29 replies to this topic

[don.siegel]

While I was looking for RTR references in 1965, I ran across this commercial track profile in the February 1965 issue of Model Car Science. Motorama Raceways in Van Nuys, California.

Is this the longest 8-lane commercial track ever? 408 feet, and looks totally impossible to marshall!

Don

[Guy Spaulding]

There's another thread, talking about the longest slot car track ever built. But the longest they found was just over 300 ft.

For sure, this is a corner marshal's nightmare!

Also looks like a challenge to see all the corners just to drive the thing.

[Joe Mig]

Wow, that looks like a you want to stay on track.

I can remember being a young kid around 1969 to1970 going to the NY Coliseum car show with my dad and he got me track time on this wide track that I swear was about 16 lanes. I would sure love to see pictures of that track.

[TSR]

Just to put things in perspective, a fellow was driving a completely original Classic Manta Ray on the billiard surface of Buena Park Raceway's 155" Gerding King yesterday, and his lap time was 11.7".

What lap time for a 400" track of which surface was probably as horrid as I remember them to be? I guess we are looking into well above 30 seconds here...

[don.siegel]

Yep, I knew there was a longest track thread somewhere, but couldn't find it with the search function (using EMMRA, which I think is the longest all around).

Anyway, this track actually looks pretty well done compared to a lot of others at the time, and I bet the surface was decent. The other two tracks in the facility are about 180 ft, and roughly like small Englemens, but all very professionally done. Wonder if it was a commercial track maker, or a local carpenter? - I can post the whole article if anybody is interested. Anybody in SoCal remember this raceway?

Later in the year, the top car was turning 10.8 sec. on the Classic Speedway track, which was 240 ft. Let's see, late in 1964, it would be Kemtron Screaming Banshees vs. Pittman DC65X, and maybe an odd SP600 or two...

They may still be looking for the last car that fell off in the esses...

Don

[Bill from NH]

There was a huge track built by the owner(s) in the NYC area that may have been longer. It was mostly a flat roadcourse with an addition or two added on over the years. A two-page photo of it was in one of the old slot mags, maybe on here, too. It might have been located on Long Island. I forget who, but somebody had a history of this (these) trackowner(s) on their personal website. I believe Howie ran on this track some.

[idare2bdul]

This was hometrack for Jack Beers and myself. I think that track got modified or replaced when the dragstrip went in.

 

Memory says the track had a loop de loop put in that initially only had power when the track was on and the racer had his controller giving it power. Eventually they made the loop self-powered to avoid cars crashing off the top due to lost power.

The snack bar/pit area of that track was bigger than a lot of raceways.

[Prof. Fate]

Hi,

I think I have said this before, the BP track is about 25% faster than a period king was. I say this from the standpoint of having kept my cars and run them there!

My AMTs run 7.8s on the BPR King, a time that would have won pro races in '65 when they were new!

During the dark ages, the big tracks all disappeared and, commonly, any track still in business was circa 100'. The exception being the 220' custom "Jimbo's" track in Denver. Offhand, I didn't know of any Kings outside of Texas in the late '70s and early '80s.

Fate

[John Streisguth]

There was a track in Texas in the '60s with a formica surface and 11 (yes, eleven) lanes. I came across that one while thumbing through my collection of Car Model magazines. Anyone here ever race on that one?

[TSR]

I don't but I remember a 10-lane track on which I raced in Germany in 1967.

[idare2bdul]

There was a track in a Houston suburb that advertised itself as the longest track. It seemed longer to me than the Motorama track but I didn't measure it. It was more fun to drive.

The same place had a drag strip with a Hurst shifter on each lane. The track was divided into four power strips and if you weren't in the right gear for the strip your car got no power.

[tonyp]

Man, that's a track that would take forever to learn.

[olderracer]

Hi:

Just proves the old axiom "Bigger is not always better." I actually raced on that thing before it was replaced by the 235-footer that hosted one of the Rod & Custom series races. I don't remember ever completing a full lap. It was definitely an experiment that failed. Must have cost a fortune too!

Half the time you couldn't see your car and the track had no discernible rhythm. Should have been called the Nurburgring!
Great to see a picture though--brought back some long-misplaced memories. Thanks.


-------Regards------Jack

[tonyp]

Did Mike Swiss have anything to do with building that track. (Had to say it). LOL...

[Jaz]

Most of you remember EMMRA. East Meadow Miniature Racing Association on Long Island. A 475 foot MONSTER was featured in all the mags in the 60's. Howie and Sandy were masters of that track. I used to watch them race, imagining I was in their shoes.
the link: http://silverstone.f...33/slotrace.htm

In the late 80's, Russell had the 'White Lightning" in Centereach. 330' Hasse built Engleman replica. Unfortunately, he was such an a$$bag, nobody came and raced on it. I ran my wing cars on it a few times, but it was nothing special. Got sold, the new owner cut it up and tried to make 2 or 3 tracks from it and it eventually went to the dump - a waste of good MDF

[TSR]

Howie told me everything about that track including its famous "dip", but I did not remember its length.

