See Also

Riverside International Raceway

Riverside International Raceway was a race track Race track

Horse and dog racing facilities tend to use circular or oval tracks, whereas most automotive and motorcycle ra... 

 or road course in Riverside, California Riverside, California

Riverside is the county seat [i] of Riverside County, California [i], United States [i], it is also a fo ... 

. A driver died during the first weekend after the opening and several more drivers perished while the track was in operation from 1957 to 1989. The track was built to accommodate several different race Racing

---- A race is a competition [i] of speed [i]. ... 

s. By closing off certain sections of the track, the route drivers had to follow could be altered. The three options on the Riverside Raceway were the long course , the short course , and the NASCAR NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is the largest sanctioning body of motorsport [i]s i ... 

  course. The original racetrack had a 1.1 mile backstretch from 1957 to 1968.

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Encyclopedia

Riverside International Raceway
Opened: September, 1957
Closed: June, 1989

Riverside International Raceway was a race track Race track

Horse and dog racing facilities tend to use circular or oval tracks, whereas most automotive and motorcycle ra... 

 or road course in Riverside, California Riverside, California

Riverside is the county seat [i] of Riverside County, California [i], United States [i], it is also a fo ... 

. A driver died during the first weekend after the opening and several more drivers perished while the track was in operation from 1957 to 1989.


The track was built to accommodate several different race Racing

----

A race is a competition [i] of speed [i]. ... 

s. By closing off certain sections of the track, the route drivers had to follow could be altered. The three options on the Riverside Raceway were the long course , the short course , and the NASCAR NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is the largest sanctioning body of motorsport [i]s i ... 

  course. The original racetrack had a 1.1 mile backstretch from 1957 to 1968. When the track was redesigned in 1969, turn 9 was made wide and a dogleg Dogleg

In auto racing [i] or motorcycle racing a dogleg refers to a corner on the race track that has a shallow ... 

 was added.

The four courses of Riverside

Before a racing event at RIR, track crews added traffic pylons Traffic cone

Traffic cones, also called road cones, safety cones, pylons, or Witches Hats, ar... 

 to close off sections of the track. Track courses are shown in the illustrations below .



Diagram notes: The long course had the 1.1 mile backstrech. When the 1969 version was built, the dogleg was added as a speed scrubber to reduce speeds when approaching turn 9. The NASCAR course in the middle illustration would not use turn 7. In the short course, the track would use turn 7A rather than 8.

Movies and television

RIR was also a prime spot for movie shoots. Parts of the television Television

Television is a telecommunication [i] system for
... 

 shows CHiPs CHiPs

CHiPs was a US [i] television [i] series through MGM Studios running on NBC [i] from September 15 [i] ... 

, Simon and Simon Simon & Simon

Simon & Simon was the name of a detective series starring Gerald McRaney [i] and Jameson Parker [i].... 

,The Rockford Files The Rockford Files

The Rockford Files was an American [i] detective [i] television [i] drama [i] that had ... 

, Knight Rider Knight Rider

Knight Rider was a popular American [i] television series [i] that ran between September 26 [i] ... 

, and the HBO HBO

network_name = HBO
| network_logo = | headquarters = New York, NY [i]
... 

 program Super Dave Osborne Super Dave Osborne

Super Dave Osborne is a fictional character played by Bob Einstein [i]. ... 

were shot on location at RIR.

RIR was also a location shooting in the following movies Film

Film is a term that encompasses motion pictures as individual projects, as well as the field in general.... 

: The Love Bug The Love Bug

The Love Bug was the first of a series of movies made by Walt Disney Productions [i] that starred a... 

, Roadracers, Fireball 500, On the Beach On the Beach

On the Beach is a post-apocalyptic [i] end-of-the-world novel writt... 

, Speedway, Stacey, , Thunder Alley, Winning, and The Killers.

Many advertisements are also shot at RIR.

Miscellaneous facts

Footage exists of classic races like the 1986 Los Angeles Times Grand Prix in which the Chevy Corvette Chevrolet Corvette

The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car [i] first manufactured by Chevrolet [i] in 1953. ... 

 of Doc Bundy hit the Ford Probe Ford Probe

The Ford Probe was a car [i] produced by Ford [i], introduced in 1989 [i] to replace ... 

 of Lyn St. James and the Jaguar Jaguar

The jaguar is a New World [i] mammal [i] of the Felidae [i] family and one of four "big cat [i]s" in t ... 

 of Chip Robinson Chip Robinson

Chip Robinson is a retired race car driver.... 

 at Turn 1. St. James' car caught fire and Chip Robinson nearly cartwheeled into the crowd. Fortunately, St. James survived the flames and Robinson escaped uninjured within the track bounds.

Sadly, Riverside was the site of the only fatality in IMSA International Motor Sports Association

The International Motor Sports Association is an American [i] auto racing [i] sanctioning ... 

