Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
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Just courious about old tracks that I never got to visit and never will now due to the political arena. What has been built at where the old Ascot Speedway once sat? What are your emotions when you drive by the place or do you have any?

What racetracks did you use to frequent or grow up at that are no longer there due to development or whatever? What are your emotions or do you have any and do you often think about your time spent their at those tracks?

David Smith Jr.
www.oklahomatidbits.com

Baylands Raceway Park in Fremont, CA gone and nothing but weeds the last time I went by. Also gone is the famous Fremont Drag Strip that was on the property.

Too is the San Jose Speedway asphalt track and the tracks at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds in San Jose are no longer. Sad

"Just the facts ma'am", Sgt. Joe Friday, Detective, 
LAPD

Belmont Speedway. Belmont, CA. 40's 50s 1/4 mile dirt track. ran Hardtops, Midgets, AMA Motorcycles weekly. Now an Industrial Park.

Bayshore Speedway. Brisbane, CA. 30's 40's 1/4 dirt. Was a former dog track until greyhound racing was outlawed in CA. It then became a dirt track that mostly raced midgets weekly. It was located a few blocks west of the Cow Palace. Condo's now there.

Champion Speedway. Brisbane, CA. 1/2 mile dirt. NARC and CRA drivers ran there in the early 60's. West side of Hwy101 near Candlestick Park.

Other tracks in CA. that are gone.. Napa Speedway, Pacheco Speedway, Vallejo Speedway, Dixon Speedway, Gridley Speedway, Oakland Speedway.... Old Sacramento Fairgrounds 50's till mid 60's where they ran the champ cars (now called silver crown dirt cars). They also had a track at the Sonoma Co. Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa, CA. where they ran midgets in the late 40's and early 50's. Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton, CA. ran sprint cars in the early 60's. San Jose Speedways(3). Baylands, Fremont CA. until the late 80's, where Baylands was located is suppose to be where the new Oakland A's ball park will be built.

There was also a 1/4 mile dirt track in the Alviso, Milpitas area for a couple years in the late 50's but i believe they mostly ran AMA motorcycles.

Midgets at the Oakland Auditorium (indoors paved) every saturday night in the winter months, 50's till late 60's. The Cow Palace ran midgets and speedway bikes on occasion, the Cow Palace is still in business but the do not have racing shows anymore.

Bay Meadows racecourse, San Mateo, CA. a horse track. 1 mile dirt. It is still there but horses only now.. Several Champ Car, Stock Car and AMA 20 mile national motorcycle races were held there in the early 50's. Bay Meadows will soon be history, condos and shops coming in the next couple of years.

I have read about tracks and have a couple of pictures of board tracks in the 20's where they ran open wheel cars, they were located at the Presidio in S.F., Oakland and San Carlos.

Twin Cities Speedway (1/2 mile oval) and drag strip (1/4 mile) located alongside I-35W on the north side of Minneapolis. Replaced by a bleak and uninteresting industrial park.

Fenders ? We don't need no stinking fenders !!!

Heidelberg, PA is now a shopping center.

I saw my first sprint car race at Heidelberg. Now live in Portland ,Or. Portland Speedway was a 1/2 mi . track. It was a paved track for many years, hosting NASCAR events...Craftsman Trucks, Winston West, and weekly NASCAR, Greg Biffle was a champ there. The track went to dirt for it`s last 2 seasons, hosting WoO, and Northern Sprint Tour events. Closed in 2001 I believe....for development. the track is gone now but the land is still vacant. For years I would drive 2 hours north or two hours south to find sprint car racing. Finally got it in my hometown, then it was gone!!!

David:

There is a auto insurance type business where the former Ascot Park used to be. It now has a large lot of impounded and wrecked cars on their property. When I'm out west to visit from time to time and I drive by there, I always seem to feel like I'm sick to my stomach when I look at that place.

I used to live just a few blocks from the beach and had freeway access to where it only took me 12-15 min. to get to the track. Prior to moving out there I was thrilled to have drivers here in Tulsa like Hahn, Crawford, Stone, Peters, Lemmons, Armstrong, Carson and such to see weekly.

Then I moved west and saw Shuman, Jones, Thompson, McSpadden, Sills, Gurney and others on a weekly basis. It was at that time of my life I resided in what I called at that time: "Sprint Car Heaven".

West Capital Speedway in Sacramento is now a trucking company

Well, I have to say I miss Ascot. That is where my husband and I met. I always went to Ascot to see the sprint cars run. I am sad that Ascot is closed. I think that it was the BEST race track that I have ever been to. I have been to a lot of tracks and ASCOT was the one. Currently we moved to the EAST so I can't go by the OLD ASCOT. Our son never got to go to Ascot, it was ashame.

