Suburban Propane fuels the NASCAR experience, on and off the track

November 4, 2026 By Brian Richesson 0 Comments

Allmendinger and Stivala visit with the media, speaking about their partnership, before the race. (Photo by LP Gas Staff) — Allmendinger and Stivala visit with the media, speaking about their partnership, before the race. (Photo by *LP Gas* Staff)

▶ Firing up the fans

There’s also a lot of camaraderie just outside the track where fans gather before the race in Suburban Propane’s Fan Zone. The area gives company employees a chance to interact with fans, learning about how they use propane or educating them about propane applications with which they might not be familiar. A backdrop in the fan zone illustrates the many uses of propane in a home and features outdoor living equipment displays like a fire pit and grill.

At Bristol, the Suburban Propane Fan Zone is part of a larger BMS Fan Zone, a carnival-like atmosphere with music, games, food, exhibitions, stunts, souvenir haulers – and even pro wrestling. Ric Flair appeared on a stage nearby to talk with fans; “Nature Boy” has his own brand of spirits, sponsoring the No. 66 car at Bristol.

“The beauty of propane is we are an on-demand energy source. It’s truly a distributed energy source where we can bring it to where the demand is,” Stivala says. “If you look at our footprint, such a rural community energy source, those customers absolutely love the NASCAR experience. We coined the phrase ‘Your fans are our customers,’ and that’s true because we’re serving those communities, and it’s those rural communities that absolutely love this sport.”

Allmendinger sat and signed autographs in the Suburban Propane Fan Zone hours before he donned the red and white uniform, climbed into his propane-themed car and – at the direction of actor and Bristol grand marshal Brad Pitt – started his engine with 36 other drivers. Allmendinger finished 22nd in a race won by Joey Logano.

The Suburban Propane Fan Zone is a way for the company to educate fans about propane and showcase various products. (Photo by LP Gas Staff) — The Suburban Propane Fan Zone is a way for the company to educate fans about propane and showcase various products. (Photo by *LP Gas* Staff)

“We had a fun weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway with Suburban Propane,” Allmendinger says through Kaulig Racing representatives. “Their team did an incredible job bringing the partnership to life across NASCAR, the racetrack and Kaulig Racing, creating meaningful opportunities to connect with fans.

“From our press conference with President and CEO Michael Stivala to meeting fans at the Suburban Propane activation and racing the No. 16 Suburban Propane NASCAR Cup Series entry, it was a great weekend overall to showcase the way they serve communities with their products,” he adds. “We’re proud to represent a partner that helps families like mine keep their homes comfortable year-round.”

▶ On track

Suburban Propane’s partnership with NASCAR places it on-site at 21 tracks across the country. Here are the venues where Suburban Propane is fueling operations and connecting with fans.

Bristol Motor Speedway – Bristol, Tennessee
Charlotte Motor Speedway – Concord, North Carolina
Chicagoland Speedway – Joliet, Illinois
Circuit of The Americas (COTA) – Austin, Texas
Darlington Raceway – Darlington, South Carolina
Daytona International Speedway – Daytona Beach, Florida
Dover Motor Speedway – Dover, Delaware
EchoPark (Atlanta Motor) Speedway – Hampton, Georgia
Homestead-Miami Speedway – Homestead, Florida
Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Las Vegas
Martinsville Speedway – Ridgeway, Virginia
Nashville Superspeedway – Lebanon, Tennessee
Naval Base Coronado – Coronado, California
New Hampshire Motor Speedway – Loudon, New Hampshire
North Wilkesboro Speedway – North Wilkesboro, North Carolina
Phoenix Raceway – Avondale, Arizona
Richmond Raceway – Richmond, Virginia
Sonoma Raceway – Sonoma, California
Talladega Superspeedway – Lincoln, Alabama
Texas Motor Speedway – Fort Worth, Texas
Watkins Glen International – Watkins Glen, New York

Each NT6 track dryer holds 280 gallons of propane. (Photo by LP Gas Staff) — Each NT6 track dryer holds 280 gallons of propane. (Photo by *LP Gas* Staff)

▶ Track-drying solutions

With NASCAR events taking place in every part of the country, inclement weather is inevitable. To lessen the chance of rain delays and the impacts to race-day schedules and logistics, the circuit partnered with HTL Technologies, a family business in Hustonville, Kentucky, to develop four propane-powered track dryers for use during the year.

NASCAR uses a variety of track-drying equipment powered by different fuel sources. Through conversations in recent years with HTL, it saw an opportunity to improve fuel efficiency and complement its existing fleet of jet dryers and other track-drying equipment with propane-fueled solutions, says Chase Brashears, managing director of track services for NASCAR.

HTL’s NT6, the company’s “second-generation track dryer,” features a 6-million-Btu burner. The unit holds 280 gallons of propane, burns 70 gallons an hour and can run for four hours at the highest flame setting. The company says it likes propane’s “clean, efficient and extremely versatile” properties for the equipment it manufactures.

HTL provided the equipment to NASCAR, and NASCAR arranged the partnership with Suburban Propane.

“One of the biggest advantages of the NT6 propane-powered track dryer is its extended runtime,” Brashears shares with LP Gas. “That allows us to operate for longer periods without interruption, which is particularly valuable when we’re working to get a racetrack dry and return to racing as quickly as possible.”

Suburban Propane sees an opportunity to build on the success of the propane track dryers to fuel additional applications – vehicles, generators and more – at NASCAR events. Earlier this year, the company held a “clean energy activation” during race weekend in San Diego. Through a collaboration with ABB, Kempower and NASCAR, Suburban Propane supplied renewable propane to power electric vehicle charging at the event.

“The partnership is still evolving,” says Alex Centeno, senior vice president of operations at Suburban Propane. “Every year, we see benefits and new opportunities. It’s great for NASCAR to showcase what propane can do with different technologies. It’s a great way to showcase power generation and the resilience and versatility of propane.”

Adds Michael Stivala, president and CEO of Suburban Propane, “If you really want to get to a sustainability initiative, we should be talking more broadly about the opportunity to replace anything diesel with propane. That’s the next evolution that we see.”

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