Martinsville Speedway begins process of installing lights

Joe Menzer

It may be the NASCAR offseason, but it's an extraordinarily busy time at Martinsville Speedway.

The 0.526-mile short track shaped like a paper clip, which opened in 1947 and held its first NASCAR race in 1949, unveiled a new logo celebrating its 70th anniversary on Wednesday. But as cool as that was, that wasn't the big news.

The big news is that lights -- and, of course, night racing -- are coming to the storied track for the first time in its history in 2017. And on Wednesday, the first hole was dug for the first light pole to be installed.

So the boring has begun, but it's anything but boring -- as the artist's rendering of what the track will look like at night after all the lights are installed will look like proves. It's time to light up Martinsville, indeed.