Kimmel’s three-peat marks the last time an ARCA Menards Series driver has won back-to-back races at Winchester, a feat 2020 winner Ty Gibbs is attempting to accomplish this season.
Below is everything to know about Winchester Speedway.
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TRACK PROFILE: WINCHESTER SPEEDWAY
| Track | Winchester Speedway |
| Location | Winchester, Indiana |
| Opened | 1916 |
| Layout | Oval |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | Half-mile |
| Banking | 37 degrees in corners |
| Seating capacity | 5,000 |
Winchester Speedway, built in a cornfield by Frank Funk, opened in 1916 as Funk’s Speedway. At the time, the track was configured as a clay oval, and Funk realized a correlation between the steepness of the banking and spectator interest.
So the banking at the track increased over time, and in 1952 came the paved configuration we recognize today.
“It’s wicked,” said Johnny Van Dorn, a three-time winner of Winchester’s Redbud 400. “You’re not just racing the competition, you’re racing the racetrack. At any second you could get yourself in trouble.”
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