Why does NASCAR avoid racing in the rain?

Most people find driving in the rain unpleasant, and with good reason. Reduced visibility, slippery roads, and compromised braking and turning abilities make it a dangerous experience. Now imagine driving without windshield wipers, with tires worn flat, and speeding down a highway at 200 miles per hour. It's easy to understand why NASCAR drivers aren't eager to race in the rain.

Though other motorsports do race in rainy conditions, NASCAR faces unique challenges that make racing in the rain particularly hazardous. This article will explore the reasons behind NASCAR’s decision, from how tires behave in wet conditions to how the track surface is affected by rain, and the impact of canceled races on all involved.

Planning for a single NASCAR race involves days of preparation. The track is tested, and the cars are fine-tuned to perform under the expected weather and temperature conditions. Drivers and crews work together to adjust the car for the specific track. However, when rain hits, all that meticulous planning is rendered useless. Aside from the safety risks, poor weather conditions diminish the overall competition of the sport.

To truly understand why NASCAR avoids racing in the rain, we need to examine how both tires and tracks react to wet conditions. Let's start by taking a closer look at NASCAR tires and why they aren't suited for rainy weather.

NASCAR Tires and Tracks

Regular tires used on everyday cars have grooves, called treads, which help channel water away as the car moves. As tires wear down over time, the tread depth decreases. In wet conditions, lower treads mean less grip, which can cause a car to hydroplane, gliding over the water rather than maintaining contact with the road.

NASCAR tires, on the other hand, have a completely smooth surface. This design maximizes tire contact with the track. During a typical race, cars reach speeds of around 200 mph, and they must handle both the forces of cornering and the track's banking. At these speeds, NASCAR drivers need as much surface area as possible to maintain control and stay on the track.

During a race, NASCAR tires experience something known as the slip angle. When a car rounds a corner, the tires point in one direction, while the steering wheel turns in a slightly different direction [source: Leslie-Pelecky]. This causes the tires to slide a bit on the track, which allows the driver to maximize turning force. If the driver exceeds the ideal slip angle—about two to four degrees—the tires may skid too much, risking a dangerous loss of control. Wet conditions make this risk even higher.

While NASCAR does have specialized rain tires, they're seldom used. Most weather and track conditions aren't suitable for using them while keeping the race safe and competitive. Let’s move on and explore how rain directly impacts the track surface.

How Wet Track Conditions Affect Drivers

Each NASCAR track has its own advantages and challenges. When it rains, those challenges become more pronounced. Even a light drizzle is enough to trigger the caution flag, often followed by a red flag, signaling drivers to return to the pits. Why not keep racing? The fans are there, the crews are ready, and the drivers have been racing, possibly even leading. Some argue that the race should continue, but the decision ultimately comes down to ensuring safety.

Although each NASCAR track is unique, most react similarly to rain. If only a small amount of moisture hits the track, NASCAR may deploy jet blowers to dry the surface and resume the race. However, heavy rainfall makes track recovery much more challenging. When the rain falls, it soaks into the asphalt. As the rain persists, water begins to accumulate beneath the track’s top layer, eventually seeping out through cracks and creating streams known as weepers.

Weepers pose a serious hazard for drivers as their cars pass through these water streams. To deal with this, NASCAR sometimes uses saws to cut grooves into the track, helping the water drain away more quickly and reducing the seepage.

Even when grooves are cut into the track, improper drainage to the infield creates additional risks. If a driver loses control and skids into the infield, they may be able to recover and continue the race in dry conditions. But if the grass is wet, the driver is more likely to get stuck, making it much harder to get back into the race.

Not only does it keep drivers safer to avoid racing in the rain, but it also prevents them from losing their position if their car is impacted by the weather conditions. In the next section, we’ll explore how decisions are made to cancel a race, what happens to ticket holders in those situations, and how race cancellations affect NASCAR's finances.

The Next Raceable Day

As mentioned earlier, even a small amount of rain can cause a race delay. Once the rain begins and the track gets wet, the red flag is waved, signaling everyone to wait for either the rain to stop or a break in the clouds. If neither happens, the race must be rescheduled.

NASCAR makes the final call when it comes to rained-out races, typically offering two options in these situations. According to NASCAR rules, a winner can be declared if the race reaches the halfway point under adverse weather. At least half of the laps must be completed for a winner to be declared. So, if the Daytona 500 (a 200-lap race) has reached 101 laps and heavy rain starts with no sign of clearing, NASCAR could decide the race is complete and announce a winner.

If the race hasn't yet reached the halfway mark and the track conditions aren't expected to improve, the race can be rescheduled for a later day, typically the next dry day, often called the next raceable day [source: Huller]. In some cases, races are pushed to the next available race weekend, but this creates issues due to the limited number of open weekends in the NASCAR season. This outcome is undesirable for everyone involved. Teams and drivers have prepared for a specific race, and rescheduling limits the time available for practice.

Beyond the drivers and crew, there are also complications for track owners, vendors, and fans. Many workers are hired specifically for race weekends to handle concessions, security, and traffic. If a race is rescheduled for the next available raceable day, which might not be a weekend, some of those workers may have returned to their full-time jobs, making them unavailable to work at the rescheduled race. This creates a logistical challenge for track owners who must pay more to hire staff for the new race day. Vendors also lose money as fewer people are willing to shop for merchandise in the rain.

Rain can also impact NASCAR's advertising deals. Advertisers spend significant amounts of money on race weekends, paying for a specific day, time, and audience. When weather forces a race to be rescheduled, advertising contracts may need to be renegotiated. Additionally, when races are postponed, ticket holders can redeem their tickets for the rescheduled event, but they still face additional costs for meals, extra hotel nights, and potentially lost wages for another day of travel and attendance.