No, they’re not actually in Nashville, but on a quiet night when the wind is right, you might be able to hear the steel guitar.

It took two decades, lots of hassles and disputes, a closing, and an ownership change before NASCAR finally brought the Cup Series to Nashville Superspeedway in 2021, but here they are for a fourth straight year in one of the country’s hottest metro markets.

Let’s learn a few things about this still-newish track on the Cup schedule …

∎ Those familiar with Daytona and Talladega will recognize the tri-oval shape of Nashville Superspeedway. But it’s roughly half the length of those two mammoth tracks — Nashville stretches the odometer to 1.33 miles — and the surface is concrete, not asphalt.

∎ The turns are banked at 14 degrees, and the track includes an infield road course that also measures 1.33 miles.

∎ the track is located 25 miles east of downtown Nashville in Lebanon. As Nashville has exploded, Lebanon has seen its population increase, to nearly double its 2000 census number of 20,000 people.

∎ Hosting NASCAR weekend will obviously boost a town’s cachet, but Lebanon’s biggest claim to fame: The original Cracker Barrel opened where Interstate 40 passes through Lebanon. The company’s corporate headquarters remain in Lebanon.

∎ Nashville Superspeedway is part of the thick track portfolio owned by Charlotte-based Speedway Motorsports Inc. SMI bought the track from Dover Motorsports in 2021.

∎ The speedway originally opened for business in 2001 with a Busch Series-ARCA doubleheader weekend. The first-ever stock-car winner at Nashville was Kenny Schrader, who won the PFG Lester 150 ARCA race by less than a second over ARCA legend Frank Kimmel, who was followed to the stripe by Shawna Robinson.

∎ After Schrader broke the seal on Victory Lane, Greg Biffle won the next day’s Pepsi 300 by a half-second over Jason Keller. Finishing 28th was a future legend named Jimmie Johnson.

∎ It was at Nashville in 2011 that Pastor Joe Nelms delivered the most replayed invocation in NASCAR history. Memorably, Pastor Joe thanked multiple racing manufacturers and sponsors, as well as the Lord “for my smokin’ hot wife, Lisa, and our two children, Eli and Emma — or, as we like to call them, the Little E’s.” He’d eventually conclude with, “In Jesus’ name … boogity, boogity, boogity … amen.”

∎ Nashville Superspeedway went belly-up after 2011 due to financial problems and the apparent realization it wouldn’t get a Cup Series race.

∎ Ironically, the rebirth of the speedway seemed to coincide with calls for a return to racing at the Nashville Fairgrounds, closer to downtown Nashville, where NASCAR held Cup races from 1958-84. Running parallel to Nashville Superspeedway’s return to the fold, the Fairgrounds Speedway is still being promoted for a return to the Cup schedule.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR at Nashville Superspeedway and there's a Cracker Barrel angle