Abandoned Racetracks

[TDZdave]

Longer. The last race at North Wilkesboro was in the fall of 1996.

That's sad, such history, I gues Rockingham is following the path

 

[Blitz24]

That's sad, such history, I gues Rockingham is following the path

I'm 95% sure I still have a video game with the two tracks on it. Granted the game doesn't have Daytona or Pocono or anything post 1996 but you win some and you lose some.

 

[TDZdave]

I'm 95% sure I still have a video game with the two tracks on it. Granted the game doesn't have Daytona or Pocono or anything post 1996 but you win some and you lose some.

Nascar 98 on PS1 has Rockingham, though with how much history is there i kinda feel nascar should do something about it, I watched the 96 race and those bleachers where filled over with fans,

 

[CodeRedR51]

Came across this on Reddit. The long dead NASCAR track called Occoneechee Speedway:

http://imgur.com/gallery/tNBXF

Crazy how the trees took over, hardly looks like anything was there.

 

[Blitz24]

Nascar 98 on PS1 has Rockingham, though with how much history is there i kinda feel nascar should do something about it, I watched the 96 race and those bleachers where filled over with fans,

NASCAR Racing was the game I was referencing. Only console game Papyrus made.

 

[GTPorsche]

North Wilkesboro pretty much looked just like that when Top Gear was dicking around at the track.

 

[Dolph Drago]

NASCAR Racing was the game I was referencing. Only console game Papyrus made.

What a great game it was. I remember playing it as a kid back in the day. I actually tried to install that game on my current computer last year for the nostalgia feeling but couldn't get it to work. I can't recall North Wilksboro being in there or not, but I know Atlanta was still the regularly shaped oval, not quad oval. Also, yes, there's no Indy, Pocono, etc...I think those tracks were introduced in NASCAR 4. That one I played the hell out of for years and do have installed on my computer. Too bad my sound card is messed up and I can't hear anything on my computer at all.

Nice to see this thread getting some action again. It's crazy comparing these old tracks to what they look like now.

 

[TDZdave]

What a great game it was. I remember playing it as a kid back in the day. I actually tried to install that game on my current computer last year for the nostalgia feeling but couldn't get it to work. I can't recall North Wilksboro being in there or not, but I know Atlanta was still the regularly shaped oval, not quad oval. Also, yes, there's no Indy, Pocono, etc...I think those tracks were introduced in NASCAR 4. That one I played the hell out of for years and do have installed on my computer. Too bad my sound card is messed up and I can't hear anything on my computer at all.

Nice to see this thread getting some action again. It's crazy comparing these old tracks to what they look like now.

The paperclip Atlanta oval was also in Nascar '98 on PS1, was a favorite of mine,

 

[Kelvari]

My avatar over there is from the drag/oval that was in my home city, it was used from 1961-92. Complaining home owners and the fact the land was worth more not being taken up by a track killed it.

I don't know how to post a google map pic so heres a link. The track was where that small new community is. @Johnnypenso do you know exactly where it was?


https://www.google.ca/maps/@42.2761574,-82.8809836,643m/data=!3m1!1e3

Could this be it?
https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=42.27...,-82.892876&spn=0.00959,0.021307&z=16&iwloc=A

 

[PsuPepperoni]

A couple miles from my house, there's a dragstrip that was open from 1967 to 2011, closed because some people built a neighborhood next to it and then complained about the noise until the city forced the track owners to sell it.

On an unrelated note, street racing is booming around here!

adding some images

 

[GTPorsche]

Could this be it?
https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=42.27...,-82.892876&spn=0.00959,0.021307&z=16&iwloc=A

Nope.

 

[Kryption]

How can we forget Greenwood Roadway?

Deep forest raceway, looks like it might have been based off this.

 

[mister dog]

Jacarepagua, 2013

How sad, the track Senna made his F1 debut on...

Onboard:

 

[Liquid]

The original Hockenheimring. The U-turn at the end of the circuit was in the town of Hockenheim itself. Interesting to note the location of the original start/finish line and anti-clockwise direction.

1932-1963

Compare with the 1964-2001 layout.

Also, I just posted it in the Vintage Photos thread but here is the Ostkurve 'today'. (2008)

 

[psychoazubi]

The original Hockenheimring. The U-turn at the end of the circuit was in the town of Hockenheim itself. Interesting to note the location of the original start/finish line and anti-clockwise direction.

1932-1963

Compare with the 1964-2001 layout.

Also, I just posted it in the Vintage Photos thread but here is the Ostkurve 'today'. (2008)

The last picture is the biggest reason (besides Veggie-day )for me to never ever vote for the green party in Germany. They and Bernie destroyed another part of Motorsport history
If the track would still exist (with modern safety installments), it would be the perfect track for WEC and endurance racing.