I had several favorite sprint car drivers like: Shuman, Flock, Thompson, McSpadden, Sills, Gurney, Fox and many more.

I have lost two tracks in my home town in my lifetime. The first was Capital Beach, the second was Midwest Speedway, both in Lincoln, NE. There are houses and a shopping mall where Capital Beach was located and a Wall-Mart/Sam's Club sits on the sand pit that was Midwest Speedway. These were the two tracks I began my lifelong love of racing six decades ago. 

Sorry to say it looks like I might loose another very soon, my favorite track of all time. Fly like an Eagle... 

Not exactly where I grew up going to, but I did spend a lot of time there during college from 86-90.

http://www.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&q=&t=k&om=1&z=17&ll=41.723148,-87.905195&spn=0.003708,0.007253

See if you can ID it without clicking on the hybrid map or zooming out. (Hint...that is a railroad track curing to the south between it and the waterway)

Speedbump, I spent 75-79 just down the road in Aurora and never made it up there. I did make Sycamore and Grundy County though.

I know nothing about Grundy Co but I do know all about Sycamore.    I was tempted to go there once but Aurora journalist Rick Bill gave me the lowdown and I skipped it.   Later on I got more aquainted with Sycamore by the director of the NASCAR Busch All Star Tour when he told me the story of the only NASCAR race they had in the late 80's and how he was actually scared for his life after sending one of the local's to the rear for being involved in a wreck. 

BTW, that place is still around (despite the owner being killed by an errant tire a few years ago) and all these great tracks aren't...that just ain't right.  

Olympic Stadium in Kansas City ,Mo. now a junkyard.

Curt Grogan

The "old, old" Tulsa Speedway is now the large parking lot just east of the Expo building where the Chili Bowl is held. The building where they used to run the quarter midgets during the Chili Bowl was where the concession stands and the main entry were.

They then built the "big track" which is now the horse track, the grandstands are the same grandstands from the track. That track was, at the time the nicest facility in the USA and would rival 98% of the present day facilities.

Member of this message board since 1997

Hawk:

That building that was the main entry is next to come down. As you know, it is the very last symbol still erected that belonged to that 3/8's track. It should come down any week now. There still is the cut out complete with the wired screen that was the actual ticket window for the main entry. Hell, just for kicks, I just might grab a lunch and sit in the parking lot and watch them take it down. Might need a box of tissues too.....LOL

To the 'ol 3/8's track...........RIP my dear friend.

PS: The lease on Bell's ran out Thursday. County gave Robbie Bell 120 days to get out. Anything that remains on the property then becomes the County's property. Bell hopes an 11th hour reprieve to get a new lease gets worked out, but it isn't looking very good. KOTV has a letter on their web site by the County to Bell. Looks like another fairgrounds landmark is going to bite the dust.

Hey there Kimi!

Wow, long time no hear huh? How are things in the midwest? John and JJ doing OK? JJ ready for the IRL or NASCAR by now? LOL

Talked to Lee Jaskowiak tonight. I'll say hello for him as I know he would ask me too if he knew I was sending you this note. Can't believe how long it's been since we have seen you all. You guys coming to Chili Bowl? Drop me a line at: [email protected]

I miss northeastern Indiana tracks at Avilla and Warsaw. It's hard to imagine that they've both been closed for 15+ years. Was looking through some old records a few weeks ago and was struck with how much I missed Avilla when I noticed that on my list of races for nearly every season of the 80s it was led by the track. The best sprint car race I ever saw was there. Some of the first racing pictures I ever took were there.
Warsaw was the most scenic track and played host to my favorite race. It was on rolling hillsides along the lake at the fairgrounds. A tight 1/4-mile, much like Kokomo used to be. During the fair they held a mid-week race, I'd turn my kids loose on the midway and then go shoot pictures of hotlaps. Then we'd all meet and watch the races, with rides just behind us and a pretty good field of sprint cars in front of us. Haven't been to the fair there since, although I assume it's still there. As far as Avilla, can't make myself drive by.

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Growing up on the West Coast:

West Capitol Raceway was where I picked up my racing addiction. We sat in the turn 4 stands every week from probably 73-77. Supermods ruled then. I drove by there last year (there is a trucking company as previously stated), but I could still make out approx. where the track was, a large hump still exists, I believe from the old grandstands, and of course the train track that passed behind the pits.

Ohter tracks that are MIA:

Dixon Speedway at the Dixon Fairgrounds. Completely removed now.

West Sacramento had a track called I believe Thunder Raceway? It was across from the old Sacramento Drag Strip, a tiny track built in about 1980. Maybe someone can shed some light on the status of this place.

In Michigan the only track I can think of is the dirt track at US131 Raceway in Martin. Don't think anyone misses that place though.