After a month and a half of renovations, the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame in Dawsonville will host a ribbon cutting ceremony on Tuesday, Feb. 2 to celebrate several new exhibits dedicated to local racing legends. 

According to Racing hall of Fame social media director Cody Dinsmore, the museum has been hard at work adding new exhibits to honor three local drivers currently racing in a NASCAR series: Chandler Smith from Jasper, Ga., and Dawsonville natives Chase Elliott and Spencer Davis.

“In the Chase exhibit, there are a lot of fan-friendly things,” Dinsmore said. “And as much as we love Chase, we want to honor these other local drivers. We have a pretty great representation in Georgia in all three series right now, and that’s just Nascar.”

As customers enter the museum, they will be greeted by the sight of a new 1940’s-era moonshine car, Dinsmore said. And like before, as customers make their way towards the back of the museum and the exit, they will see racing exhibits from different eras of the sport. 

New exhibits such as the “Evolution of the racing helmet,” “Evolution of the racing suit” and “Evolution of the racing tire” will be open to the public for the first time on Tuesday. The new racing tire exhibit has racing tires from the 1940’s all the way up to a tire that was on Elliott’s car for the 2020 season. 

The Hall of Fame room has been completely renovated as well, Dinsmore said. New trophy cases were also added to accommodate newer hall of fame inductees.

“For people that haven’t been to the museum in a couple years,” Dinsmore said. “It’s going to be a completely new experience. It’s gonna be big. We’re stepping into this decade with a lot of much needed updates. In my opinion, it’s gonna be the best this place has ever looked.”

The GRHOF has been painted and waxed, and Dinsmore said that ticket booths from Thunder Road have returned to give the front counter an entire new feel. The only room that has not been renovated is the Elliott Family Room, he said, because it was renovated just a few years ago. 

“It’s a very modern exhibit,” Dinsmore said. “Not to say we weren’t before but we really are a high class museum and feel legitimized now. Even if you’re not a hardcore racing fan, there are some things we’ve added that people are going to really appreciate” 

The updates come just months after Chase Elliott won the NASCAR 2020 Cup Series Championship. Dinsmore said that the win gave the GRHOF recognition and a platform to share the history of racing in Dawsonville. 

“There’s a lot of local drivers that deserve recognition,” Dinsmore said. “Chase has done so much good for this community. I love telling people that Chase is the seventh person from this little town that’s won at Daytona. There’s just so much to be learned.”

The ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled to take place at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2021. The Georgia Racing Hall of Fame is located at 415 Hwy. 53, Dawsonville, GA 30534.