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NASCAR Track Steps In To Save Pennsylvania Governor As Part Of I-95 Highway Rebuild

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Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania doesn’t often make national news.

Sure, the 2.5-mile race track hosts a NASCAR Cup Series race each year and has done so for nearly 50 years, but more often than not the track lies dormant.

But when the track, which is independently owned by the family of founder Joseph Mattioli, was called into action by the Pennsylvania state government this week, it sprang into action.

Pennsylvania is currently in the process of repairing a major section of Interstate 95. The major highway, which runs all the way from Canada to Miami, is one of the most traveled roads on the country.

But just last week, a truck caught fire underneath a bridge that runs in and out of Philadelphia. The fire eventually led to bridge collapsing.

Governor Josh Shapiro quickly went to work to try to get the bridge repaired. And within two weeks, construction of a new overpass was all but complete.

But there was one small problem.

In order to complete the project, the road needed to be dry. And Pennsylvania is currently in the middle of four straight days of rain. But Shapiro had a plan.

He called up Pocono Raceway and asked to use the track’s jet dryer, used for drying the track in the even of rain during a race day, to help dry the highway and complete the project.

And with that, the track sprung into action.

““We’re fortunate to have it,” track representative Ricky Durst told BillyPenn.com of the jet dryer. “We’re fortunate to have the expertise and the operators that can pivot and go down there and help out.”

The portion of the highway outside of Philadelphia collapsed on June 11. Governor Josh Shapiro plans to open the new six-lane, temporary roadway by the weekend.

And that, friends, is how a NASCAR track saved the bacon of the Pennsylvania governor.