After getting rained out twice in two days, (and possibly for a third time today) I was thinking back at some outstanding tracks that I’ve visited or raced at. If you like this idea, please add on to this thread with your list.
The idea is to recognize a track that has something that makes it very memorable: great atmosphere, great competition, pretty girls in the concessions, whatever it is, these are some stand-outs.
1 Oswego Speedway in New York The home of the Supermodifieds! I’ve made two trips to Oswego and have never seen anything quite like it. Its big, its bad and its filled with loud, enthusiastic supermod fans. Get lunch in town at Garafalo’s Sausage, then head to the track for lightning fast racing on the 5/8 mile, and stay for the bon-fires in the parking lot. Oh yeah, bring a jacket!
2 Sunshine Speedway in St. Petersburg Although I made less than 10 visits there, I don’t remember ever seeing a bad show. That track had everything in place: lots of happy fans, a very racey surface, and my favorite class: figure 8’s! What a heartbreak that it is sitting there wasting away as a toll testing facility.
3 San Antonio Raceway in Texas I spent a bunch of summers going there. You know you are a race fan if you think it is a good idea to wander around the pits in 100 degree weather every week. But when the sun started to set, you can hike up the big stands with a plate of nachos and watch the cars climb the high banks. On the grand scale of tracks it probably wasn’t that big of a deal, but I do know that whenever I went I was relaxed and happy!
4 Palm Beach Fairgrounds Speedway I didn’t get to this track on a weekly basis, so maybe my infrequent visits were enough to keep it really exciting. However, a lot of us feel that Palm Beach had that electric atmosphere that so many track can no longer generate. Gotta love those old rectangular corners and the very high speed!
5 Anderson Speedway in Indiana I’ve only been there once, and saw the “Little 500” race for sprint cars. It was a great race that stayed competitve and interesting the whole way. I love the fact that it has been going on for so many years at a little, hometown track, and that it is still a hard-fought race that drew cars from all over.
6 New Smyrna Speedway I know, NSS is struggling to rebuild the show on a weekly basis, but consider how lucky we are to have the World Series in February. 9 nights in a row at our local track that features stars from across the country. They have written a lot of history there, and its still one of the highlights of my year.
7 Highland Speedway in Illinois I’ve only been there once, but it was memorable because it was pretty unique: here is a neat and clean little dirt track that is located in the center of town. I watched the late models run door to door for the lead, lap after lap, and never touch. They had the whole package going that night.
8 Volusia Speedway Like New Smyrna, we are so lucky to have their February over-dose of racing. Where else have we seen pavement supers, WoO sprints, WoO late models, NASCAR Busch series, All Stars and so many other groups that came to town?
9 Indianapolis I was only there for an Indy LIghts race and a trip through the museum, but I became a life-long fan of the old place. I took the bus tour of the track at 20 mph, but could see that it is a very racey surface: much different than it looks on TV. I’d love to do a driving school or something there so I could try a few laps!
10 I’ve been to dozens of other tracks, but I am reserving spot #10 for Bowman Gray Stadium. I hope to make a trip there this summer and I’m sure it will be worthy of inclusion on this notable and exclusive list!
Ok, I’ve shown you mine, now you show me yours!
