Anybody remember Meadowdale In Carpentersville,Il? It had a road course and a 1/4 mile dragstrip? Also Oswego Dragstrip in Oswego,Il? Both long gone.
When I joined the Navy in '66 was still running down in the river bottoms behind the Montgomery Ward warehouse. Now long gone!
Wow, I like the one under lake lanier here in GA . . . been by it several times. Still not much out that way. Here's my personal picture: Southeastern Dragway in Dallas, GA. That track that unfortunately Richard Petty is most famous for in a drag racing sense. The land is apparently so contaminated that it couldn't be used immediately after sale to do a housing tract. People started moving out to where the track was, land value went up, owners sold it. Picture is from 2006 which was the year after it closed . . . tower is trashed now, bunch more weeds in the track obviously.
i found out recently that there was a race track in my neighborhood. government aerial photo from 1934 shows the track. it is now a certified organic farm.
For a small state CT had I think about 7 tracks...Stafford Speedway. Thomson and Waterford speed bowl [maybe] are still running...I knew of Plainville Stadium and Savin Rock and now New Milford that once were..I think there was a track called Cherry Hill in Avon mostly for midgets in the 50's..
Glad to see this thread come back to life. We have several in Colorado that are no more. One in particular isn't too far from me it's just remnants now. The track had a few different names over the years but was known by many as Mountain Vu Dragway. Here's some shots - then and now.
Couldn't help it and had to sneak out onto the track and do a tribute burnout in honor of all those who had raced there over the years.
Did you know L D now builds some of the cleanest 39-40 coupes around? Almost always top 10 at the shades of the past.
About '64-'66 there was a 1/4 mi dirt track located on the hwy going East out of Portales. NM. closed (mostly due to underfunding, but probably also "political" reasons as well!!) & was made into the Eastern New Mexico University Anthropology Museum( Museum has since been relocated) They ran Hardtops & Stockers, & drew cars from as far away as Amarrillo, TX(110mi +/-) Lubbock, TX(same), Roswell, NM(90mi), etc.
We have had 3 dirt tracks that were lost here in Norfolk, Nebraska King's Speedway on the East edge of town in the 1950s which is now the site of Speedway Auto and the flood control for the North fork of the Elkhorn River and Riverside which opened a couple of years after King's did and ran during the same era, was just South of the Elkhorn River which when closed became a gravel pit which was mined out years ago and last but not least is Riviera Raceway which was opened in the 1960s and ran for 50 years before closing. http://norfolkdailynews.com/news/ri...cle_0d456606-4264-11e4-8990-001a4bcf6878.html
Thanks I did forget it, so that makes eight CT tracks..I understand that they would somehow flood the the track and have boat races??
Thanks Pete...Following I cut and pasted from yankeeracer.com.. CONNECTICUT Active Lime Rock Park Lime Rock, CT 1.53 mile paved road course (4/18/1957 – present) 1/4 mile paved dragstrip (1958) Road course originally proposed for 3.0 miles Also proposed 1.5 mile paved oval in 1959, but it was never built. Stafford Motor Speedway 55 West St., Stafford Springs, CT 06076 Built as a horse track in 1892 at the Stafford Springs Fairgrounds Covered stands burned in 1957 1/2 mile dirt oval (October, 1934) (1948 – 10/03/1966) 1/5 mile paved oval (5/28/1948 – c.1952) 1/2 mile paved oval (1967 – present) 1/4 mile paved oval (July, 1994 – present) 1/5 mile paved oval (1994 – present) Thompson International Speedway 205 East Thompson Road, Thompson, CT 06277 AKA: New Thompson Speedway, Thompson Raceway 5/8 mile paved oval (5/26/1940 – 10/19/1941) (10/14/1945 – present) Listed as a 1/2 mile in the beginning; may have been a dirt oval in 1939 Only track in state to host NASCAR Sprint Cup races (1951, 1969, 1971) 1/4 mile paved oval (1949 – c.1965) paved road course (1945 – 1951) < used most of the oval 1.56 mile paved road course (1952 – 10/08/1956) < used parts of oval & pits 2.0 mile paved road course (5/26/1957 – 1967) < used parts of te pits west of oval 1.7 mile paved road course (1967 – c.1978) < different configuation using oval 1/4 mile paved dragstrip (1958 – 1959) 1/4 mile dirt oval “Little T Speedway” outside of turns 3/4 Waterford Speedbowl Rt. 85/1080 Hartford Road, Waterford, CT 