Race week events at Lowe's Motor Speedway

Race fans, this is the week you've been waiting for. The NASCAR Banking 500 is Saturday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

There are dozens of events leading up to the race.

Racing Events

Racing action got underway Thursday with Bojangle's Pole Night at 7:10 p.m., which Jimmie Johnson won.

On Friday, the Dollar General 300 gets under way just after 8 p.m.

And the main event, the NASCAR Banking 500, starts at 7:41 p.m.

Tickets

Tickets are still available for all the races. Prices range from $49 to $135.

Buy tickets online here or call 1-800-455-FANS.

Entertainment

Carolina CollegeFest begins Saturday at 11:15 a.m. and the fun doesn't stop until the NASCAR Banking 500 begins.

Country music singer Eric Church headlines the event.

Your ticket price of $49 includes:
• Entry to CollegeFest tailgate party
• Attendance at live music events, including Eric Church, Candy Coburn,
Paper Tongues, Evelynn Rose and the Mulch Brothers!
• Entry into the cornhole tournament
• Reserved seat for the NASCAR Banking 500 only from Bank of America
• Tailgating party gift
• $10 in food and beverage coupons

For tickets and more details, click here.

Meet the Drivers

There are several opportunities this week to meet and get an autograph from your favorite driver.

Ryan Newman and Juan Pablo Montoya have autograph sessions on Friday. Meet Brian Vickers, Robby Gordon, Casey Mears, David Reutimann and Michael Waltrip on Saturday.
For a complete list of autograph sessions, click here.

Social Media

When driver Brian Vickers qualified in Richmond for the Chase this year, he updated his Twitter account with "We did it! I'm so proud of everyone". Vickers has taken the lead in social networking connecting with fans on Facebook with daily updates and photos.

Other drivers on Twitter include:
Marcos Ambrose @MarcosAmbrose
Kurt Busch (@KurtBusch is Currently Suspended)
Kyle Busch @mmsracing and @RidinWithRowdy
Landon Cassill @landoncassill
Brad Coleman @BradCColeman
Marc Davis @nascarmdavis
Benny Gordon @BennyGordon72
Robby Gordon @RobbyGordon
Kevin & Delana Harvick @kevinharvick and @DeLanaHarvick
Sam Hornish Jr. @SamHornish
Bobby Labonte @bobby_labonte
Michael McDowell @mmcdowell47
Juan Pablo Montoya @jpmontoya
Ryan Newman @RyanNewman39
Alli Owens @AlliOwens
Max & Tati Papis @maxpapis and @tatipapis
Kyle Petty @kylepetty
David Ragan @upsracing
Michael Waltrip @mw55

Driver Tony Stewart re-launched his Web site a few months ago giving fans behind the scenes access. Read the latest on what Stewart has to say about this weekend's race on the home page.

Race Fan Rules

These are just a few key rules you should keep in mind when attending the race events.

• Coolers may be brought in by guests until one hour after the start of the race
• No umbrellas of any kind allowed in the grandstands, suites or The Speedway Club
• No glass containers
• No strollers (inside grandstand areas)
• No coolers/bags/backpacks over 14"x14"x14"
• No pets (unless they are service animals helping guests with disabilities)
• No weapons, including, but not limited to, firearms, knives, and impact weapons
• No skateboards, roller skates, or scooters
• No bicycles, mopeds, etc
• No beach balls, balloons, etc
• No signs or banners
• No horns, whistles, or other loud items

Traffic and Parking

Heavy traffic is expected on I-85, U.S. 29, N.C. 49 and Bruton Smith Boulevard this week. For traffic conditions anytime, visit www.ncdot.gov/traffictravel or call 511.

Parking maps and driving directions to the speedway are available here: http://www.lowesmotorspeedway.com/fans/directions.

Visitor's Guide

For more information on Lowe's Motor Speedway, download the visitor's guide at http://www.lowesmotorspeedway.com/documents/loweswebguidelo.pdf.