[Gary Bluestone]

There was a guy who came down to our track with a duffel bag of stuff to sell. He began boasting about having a 16 lane track that he ran at fairs and exibitions. We thought he was nuts until he dumped out the bag containing the remains of the rental cars, mostly they were Parma Womp-Womp chassis with 36D belt drive motors soldered in sidewinder, with bodies numbered 1 to 16. There were also lots of trashed MPC Corvette bodies and two AMF chassis with huge clip-in front guides with double long brushes and rear guides, powered by Pittman sidewinders with fixed gears.These too were numbered 1 to 16 and I managed to salvage one complete with a good body decaled #13,with an MPC card interior. Gradually I remembered racing on one such 16 lane raceway,at the Canadian National Exibition(CNE) with steering wheels that you had to turn in the direction the car was turning or it would stop. This must have been an American Model Raceway, and it was run like a carnival ride, if you won, you raced against the next group of people for a few laps and if you kept winning , you got a small prize. Gb

[Joe Mig]

I can remember being a young kid around 1969 to1970 going to the NY Coliseum car show with my dad and he got me track time on this wide track that I swear was about 16 lanes. I would sure love to see pictures of that track.

. He began boasting about having a 16 lane track that he ran at fairs and exibitions. We thought he was nuts until he dumped out the bag containing the remains of the rental cars, mostly they were Parma Womp-Womp chassis with 36D belt drive motors soldered in sidewinder, with bodies numbered 1 to 16. .These too were numbered 1 to 16 and I managed to salvage one complete with a good body decaled #13,with an MPC card interior. Gradually I remembered racing on one such 16 lane raceway,at the Canadian National Exibition(CNE) with steering wheels that you had to turn in the direction the car was turning or it would stop. This must have been an American Model Raceway, and it was run like a carnival ride, if you won, you raced against the next group of people for a few laps and if you kept winning , you got a small prize. Gb

The one I was talking about had steering wheels that you had to turn .
Does any one have any pictures of this?

[TSR]

Joe,
Look for the thread called "Smallest AMF track".

[Joe Mig]

P 'I took a look I see the steering wheels Buzz still has a track with them but they are not hooked up.
What I was asking is about the 16 lane track and if there were any pictures that some one could post.

[Rick]

John Ford had published a picture of a 12 or 16 lane track one time, long ago. Maybe he will chime in and post again..........

[Phil Irvin]

Back in the late 60s. El Paso Tx. had a paper clip style track that took up the whole long wall of a grocery store. It was over 300 ft. As I under stood. He made a bunch of tracks..It was the only track I geard for top end. He said he had 25 taps. Used 6 & 8 guage, multi strand wire. Had 4 deep cycle batteries..Never got a picture of any tracks I ran on in the 60s & early 70s.

PHIL I.

[Prof. Fate]

Hi

Not the longest, but.....

In Goldsboro North Carolina, this old tobacco wharehouse had 3 tracks. ONE was a figure 8 of 220 feet long. With 80 degree banks at both ends. Drove it with a doorbeel button!

When I left in June of 65, the outright lap record was mine at 5.9 seconds.

Fate

[penske]

Jeff you are right. The Monster trace as it was called back then was at E.M.M.R.A. in East Meadow long island. The track was owned by Al Pappas and his brother in law " Lucky " was the tracks manager. I first met Al when he had a small store/track in Astoria queens. I used to walk there every day after school to run my red revell Jag XKE. When Al started EMMRA myself and a few other kids would ride out there with Lucky and help them build the 475 foot monster down in the basement. I remember racing on that track with the likes of Howie Ursaner, and Sandy Gross, Nick Eliasof, John Roth and Henry Stephnens, The list could go on for ever. It was not a easy track to run on, remember it was a home built track. When Al closed the track in Astoria I was left with no track to run at and no way to get from Queens to East Meadow. I was glad when 1st Place opened on Steinway Street in Astoria. I raced and worked there till 1966 or so. By 1967 I was in the Navy and Married in 1972. I never looked back at slot cars until May 2009 when I went to just WATCH a retro race. It didn't take me long to jump back into slots and I am very happy that I did. I am also very happy and proud to have known Al Pappas. Slot Car Racing and the world could use more people like Al............Roger Ruggieri

[don.siegel]

Here's a merged picture of the EMMRA track, from a double-page photo in the April 1966 Car Model; 475 feet, and I think they even lengthened it after that!
Don