Get ready for beat up fenders, crumpled sheet metal and tempers, tempers tempers - it's time to go short track racing. 

After a weekend off, the Sprint Cup Series makes its next two stops at two of the oldest, most historic and demanding short tracks on the circuit - Bristol and Martinsville.  At a time when 'cookie cutter' tracks dominate the Cup Series schedule, these short tracks bring fans to their feet each time and never disappoint. 

Sunday's Food City 500 at the Bristol Motor Speedway will be the first time the Cup cars hit the short tracks in 2009.  Since the addition of progressive banking in the corners, racing has intensified and the competition has gotten tougher.  Unlike in years past when drivers were forced to hug the bottom and the bump-and-run was the number one way to pass, drivers now have multiple grooves to work with to complete a pass.  Instead of a single train on the bottom of the track, cars now race around the high-banked concrete oval two- and sometimes three-wide.

While some fans have complained that Bristol was ruined when the banking was changed, the last few events have shown that the racing is better than ever and Sunday's race should be no different.

After this weekend's race is in the books, the teams will stay in the South and head to the hills of Virginia for the Goody's Fast Relief 500 at the Martinsville Speedway.  Opened in 1947, Martinsville is one of the oldest and most demanding tracks on the NASCAR circuit.  Tight, flat corners on both ends of the 0.526-mile paper clip-shaped track make braking a primary concern throughout the weekend.  Line forty-three cars nose-to-tail around the half-mile track and it will soon become clear lapped traffic will also be one of the biggest challenges teams will face.  Hidden in the rolling hills of Virginia, Martinsville may be small in size but is a beast when it comes to winning.

In an era when the majority of the Sprint Cup Series schedule is composed primarily of 1-1.5-mile 'cookie cutter' tracks, Bristol and Martinsville harken back to NASCAR's glory years.  Short track racing is what built racing into the enterprise it is today, and these two facilities are some of the best in the sport.  Never a dull moment and always bringing fans to their feet, short track racing is some of the best racing out there and a definite must see.