Australian Speedway Tracks

[Egan]

But that was the problem, because they were city tracks they had to deal with increasing noise restrictions and parking restrictions (neither speedway had carparks, it was all street based). Eventually this became too much and both ceased operations. Claremont Speedway, being the actual Claremont Showground, suffered the same fate in 2000, though I do believe it was also the Royal Agricultural Society of WA wanting to change it from a speedway to an oval capable of hosting football, concerts and the Royal Show (Egan, you might be able to shed light on this?).

Noise complaints from local residents, who had lots of political clout because the Premier of the day represented the nearby seat of Nedlands, which is WA Liberal heartland. Court spent 20 million dollars to get it out of Claremont...

The sport died as soon as this happened. We had Sunday highlights every week on Channel 7 from either Bunbury or Claremont, part of the News package on a Saturday Night news bulletin on channel 7 and advertising during prime team leading up to Friday Night.

"Friday Night is Speedway Night" still echos in my head.

RAS wanted to spend the money to upgrade the facility, but I doubt they actively wanted to get rid of a paying tenant. They won't ever host Aussie Rules again now that Claremont Oval next door is being upgraded, other than maybe next season when Claremont has to vacate Claremont Oval for the whole season.

[yob]

Just on Wayville, the interesting thing about it is it's just a blatantly cracking location for a multi purpose stadium. It has good rail access, is situated in a high traffic commercial area so no nimby factor, and has plenty of room and parking. I'd be interested to know if the SANFL ever considered relocating there instead of the swamp. I know SANFL clubs used it as a home ground on and off but it never really gained traction is a permanent venue.

[HoldenV8]

Yob, Wayville was the home of the SANFL's West Adelaide between 1927 and 1939 before the army (who have Amy Reserve barracks located just beyond the north western fence of the Showgrounds) took over the main arena during WW2 and as far as I know football has never returned to Wayville. I doubt the Showground was seriously considered when the SANFL wanted out of Adelaide Oval in the 60s and 70s mainly because they wanted a facility of their own (and I wonder if people realise just what the SANFL is giving up by agreeing to move back to the city??). Also, until Globe Derby Park was opened in 1973, Wayville was Adelaide's harness Racing venue every Saturday night.

As for speedway, Wayville would have been perfect as a permanent replacement for Rowley Park because as said, its in a beautiful location and the track is a perfect size for good, fast racing. Its 2km from the city and is accessible by bus, train, tram and car and there is ample parking, but there were and are factors that counted against it.....

Firstly, the track surface. The 510m track is a sand mix over a concrete base. When the World Series Sprintcars raced there during the 90s the drivers likened it to racing on a beach. Put simply they didn't like it. Sprintcars with their light weight, huge rear wheels and 700+ hp quickly got through to the concrete and so did the Speedcars and Super Sedans and dirt track speedway cars racing on concrete really isn't a good thing. On the other hand, its perfect for Solo and sidecar racing.
The other factor was what killed Rowley Park, the old Sydney Showground, Liverpool and Claremont. Noise complaints from local residents actually restrict promoters to using Wayville as a speedway only twice a season. I mean, they already put up with 1 night a year for Supercross, maybe 1 night for Monster Trucks, 1 day in January for the Big Day Out and of course, for 9 days a year its Royal Show time. For 50 out of 52 weeks a year they aren't inconvenienced, heaven forbid should they have to put up with another 20-25 nights of noise.....

Mr Egan, what you said about Claremont and locals with political clout is exactly the same as Rowley Park and the Sydney Showground. In Sydney's case, some of the Sydney Council members were local residents so noise restrictions, time restrictions (meetings eventually had to be over by 10:30pm instead of the usual 11:30-12) and parking restrictions became increasingly problematic for successfully running a speedway and in 1980, after 54 years continuous use, the Showground ceased regular speedway and after that it only ever held at best 2 meetings a year, and even then the damn locals had the hide to complain. Strange though, these same locals have never objected to the year round use of the SCG or the SFS.....
Rowley Park was also the same in that a lot of residents had powerful friends living in North Adelaide who were on local and City councils and restrictions were increasingly placed. But, in fairness that wasn't the only thing that killed the speedway. At only 358m in length it was fast becoming too small for classes such as Sprintcars which were only just becoming speedways biggest draw card. The small track problem was solved with the 430m Speedway Park but really, the tracks location is screwed. There literally is no public transport that goes within cooee of the place so its only accessible by car. Sure, there are no noise complaints but for anyone living any way south of the city, its just too expensive to get to let alone to get into.

Somehow I doubt the RAS of WA wanted to get rid of a paying tenant either but they might not have had a choice. From what I know the speedways Promoter Con Migro did everything he could to keep Claremont Speedway open but he just didn't have the money or political clout to do so. Its a pity people don't go to the Motorplex though because as I said earlier, it probably has the best facilities of any speedway in the country. It just confirms what they say in real estate doesn't it....Location Location Location.

