Fading Thunder...Abandoned Racetracks in Virginia and the Carolinas

Recently posted Super 8 movies on YouTube of the "old" Virginia International Raceway.

Film of the very first race at VIR, 1957
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYfHZvnv9bo&feature=related

Other vintage races
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3qvO3jlynY&feature=youtu.be

 

Very, very cool film shot in '53 and '54 at Peace Haven Raceway in Winston-Salem, NC. Truly "the way it used to be."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0bAo_dUHO4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQXFe5MyzS4&feature=related

 

Smokey Mountain Raceway, 1960, just over the North Carolina line in Maryville, TN. The "old" speedway, RIP. Great video here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh_vfOv53Rk&feature=related

 

Lakeview Speedway Poster, 1948 (Lexington, NC)

 

Nice little film about the restoration of Occoneechee Speedway near Chapel Hill, NC.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evTwhfVAuSA&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjegRc7cV6I&feature=related

 

If anyone has any information about old time drag racer Linwood Craft out of Vinton, VA it would be much appreciated. He's in the East Coast Drag Times Hall of Fame (2002 inductee). I saw him race at the "old" Person County Drag Strip. Love to see some pictures. Please post any information if you have it.

 

I think he is still around. I dont know him personally, but have recently seen the Dodge Hemi Colt factory Pro Stock car he used to race. It is currently owned by the son of the guy that Mr. Craft sold it to. He is not a "car guy", but knows what he has. He told me it has been looked at by Tom Hoover and other Chrysler people and verified as one of the original factory cars. It is just setting hidden away in a shop in Vinton.

 

Just a photo to make a point: the cars are very different, but the track??? Pretty much the same. Oh my, what NASCAR has lost. Bring back the Ghost Tracks, I say.

 

Ghost tracks require ghost drivers. Here are three:



Banjo Matthews, 1949, his first racecar. Very HAMB-friendly, I might say....





Fireball Roberts and team preparing to flat-tow to the racetrack. Fireball was sponsored by Fish Carbs ( see http://www.fireballroberts.com/Fish_Story.htm ). The gentleman standing beside the racecar is mechanic, Ray Fox:









Bud Moore, Charleston, SC, flat-towing his car with a '61 Starliner.

 

A big tip of the helmet visor to HAMBer Larry Jendras, Jr (Jend300) for pointing out yet another abandoned track that has come back to life. Larry has an interest in the racing career of Baltimore's famed driver Johnny Roberts, who was the track champion at Royal Speedway (aka Southside) in Richmond; as well as modified track champion in 1960 at Brunswick Speedway in Lawrenceville, VA. If you go to the website for Brunswick, there are pics of the track undergoing renovation. It is now a kart track. Looks nice. It is so gratifying to see these historic tracks being brought back to life. Hallowed ground.

http://brunswickspeedway.com/






And here's a nice article on Johnny Roberts from the Maryland Stock Car Racers Hall of Fame:

http://www.mdscrhof.org/Johnny_Roberts.php

 

Anybody know anything about this book??? How did I miss it? Never heard of it before.



If you'd like to read an excerpt, here is the website:

http://www.carolinacountry.com/storypages/ourstories/speedways/speedways.html#intro

 

I was pleased to stumble across this article. While barely outside the geographical scope of this thread, it is a very hopeful sign to see the renovation and restoration taking place at the famed Augusta International Speedway in Augusta, GA. Very nice website showing all the new developments. Reminds me of the similar updating and reopening at Virginia International Raceway. "World's Largest Public Motorsports Memorial Project." God bless 'em. Here you go:

http://www.historicmustang.com/augustainternational.html





From the prospectus I gather there are plans to restore the old track and add a new dragstrip.

 

Southern States Fairgrounds, Charlotte, NC, 1960. The track is now gone.

 

Just in time for Thanksgiving:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1963_Turkey_Day_200


Tarheel Speedway, Randleman, NC. Near the Petty compound. Abandoned.

 

Not abandoned, the Milikan family, Joe's dad owns the property and they use it (last time I was there) for agricultural related stuff. I asked Joe's dad if I could purchase one of the lights from the track as a souvenir. He said no, but your welcome to have one as a gift! Great guy.

 

Rich, I used "abandoned" in terms of "no longer used as a racetrack." Any plans to bring it back???

I know that they had the one race there, and the track operated last in '63. Was it ever used after that?

Any additional info you can add is much appreciated. I didn't know the track, ran across it in the Silent Speedways book.

Thanks so much for your post.

 

Phartman, I know of no plans I doubt it. It's been years since I stopped there.

 

According to Dale Inman, back before they had trucks and trailers they would just drive the race cars to Tar Heel rather than hook up the tow bars. Its less than a mile to the shop.

 

I have lived in Floyd, VA 28 of my 30 years, and until today I had never known of the existence of the track.

Since I was 8, I would hang out at some of the local shops when they would be wrenching on the racecars, and I have met many people with the local scene. This area is full of race history, and honestly I am surprised that Curtis Turner has not been mentioned yet.

Ray Hatcher, who owns Rays Restaurant which is less than a mile from my shop, grew up with him and is full of stories from back in the days of racing. We were right at the top of Shooting Creek mountain, which was a famous moonshine running route.

