Nascar returns to Atlanta Motor Speedway under the lights

HAMPTON, Ga. — For the first time in nine years, night racing is returning to Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend.

Channel 2 Sports anchor Alison Mastrangelo gives us an inside look at what it takes to get Atlanta Motor Speedway ready for a night race.

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Before NASCAR’s biggest stars can start their engines Sunday night, a man named Paul White is checking more than a thousand lights around the track to make they’re ready to shine.

“I’ve been an electrician for about 50 years and I just enjoy doing it and take pride in my work,” White said.

Paul has been the electrician at Atlanta Motor Speedway for 17 years.

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Just a week out from the Quaker State 400, he’s inspecting the lights from the ground level all the way to about 140 feet above the track.

“First I go through and turn them on and check the ones that aren’t working,” White said. “Then I try to block off the ones that are and I go and check the fuse, then check the ballast, and then I check the lamps.”

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“So when getting that close to the edge, I have to be harnessed and strapped because of the chance of falling. and then you have to be real careful and slow about what you are doing,” White said. “So you can’t be afraid of heights by any means.”

The race is from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday.

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South Fulton mayor arrested, charged with criminal trespass and first-degree burglary Mayor Khalid Kamau was taken into custody on Saturday, later being released from custody around 8 p.m. after receiving an $11,000 bond.

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