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Bristol Motor Speedway's pre-race ceremonies for the recent Sharpie 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race featured plenty of memorable moments. Not only did the drivers introduce themselves, they also chose the music to which they made their grand Bristol entrance.

There also was a pre-race concert by MCA Nashville recording artist David Nail. Bristol Motor Speedway fans honored Mark Martin and his 1,000th NASCAR major touring series start with a card stunt. And who can forget the Guinness World Record for the largest group karaoke performance ever?

But for many Bristol fans, the most memorable moment was the tribute to our nation's Armed Forces. The video below aired on the Speedway's 27' x 20' Sprint Vision screens for the crowd of 160,000. Photos of our military, past and present were featured over Toby Keith's "American Soldier."

Naturally, this was a special moment. But what made it even more special was that these photos were submitted by Bristol fans. Featured were photos dating from World War I to the present. The video included veterans, many in active service and some who paid the ultimate sacrifice in preserving our nation's freedom.

Just five days in front of race weekend, Bristol Motor Speedway sent out an e-mail request to its fans for the photos and the response was overwhelming. Due to the time constraints of pre-race, we were unable to include all of the more than 700 photos that were submitted. But we thank all who took the time to send a picture.

We currently are working on an extended version of this video which will feature all of the photos.

On behalf of everyone here at Bristol Motor Speedway and our fans, we salute you, Our American Soldiers.

Thank you and God Bless America.