Darlington Raceway, home to the traditional crown jewel Cook Out Southern 500® over Labor Day Weekend, introduces the Workforce Appreciation Weekend in partnership with the NASCAR Cup Series teams on Sept. 3-4. The new initiative will showcase the NASCAR industry’s appreciation to the American workforce throughout the traditional Labor Day Race Weekend at the track Too Tough To Tame.
“Labor Day Weekend is a NASCAR tradition at Darlington Raceway, so we are proud to partner across the industry for the new Workforce Appreciation Weekend,” said Kerry Tharp, Darlington Raceway President. “We are grateful to the NASCAR Cup Series race teams for uniting with us to show our appreciation to the American workforce over our traditional Labor Day Weekend of NASCAR racing.”
Along with the celebrated kickoff to the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Darlington Raceway will showcase opportunities for NASCAR, race teams and industry partners to pay tribute to their workforce’s tireless efforts throughout the year. Darlington Raceway will recognize the American workforce as part of pre-race ceremonies, offer Workforce Appreciation Weekend ticket packages to organizations, and additional elements to be shared in the future.
“The American workforce has risen above one of the most challenging times in our nation’s history,” said Dave Alpern, president of Joe Gibbs Racing. “This is a great opportunity for our industry to come together with Darlington Raceway for the Workforce Appreciation Weekend and recognize the remarkable contributions of our country’s workforce.”
As part of the initiative, race teams will lead a Workforce Appreciation Honorary Crew Member Program to recognize a deserving employee of their organization over Labor Day Weekend. The recognized crew member will receive the ultimate Labor Day Weekend experience at the track including an invite to the Labor Day Weekend Cookout, serve as an ‘honorary crew member’, guided tour of the Darlington Raceway Stock Car Museum, worker’s name listed in place of the driver’s name above the right-side door, gift from NASCAR and Darlington Raceway, and more.
“There’s nowhere we compete that embodies perseverance, grit and achievement like Darlington,” said Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman and seven-time Darlington Raceway winner Jeff Gordon. “I can’t imagine a more appropriate place for NASCAR to show our respect and admiration for the American worker. Whether they’re with us at the track or watching from home, the holiday weekend combined with the opening race of our playoffs will deliver well-earned fun and relaxation for our fans. We’re excited to highlight many of their accomplishments through this new program.”
Labor Day is an annual celebration of the social and economic achievements of the American workforce. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the holiday began in the late nineteenth century when labor activists pushed for a federal holiday to recognize the many contributions workers have made to America’s strength, prosperity, and well-being. On June 28, 1894, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday. To learn more about the history of Labor Day, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s website at www.dol.gov/general/laborday/history.
For groups and organizations interested in race tickets for Workforce Appreciation Weekend at Darlington Raceway, visit www.darlingtonraceway.com/groups.
2022 NASCAR Season
The Tradition Continues at Darlington Raceway with the Labor Day Race Weekend on Sept. 3-4, featuring the Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help A Hero 200 NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Saturday, Sept. 3 at 3:00 p.m. and start of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs in the 73rd running of the crown jewel Cook Out Southern 500® over Labor Day weekend on Sunday, Sept. 4 at 6:00 p.m.
NASCAR tickets are available for purchase via phone at 866-459-7223 or online at darlingtonraceway.com.
Stay connected to Darlington Raceway on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and the all-new NASCAR Tracks App.
About Darlington Raceway
Darlington Raceway, nicknamed The Lady in Black and the track Too Tough To Tame, is home to the award-winning Official Throwback Weekend of NASCAR and annually hosts two NASCAR Cup Series race weekends, along with the NASCAR Xfinity Series and/or NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Opening in 1950, Darlington Raceway is “A NASCAR Tradition” and NASCAR’s original superspeedway with its famed 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval, challenging the sports best in one of the most iconic NASCAR races, the Southern 500®. For more information about Darlington Raceway, visit darlingtonraceway.com.
About NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series™), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour), one local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series) and three international series (NASCAR Pinty’s Series, NASCAR Peak Mexico Series, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).