The Pinnacle Speedway in Lights powered by TVA, a holiday light spectacular that serves as one of the primary annual fundraisers for the Bristol Chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities, opens for its 26th season on Friday, Nov. 18.
Long hailed as the premier holiday display in the Appalachian Highlands Region, The Pinnacle Speedway in Lights powered by TVA spreads across a five-mile route illuminated by more than 3 million lights among 250 displays. A trip through the light show sends guests down alongside historic Bristol Dragway and all throughout the speedway property, culminating with a lap around the iconic Bristol Motor Speedway half-mile oval.
New for this year, to optimize the guest experience, the Pinnacle Speedway In Lights layout has been rerouted to 5.35 miles. Guests will continue to enter at the Bristol Dragway entrance (No. 3) off Hwy. 394, but this year, all guests will also exit at the Dragway entrance. After visiting the Christmas Village in the BMS infield, guests will still have a significant portion of the light show remaining before they exit back on to Hwy. 394.
“What began all those years ago as a simple signature fundraising event has evolved into a mega holiday tradition for thousands of visitors each year,” said Claudia Byrd, executive director of the Bristol chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities, which raises money for child focused agencies throughout the Appalachian Highlands region. “The Pinnacle Speedway in Lights continues to provide a much-needed opportunity for family, friends and loved ones to get together and enjoy a night out while creating wonderful memories. We are excited about our new route around the property, which pushes the course to more than five miles.
“As always, the best thing about this event is that while our guests are enjoying this amazing holiday light show, they are simultaneously providing significant help for so many wonderful children throughout our 18-county service area.”
The Pinnacle Speedway In Lights route offers many popular displays, including traditional favorites The Twelve Days of Christmas, Ripley’s Sea of Illumination, Mycroft Signs Race to Space, NASCAR Pit Stop, Dinosaur Land, the beautiful Candelabra, Drag Cars, Victorian Village, Snowman Maker, the Nativity Scene presented by Visit My Smokies and Toy Land.
The popular Symphony in Lights, located in the Darrell Waltrip Grandstand inside the BMS oval, returns to showcase more than 300,000 lights all coordinated to flicker and flash to the tunes of popular holiday music. Several Pinnacle Speedway In Lights partners also have custom light displays, including ETSU, Ballad Health, Hardee’s Restaurants, SUBWAY, Barter Theatre, BTES, Food City, ENT of Johnson City and the Bristol Herald-Courier.
About midway through the route, guests will want to visit the popular Appalachian country-themed Christmas Village, located in the BMS infield, to take advantage of photo opportunities in front of several special holiday displays, roast marshmallows over an open fire, shop with a variety of local vendors and check out some great arts and crafts. Several family-friendly midway rides will be available and the kids will also get to visit with Santa Claus in the Barter Theatre Santa Hut.
After touring the Pinnacle Speedway in Lights presented by TVA, guests are encouraged to visit the Tri-Cities Airport Ice Rink at Bristol Motor Speedway presented by Stateline Services. Located in BMS Lot 1, the Tri-Cities Airport Ice Rink at Bristol Motor Speedway presented by Stateline Services returns to bring joy to local ice-skating enthusiasts. The Ice Rink is open from Friday, Nov. 17 until Sunday, Jan. 15. The Ice Rink will be closed on Mondays from Nov. 21-Dec. 12. Hours of operation vary from day to day, so please review the schedule on the BMS website in advance.
The Pinnacle Speedway in Lights runs through Saturday, Jan. 7. The event costs $20 for cars from Sunday through Thursday and $25 on Friday and Saturday nights. For larger groups, vans are $50 and buses are $125. Visitors can take advantage of The Fast Lane presented by Citi, a speedy $50 option which provides a shorter wait time on select nights when traffic lines get long.
Guests should monitor Pinnacle Speedway In Lights social media channels to be on the lookout for a variety of discount opportunities available through special partners on the following nights: WCYB (Monday); Southeast Industrial Construction (Tuesday); Hardee’s Restaurants (Wednesday); and The Pinnacle (Sunday).
For more information about the Pinnacle Speedway In Lights powered by TVA, please visit the BMS website.
