Courtesy of Texas Motor Speedway Media Relations
FORT WORTH, Texas – Texas Motor Speedway will celebrate the first total solar eclipse across the continental United States in 38 years with a watch party on the world’s largest TV as well as a celestial-themed, pre-event luncheon for its entire staff.
Texas Motor Speedway President Eddie Gossage is throwing a solar eclipse bash in the speedway infield beginning at 12:30 p.m. CT Monday for his entire staff of more than 80 employees that will feature a variety of celestial-named delights. The staff will enjoy “Out Of This World” Dickey’s BBQ sandwiches, Krispy Kreme limited-edition Solar Eclipse doughnuts, Moon Pies and Sun Chips among the treats for lunch at the Fuzzy’s Taco Shop in the infield.
The speedway also has produced “No Limits” Solar Eclipse t-shirts and celestial snack packs that will be raffled off to the staff through solar eclipse trivia games at lunch. The packs consist of a Moon Pie, Eclipse Gum, Star Crunch, Cosmic Brownie, Milky Way, Starburst, Sun Chips and Satellite Wafers.
Each staff member also will receive Eclipse Shades for the option to watch the eclipse directly in addition to viewing it on Big Hoss TV with no special glasses needed. North Texas will see a partial solar eclipse – the moon will cover 76 percent of the sun’s surface in Dallas/Fort Worth – with maximum viewing coming at 1:09 p.m.
While Texas Motor Speedway couldn’t provide those highly sought-after Eclipse Shades from Denton’s Orbit Press for the general public, the speedway will film the eclipse with a special camera filter from the grandstand rooftop and air it live of Big Hoss TV and Facebook Live.
Locally, Texas Motor Speedway will open its infield to the public to watch the eclipse on the colossal “Big Hoss TV” that stands 12 stories tall on the speedway’s backstretch. “Big Hoss” is nearly 23,000 square feet of high-definition screen display that boasts 281 trillion colors and five million pixels. The Guinness Book of World Records recognized “Big Hoss” as the world’s largest HDTV in 2014.
For those visiting, the South Infield Tunnel will be open to the public beginning at Noon CT. Parking will be available in the infield camping area in front of “Big Hoss” (Turns 2 & 3 side of the infield). Visitors can watch from the comfort of their vehicle or are encouraged to bring lawn chairs to watch from outside. The South Paddock concession restrooms also will be open.
For Texas Motor Speedway and solar eclipse fans across the state, country and the world, the speedway also will utilize Facebook Live on the speedway’s page to broadcast the eclipse in North Texas beginning at 11:35 a.m.