Jeffles, you're right about the Showground @ Homebush but its really only suited to bikes and they never drew well there and neither did the cars. Add to that the RAS put up fencing during 2 of the 3 meetings held there so as to 'protect the infield grass' and basically it just never got a look in as any more than a novelty.

And if Australian Speedway wants to get more people through the gates its about time they seriously started advertising more than just the World Series Sprintcars. If people don't know, people won't go.

[yob]

HV8 - true about Westies. They were somewhat nomadic before settling at Richmond. They played at Kensington Oval (former Olympic Park), Jubilee Oval (absorbed in to Adelaide Uni), Wayville, Adelaide Oval then Richmond from the late 50s onward.

[HoldenV8]

Westies were as nomadic as Speedway has been ever since it started. Its pretty rare these days for a football club to continue moving home grounds. Some clubs have had their own home for over 120 years. For Speedway tracks, unless they are in country area's its pretty rare that any track anywhere near an urban setting will last more than 30-40 years before having to shut up shop and either be replaced elsewhere or just plain gone. Does anyone know when the last time Melbourne had a full time speedway? The Speedbowl closed in the late 1980s didn't it? The next closest is Avalon which is between Melbourne and Geelong. I'm pretty sure Melbourne and Canberra are the only state capitals that don't have a speedway (Canberra's Tralee Speedway, sometimes called Fraser Park Raceway, opened in 1970 and closed in the mid-90s. It was actually located in Jerrabomberra [Queanbeyan, NSW], just over the ACT/NSW border from Hume).

[yob]

For Speedway tracks, unless they are in country area's its pretty rare that any track anywhere near an urban setting will last more than 30-40 years before having to shut up shop and either be replaced elsewhere or just plain gone.

Yeah, Rowley Park for instance, now it's just housing. I'm actually impressed that a speedway got up in such a built up inner city area.

[HoldenV8]

Yeah but it was built in 1949 and despite being the capital of South Australia, Adelaide back then only had a population of less than 300,000 (but growing). Also the speedway was in a former brick pit owned by Soccer SA (or whatever they were called then) and they couldn't use it because they could never grow grass there. The bottom of the pit was also under the level of the water table so in winter it tended to flood making soccer impossible. Back then Speedway was considered an exciting life and death sport with many high profile supporters. Unfortunately though, things changed somewhat over time and now unless its something like V8 Silhouettecars where the government and councils can make money, corporates get to be waited on while getting drunk with some noise in the background and bogans can claim that Holden or Ford is the best car in the world (while conveniently ignoring that neither H or F want any other manufacturer competition, lest the get shown up at their own game), its banished to the sticks so no one can hear it.

And again, they shoot themselves in the foot with the amount the DON'T advertise.....

Anyway, a few more tracks.....

Bendigo Showground - 610m Opened: 1968 (the fence has a 1km perimeter according to the Bendigo Agricultural Society website)


Gold Coast Speedway (bikes only) - 320m (also shows 130m Junior track)


Rolling Thunder Raceway (Bacchus Marsh, Vic) - 550m Opened: ?

[HoldenV8]

Another Aussie track that fell victim to the urban sprawl. Tralee Speedway in Canberra (the NSW side) was originally a clay speedway when it opened in 1970. Speedway management followed the pavement trend in 1974 and like Liverpool in Sydney, Tralee became a 1/4 mile (410m) paved short track. This lasted until the end of the 1977/78 season when the asphalt was dug up and the surface became clay once more. It survived until the mid-90s The picture shown was taken in 1998, a couple of years after it closed. Now its....a housing estate, the same as Rowley Park in Adelaide..... The pic also shows Hume in the ACT. The NSW/ACT border runs along the road between Hume and the Speedway

Tralee Speedway (Canberra) - 410m Opened: 1970 Closed 199?

[Egan]

Holden V8, I think Speedway is just as popular as it was in the past. What has changed is the intense following by a mainstream audience. Karl Langdon did the commentary for Channel 7 (before he was an Aussie Rules commentator) and there was intense updates of who won the speedway major race of the night on Channel 7. Normally straight after talking about the Aussie Rules games on a Saturday night they would talk about the Speedway results.

As soon as it left Claremont the media and in someways its mainstream appeal was lost. The Western Suburbs despite being extremely wealthy are probably some of the most sports addicted people in Perth, they make up a significant percentage of sports watchers for cricket, aussie rules, soccer, rugby and tennis...and I am pretty sure they would see a lot of Speedway when it was at Claremont.\

Also no Public transport complaints as it had a train station right outside of the venue.

[kilonewton]

When you getting to Western Speedway, Hamilton; Premier Speedway, Warrnambool; Southern 500, Portland and Borderline, Mt Gambier. Went to the Western Speedway a few times as a kid, but never had a ute to back up to the fence and sit on a couch in the tray.