I called him this morning and asked about the speedway, and he said in 1955 there was a NASCAR event (which I believe is the flyer you posted on the first pages of this thread). He was in the Navy at the time, but a long-time friend (and former landlord for my shop) Bruce Sweeney raced in it. He is out on the road today buying cars for his car lot, but said he will come by and talk about it some point this week. He said there should be some pictures in his safe from it also, but he was not too sure.

The track is located close to the diagram you put up, its behind the current Hollandsworth and Vose plant in the industrial park. According to him, a few years back he was walking through the area and some of the stands are still up, in addition to the flag stand being there still. The local historical society has been asked about doing something with the site, but I doubt anything will happen.

There was another 1/4mi dirt track about 15 miles away in Pilot, which is where a current junkyard is now. The owner of it is another friend, and I will talk to him when I get a chance.

The New Loundon dragstrip was briefly re-opened for a few years back in 2007-2009, it was closed back down after a few wrecks and a bad fire in one of the hangars left some major bills to be paid. I know the family that owns the airport, and they are focusing most of their efforts on the stunt aircraft side of things. They make a lot of speed parts used on the RedBull aerobatic planes.

Natural Bridge is still open, for both the dragstrip and dirt track. The strip has not really changed much, I have raced there for about ten years now.

New River Valley Speedway is still open, currently its operated under the name of Motor Mile Speedway. They added an 1/8 mile dragstrip a few years back, and it has become a well-used location. This is the "home track" so to speak, of Matt Hagan, who is the son of one of the owners.

Franklin County Speedway is still up and running, and Whitey is still around (somewhat) running the show. Always ripe with controversy, I have been surprised he is out of the spotlight for the last ten years or so. Ya'll do remember his always interesting antics at both Victory Stadium in Roanoke (long since demolished) and FCS? Ahh....the memories of going to a race when I was 12 and placing bets as to which driver was going to whip the other crew chiefs ass during the race.....

Buddy of mine's dad was on Donleavy's team for 15 years, and is full of fun stories from his days in the Richmond area. Its always a blast talking about this stuff.

Phartman-PM me if you are on Facebook.

 

I forgot to throw this one out there, but Whitey is a preacher now.


http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/186074

 

Another local hero to you fellows there in Floyd was Jabe Thomas, a garage mechanic from over in Christiansburg. A favorite "independent" car owner on the circuit. He was followed in the driver's seat by his son Ronnie before NASCAR went uptown. I used to drive by Thomas' Texaco on my way over to Blacksburg. Way back when a local mechanic could race on the Cup circuit and not embarrass himself. Gone- long gone.

 

Thanks for pulling this together, fantastic stories and pictures....

 

I can remember the Cowpens SC race track... it is (was) were the truck stop is on I-85 north of Spartanburg SC...

 

One Virginia track that little seems to be known about is Unionville, Va. It opened on 7-27-1952 under the sanction of the Northern Virginia Stock Car Club. It was a dirt oval but the exact location is unknown to me. The town is east of Orange, Va.
This race is known to me because Baltimore, Md's. Johnny Fernandez in his #16 coupe won the opening feature. The drivers that day were a mix from Virginia and Maryland drivers that raced at Maryland's Marlboro Raceway, Pomonkey Speedway, St. Mary's Speedway and Lanham Speedway.
The top ten that day at Unionville were:
1. Johnny Fernandez 2. Jim Shaw 3. Lionel Johnson 4. Glenn Guthrie 5. Wes Morgan 6. Johnny Meggars 7. Ray Hendrick 8. B. Comer 9. Ralph Sandy 10. Bill Prunier.

If anyone can help locate the track or provide an aerial, that would be helpful.

Larry

 

in 1966 when i was going to Ft Bragg to report in for next stop Nam
I rember the bus stop in charlot and the racing posters on a sheet of paper 81/2 x 11 put up at many places. I also rember being at the fayetville laundry and the jalopy Races were out back did not bother to look at them had to get clean clothes for uncle
I always liked racing and about 4 years AFTER nAM STARTED STOCK CARS AND RUN FOR 18 YEAR ops first year it cost $5 a nite for admission and fuel finished in1988 running winnepeg motor speedway for $400 a nite appearance money ate good that year for a racer

great memories but dont really miss it ,body is too worn out, crashes and whiplash do really hurt

 

Larry, I'll see what I can find out. We're heading out this weekend to a Pie Run to Culpeper, which is just up the road. I'll ask around. Close by Unionville is the old Louisa 1/5th mile dragstrip. It was located off Route 33 and is still there. Pics earlier in this thread show what it looks like.

Pete

 

boscoe has auctions coming up j
an 14 @ shelby fairgrounds.
Jan 21 wnc ag center
jan 27-18 @ metrolna expo
feb 11 @ greenville pickens..

 

curtis brothers....

 

The track that is now at Talladega coud have been at that Cowpens exit.

Spartanburg county residents voted it down in a referendum.


The Linwood Craft Colt & the El Toro Curtis Brothers Colts

were ex-DON CARLTON ( PRE Motown Missile/Rod Shop Dodge) cars.


These pages are nothing but GREAT-GREAT -GREAT !

I learned a lot.

Thanks for all the efforting

dmg

 

Duane, if you can add anything about Linwood Craft, it would be very much appreciated. He's one of the real pioneers in Virginia/NC drag racing. I think I first saw him race at Person County Drag Strip sometime in 1966, and I want to say he was running a stretched wheelbase Mustang...but my memory is getting fuzzy. Help me out if you can here. Thanks!