The U.S. national anthem is notoriously difficult to sing. It's a test of range, timing and vocal skill, not to mention lyric retention.

If anyone has the chops to pull it off, it's Henry County native Josh Shilling, lead singer of bluegrass genre-busters Mountain Heart. Shilling and the band are scheduled to perform it live and a cappella on Sunday before the Tums Fast Relief 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway.

But they won't be singing to just to the thousands in the stands. The ABC network, including Lynchburg's WSET (Channel 13), will televise it.

It will be kind of a first for Shilling, who thinks he might have sung "The Star-Spangled Banner" at a July 4 party or two. He has performed several times at the speedway -- "but never in front of 25 million viewers," he said.

Almost any singer will tell you, "the most intimidating song we ever have to do is the national anthem," Shilling said. "No matter what your range is, the national anthem's going to test it."

But he thinks it will turn out OK. After all, this is a guy whose first performance at the Grand Ole Opry drew a standing ovation and an encore -- rare feats at that Nashville, Tenn., institution.

"For me, man, it's like we're onstage every night," he said. And regardless of crowd size, "I tend to go out and do my thing, one way or another, so that's how I'm going to approach this."

-- Tad Dickens

Who: Mountain Heart

What: Singing "The Star-Spangled Banner"

Where: Martinsville Speedway and on WSET (Channel 13)

When: TV coverage begins at 1 p.m.

How much: $45 to $117 to get into the track.

Contact: (877) 722-3849, martinsvillespeedway.com, mountainheart.com