 

[Liquid]

They and Bernie destroyed another part of Motorsport history
If the track would still exist (with modern safety installments), it would be the perfect track for WEC and endurance racing.

*hides before prisonermonkeys sees this*

The Hockenheimring has been done to death on this forum.

 

[psychoazubi]

*hides before prisonermonkeys sees this*

The Hockenheimring has been done to death on this forum.

But that was before my time here

 

[JR98]

First post in this thread so unsure if it has been posted before but Riverside was an amazing race track. There was 2 layouts, the shorter NASCAR layout and a longer Can-Am layout. It opened in 1957 and closed in 1989.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverside_International_Raceway

Standard Layout:


NASCAR Layout


Where Riverside would be if it was still active today:

Some more images:

 

[SVPSkins]

Oran park google aerial

what it looks like now

 

[Legro]

First post in this thread so unsure if it has been posted before

It can't be that hard to check 5 pages.

By the way, the track has been posted before.

 

[TDZdave]

Oran park google aerialView attachment 369730

what it looks like now

Oran Park was my favourite circuit here in Australia apart from Bathurst, cant believe it still looks like a circuit,

Btw this circuit has already been posted,

 

[ShiftingGears]

The longest circuit to ever host a world championship grand prix hasn't seen racing for ~50 years, but 90% of the public roads are still there.

Pescara:

https://www.google.com.au/maps/plac...2!3m1!1s0x1331a60db9286477:0xa0b89e89b22cbfe2

 

[SVPSkins]

Oran Park was my favourite circuit here in Australia apart from Bathurst, cant believe it still looks like a circuit,

Btw this circuit has already been posted,

Yeah i know but read someone was having trouble finding it on Google maps.

 

[Cap'n Jack]

Oran Park certainly doesn't resemble a race track anymore, as your post suggests, @SVPSkins, those are just old images. Unfortunately suburbia has completely taken over the circuit now. As a consolation though, the street names in the area are named after racing drivers. For instance, there's Moffat Street, Seton Street and Peter Brock Drive.

 

[CAMikaze]

adding some images

Apologies for the pun, but I can imagine the racers who raced there thought the closing of that track was a real drag and not in a good way.

 

[ShiftingGears]

BRIDGEHAMPTON:

Pretty fearsome track. Found an article about what remains of it.

http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/we-found-the-bridgehampton-race-circuit-1492831583

LOBETHAL:

13.8km (8.6mi) Grand Prix circuit. Hosted the 1939 Australian Grand Prix. Scary stuff.

Circuit Drive Through:

Photos: http://theracingline.net/racingcircuits/archives/Lobethal/index.html

The 6.6mi Watkins Glen Road Course used from 1948-1952 is still there also. See if you can find it on google maps

 

[Hetare21]

Sendai Hi-land Raceway (1986-2014)
As a part of theme park, it hosted Super Taikyu and JGTC, but 2011 East Japan Megaquake and the severe thunderstorm which came there next year killed it. The site will be a mega solar power plant after demolished.

The circuit right after the quake was recorded via Google Earth and the ground view.
http://ameblo.jp/saginomiya-ge/entry-10925469644.html
http://mavericks.exblog.jp/21789178/
The photos of it after the T-storm were released here.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

But that was before my time here

You're in for it now.

The problem with the old Hockenheim is that the extended loop was practically inaccessible. In the event of a serious accident at the Ostkurve, it would be extremely difficult for emergency services to reach it. What do you think would have happened if Jules Bianchi had his crash there?

The situation put Hockenheim's Grade-1 certification at risk because the circuit could no longer maintain the minimum safety standards. It was a choice between reconfiguring the circuit or losing the race. Given that the circuit owners had no claim to the land around the circuit itself, it was pretty clear that Tilke had to use the old circuit as a perimeter. Given the unique shape of the circuit, there was very little that could be done.

As for the old circuit, it has no further use, and maintaining it would be extremely expensive. With the German Grand Prix facing financial difficulties, there was no way to save it.

 

[TenEightyOne]

The problem with the old Hockenheim is that the extended loop was practically inaccessible. In the event of a serious accident at the Ostkurve, it would be extremely difficult for emergency services to reach it. What do you think would have happened if Jules Bianchi had his crash there?

Sadly, all true. It was a beautifully dramatic circuit but it had to be accepted that F1's overall safety had to improve. "Old" Hockenheim is still one of my favourite F1 circuits though for the pure spectacle of the cars blasting through the forest.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Sadly, all true. It was a beautifully dramatic circuit but it had to be accepted that F1's overall safety had to improve. "Old" Hockenheim is still one of my favourite F1 circuits though for the pure spectacle of the cars blasting through the forest.

People love to reminisce about it, but what would it be like today? I imagine that Hamilton and Rosberg would be the only drivers on the lead lap, with all of the Mercedes-powered cars filling out the top eight. There would be no overtaking and everyone would whinge about it.