[the crow]

I was at the last event held in the RAS Moore park before it got handed over to FOX studios and EQ....

[HoldenV8]

That was the night when Garry Rush won the World Derby for Speedcars on April 27, 1996. Somewhere near 25,000 turned up that night from what I hear. Rush was the only driver in the field who had raced at the Showground during speedways so-called Golden Era, being a rugular Speedcar and later Sprintcar racer. I wasn't there that night which I'd have liked to have been as my dad used to race stock cars there and at Westmead and it would have been nice to see the place in its glory, but I do remember as a 4yr old being at Rowley Park's last night.

Egan, I agree, speedway is most likely as popular now as it has ever been. Its just that (at least in Adelaide and Perth that I know of) with the location of the current speedways, quite a lot of people have stopped going. Those south of the city in Adelaide (like myself) and north in Perth have quite a hike to get there these days and with petrol prices added to entry and refreshment prices it turns into an expensive night out and not a lot can afford that. I also agree about the mainstream audience. With the lack of television and radio coverage and general advertising that they are there and what they are running, its only those who are involved in some way either through friends, sponsors, knowing someone in a race team or they live close enough so that it doesn't cost the earth that tend to go to speedway these days.

Myself and my housemate went to the Easter meeting @ Speedway City only because my brother had free tickets through his work, otherwise we wouldn't have gone because we just couldn't afford to. Ok, sure, I knew the meeting was on because I follow speedway, but if that wasn't the case (and I didn't have free tickets) I wouldn't have known the meeting was on because there was next to no advertising other than on the Speedway City website. And that is a big part of where the sport lets itself down. Its really up to track management, the different controlling bodies around the countries and especially track promoters to get the message out there because there are so many other things these days people can do. Speedway isn't doing that. You get more advertising from either the NRL or AFL in one week than you usually do from speedway as a whole in Australia during the Aussie season (usually October-April). And crowds at speedway meetings in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide & Perth were once as big as your average rugby league or Aussie rules crowds. Not any more.....

As said previously, public transport for Speedway City is non-existent. The nearest train station is 10km away @ Elizabeth with no actual way of getting to the speedway from there as there are no bus routes that way. Its by car or motorbike or forget it. At least Rowley Park was within walking distance of bus and train stops in Adelaide. Are there any buses or trains that go near the Motorplex or Parramatta or Archerfield in Brisbane?

kilonewton, I promise I'll get to them as soon as I can find decent enough pictures. I'm not just going to show the major tracks

[HoldenV8]

A few more, including two of the tracks that kilonewton requested.

Arunga Park Speedway (Alice Springs, NT) - 402m Opened: ?


Borderline Speedway (Mt Gambier, SA) - 372m Opened: 1960s


Charlton Raceway (Toowoomba, Qld) - 440m Opened: 1977


Mac's Speedway (Mackay, Qld) - 440m Opened: ?


Northline Speedway (also shows Hidden Valley Raceway) (Darwin) - 402m Opened: 1971 (?)


Sungold Stadium Premier Speedway (Warrnambool, Vic) - 410m Opened: ?


And, I have to admit to an error. Canberra does have a speedway. The ACT Speedway is located in Fairbairn, just east of the Canberra International Airport.

ACT Speedway - 420m Opened: ?

[Egan]

825 and 920 both go to the Motorplex. 920 is a frequent service. But Motorplex has simply become a sport for those in Rockingham and Kwinana and I think the crowds are still very good (especially with the wages Australia's trades capital are getting now).

Its an interesting phenomenon happening in my area, always a working class/tradespersons area. Absolutely booming because they are in such demand in the present mining boom. Entry for Speedway/Drag Racing would be less of a concern for many, because its close to where they live. The audience level has just changed. Rockingham/Mandurah/Kwinana now have about 300,000 people combined so they have quite a population to tap into.

[HoldenV8]

Mr E, at least the Motorplex has public transport going there or near there, not that taking a train from Kwinana at midnight after a meeting is something appealing. Unless you drive, ride a motorbike or get a lift with someone else who is going, forget about trying to get to Speedway City. For Adelaide's major car speedway it's a bit hard to swallow that there is literally no public transport that passes anywhere near the place. When they bought the land for the Speedway back in 1979, I honestly believe that they only considered that there would be no noise complaints. How people would actually get there obviously wasn't and isn't a concern, though it should be.

Again, you're right though, crowds are still at least ok, but again the tracks location (both in Perth and Adelaide) really restricts where they get their crowds from. At Speedway City, I would guess that at least 90% of the crowd is from Adelaide's northern suburbs which is a pity. I know of a lot of people from southern Adelaide, like myself, who don't go because its just too far and thus too expensive.

What's the answer? I honestly don't know. Wish I did though, I could end up making some good money lol.