06385 AKA: New-London-Waterford Speedbowl 1/3 mile dirt oval (4/15/1951 – 4/29/1951) Ran an exhibition race on 4/09/1951 1/3 mile paved oval (5/19/1951 – present) Inactive Branford Park – New Haven 1/2 mile dirt oval (7/25/1899 – c.7/25/1900) Candlelite Stadium River St., Bridgeport, CT (AKA: Bridgeport Speedway/Candlelight Stadium) 1/5 mile paved oval (6/30/1947 – 1955) 1/10 mile dirt oval (6/03/1951) [Ran Three-Quarter Midgets] Sold in Jan. 1955 for a drive-in theatre Bristol Fairgrounds Bristol, CT 1/2 mile dirt oval (1933 – 10/21/1934) Bulkeley Stadium Hartford, CT 1/5 mie dirt oval (c.1936) Charter Oak Park West Hartford, CT 1-mile dirt oval (6/16/1905 – 1920) 1/2 mile dirt oval (1923) (1927) (1929) Site became Niles-Bement-Pond Co. factory Cherry Park Speedway CT-177, Avon, CT Built as a horse track in 1882 1/2 mile dirt oval (1933 – 6/16/1935) (5/30/1939 – 7/23/1939) 1/5 mile dirt oval (7/28/1946) 1/5 mile paved oval (8/11/1946 – 1951) (1954) Torn down in 1959 Connecticut Dragway Colchester, CT AKA: Connecticut Int’l Raceway 1/4 mile paved dragstrip (c.1961 – c.1986) Connecticut Speedway Derby, CT AKA: Island Park Speedway 3/4 mile dirt oval (6/24/1934) (9/02/1934) (c.1937) Danbury Fair Racearena Danbury, CT AKA: Danbury Fair Race Track, Danbury Speedway, Danbury Fair Speedway 1/2 mile dirt oval (10/06/1908 – 10/07/1939) 1/5 mile paved oval (6/01/1940 – 5/10/1942) (September, 1945 – 1947) 1/4 mile paved oval (5/31/1947 – 9/30/1951) 1/3 mile dirt oval (10/05/1951 – 10/08/1955) (6/07/1958) 1/3 mile paved oval (6/14/1958 – 10/12/1981) At the Danbury Fairgrounds Held boat racing in a moat outside of the track in August, 1958. Home track of the Southern New York Racing Association (SNYRA) (1952-1955, 1958-1981) Site is now the Danbury Fair Mall Danbury Mill Plain Micro-Midget Oval Danbury, CT 1/20 mile oval (1960 – 1962) The corners were paved and the straights were dirt Huntington Speedway Shelton, CT 1/2 mile dirt oval (5/06/1934 – 6/18/1939) Kenosha Avenue Race Track Danbury, CT 1/20 mile dirt oval (1957 – c.1959 Races were sanctioned by the Danbury Micro-Midget Racing Association Legion Speedway Meriden, CT Dirt oval (Years unknown) New Haven Arena New Haven, CT 1/10 mile indoor wood oval (1936 – 3/24/1937) New Haven Velodrome New Haven, CT dirt oval (c.1940 – c.1941) New Haven Veterans Coliseum New Haven, CT 1/10 mile indoor oval (12/11/1993 – 1994) (1997) New London New London, CT dirt oval (1920’s) New Milford Fairgrounds New Milford, CT AKA: Conetia Park Race Track Newfield Park Eagle St., Bridgeport, CT 1/5 mile dirt oval (5/14/1935 – 9/18/1940) Bill Holmes was the first winner Formerly a trotter horse track North Haven Speedway North Haven, CT 1/4 mile cinder oval (1932 – c.1939) Ran motorcycles, maybe autos Norwich Fairgrounds Norwich, CT 1/2 mile dirt oval (7/04/1933) Located at CT-82 & Surry St. Now the site of a housing development Plainville Stadium CT-372, Plainville, CT 1/4 mile dirt oval (4/10/1949) 1/4 mile paved oval (4/17/1949 – 1980) Plymouth Speedway Plymouth, CT AKA: Valley Park Speedway Dirt oval (1965) Rockville Driving Park Rockville, CT 1/2 mile dirt oval (late 1930’s) Sage Park Speedway Windsor, CT (8/12/1934) (8/19/1934) Four miles from Hartford on US 5-A Hal French fatally injured at the last race Silver City Speedway Meriden, CT Ran half-midgets a few times 1/10 mile paved oval (1985) Now a 1/4 midget track Stratford, CT Dirt oval (1958 Ran Micro-Midgets Suffield, CT 1/4 mile dirt oval (late 1940s – early 1950’s) West Haven Speedway West Haven, CT AKA: Savin Rock Amusement Park, Donovan Field (In honor of “Wild Bill” Donovan, a NY Yankees manager) 1/5 mile dirt oval (7/07/1935 – 10/27/1935) 1/5 mile paved oval (5/28/1936 – 9/11/1941) (8/30/1945 – c.1961) Al Herman died here in a crash on 6/18/1960 Westport Paved road course (1960’s) FacebookTwitterGoogle+Share
R.I.P. HRP! (We're on a small Rock, so we can't drive the next state over... And No More Super Ferry - Maui, Kauai & Big Island still get Tracks! I Really don't think We'll ever get another track on Oahu...No More Space...)
I used to go to the San Jose Speedway at least once a month during the racing season through high school and for a couple of years after 1958-1964. Great place for a date because you couldn't buy beer and there wasn't much to spend money on. http://www.legendsofsanjosespeedway.com/
Don't forget in the 60's I-95 Eastbound entrance Exit 6 West Ave. to second overpass 1/4 mile. Oh yes that was not legal.
The Jalopy Journal