 GTP history. In the 1983 Times Grand Prix, Rolf Stommelen's Joest-constructed Porsche 935 Porsche 935

The Porsche 935 was introduced in 1976, as the racing version of the Porsche 930 [i], prepared for FIA [i] ... 

 lost its rear wing at the Dogleg and hit two freeway-type barriers sending it into a horrific roll at Turn 9.

When the racetrack was proposed in the mid 1950s 1950s

The 1950s was the decade spanning the years 1950 to 1959.... 

, Riverside International Motor Raceway was planned to ultimately be 5.0 miles long, but the club extension was never constructed and the track's final length was 3.3 miles.

Of the entire road course races run at RIR, there was at least one that was run in a counter-clockwise direction sometime in the 1960s 1960s

The 1960s decade [i] refers to the years from 1960 [i] to 1969 [i], inclusive. ... 

.

ESPN ESPN

ESPN is an American [i] cable television [i] network [i] dedicated to broadcasting sports-related programming [i] ... 

 taped the June 12, 1988, Budweiser 400 race at RIR and caught racer Ruben Garcia Ruben Garcia

Ruben Garcia is a NASCAR [i] racer who started out with the Winston West Series. ... 

 crashing hard off turn 9.

NASCAR lost racer Joe Weatherly at the track in January 1964. For a final tribute, the old version of Riverside Raceway etched on his headstone as a final joke since Joe was a joker.

After 14 years of NASCAR as a driver and later a car owner, Richard Childress Richard Childress

[i] driver and successful team owner of [[Richard Childress Racing]... 

 won his first NASCAR race in 1983, when Ricky Rudd Ricky Rudd

Ricky Rudd is a NASCAR [i] race car driver. ... 

 drove his #3 Piedmont Airlines Chevrolet to victory in the 1983 Budweiser 400k.

From 1981 until 1987, NASCAR's championship race was at Riverside. The USAC United States Automobile Club

The United States Automobile Club is an open-wheel [i] auto racing [i] sanctioning body.... 

 Championship Trail also held their season ending race from 1967 to 1969.

Riverside was home to track announcer Sandy Reed and Roy Hord Jr.

Closure and RIR's transformation into a shopping mall




After former Los Angeles Rams St. Louis Rams

The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football [i] team based in St. Louis, Missouri [i]. ... 

 player Les Richter sold the property to Fritz Duda, 1988 would be the final year of racing for Riverside International Raceway. On June 12, 1988, NASCAR held its final race at RIR - a race won by Rusty Wallace Rusty Wallace

Russell William "Rusty" Wallace is a former NASCAR [i] champion, NASCAR Busch Series [i] car owner, and ... 

 . In 1989, after the SCORE International held its last race, the track finally closed its gates after 32 years of racing after Cal-Club racer Mark Verbofsky died and the track ended the way it started: with a dead racer. Fritz Duda turned the "House that Dan Gurney Dan Gurney

Daniel Sexton Gurney is one of the most important figures in the history of American [i] auto racing [i] ... 

 built" into a shopping mall Shopping mall

A shopping mall, shopping center, or shopping arcade is a building or set of buildings that ... 

 which opened in 1992. The Moreno Valley Mall at Towngate is on the northern end of the former Raceway Property and houses now occupy the southern end of the old racetrack . In a 1994 topographical map, the remains of Riverside's Turn 9 and a wall were still visible. However, today nothing is left of the Riverside International Raceway except for memorabilia Souvenir

A souvenir is an object that is treasured for the memories [i] associated with it.... 

 from the racetrack. The old Administration Building remained until 2005, when it was torn down to make way for a complex of townhomes.

When Riverside closed in 1988, it followed in the footsteps of Ontario Motor Speedway Ontario Motor Speedway

Ontario Motor Speedway in Ontario, California [i], was a 2.5 mile [i] track built similar to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway [i] ... 

  which closed in 1980.


In 2003, the remainder of the old Riverside International Raceway was torn up, the sign that was at California 60 and Day Street was removed to make way for a Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse Lowe's

Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse is a US [i]-based chain of retail [i] home improvement [i]... 

. The old Turn 9 of the old track is now home to houses and the legendary site of the old Riverside International Raceway where you could have heard the roar of engines is now a shopper's heaven and houses.

Ironically, in 2003, plans were announced in northern California, near Merced, to build a 3-mile road course with a similar design to the famed Riverside layout, with a major difference in a chicane and Turn 9 .

Races held at Riverside International Raceway

  • The NASCAR NASCAR

    The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is the largest sanctioning body of motorsport [i]s i ... 

     Winston Cup Series NEXTEL Cup

    The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series is NASCAR [i]'s top racing series. ... 

     and Winston West: Motor Trend 500, NASCAR Winston Western 500, and NAPA/Budweiser 400K
  • The CART Cart

    A cart is a vehicle [i] or device using two wheel [i]s and normally one horse [i], for transport [i].... 

     PPG/Indycar World Series : AirCal 500 Air California

    [i]... 

     / L.A. Times 500
  • USAC United States Automobile Club

    The United States Automobile Club is an open-wheel [i] auto racing [i] sanctioning body.... 

     Championship Trail Rex Mays 300
  • The Los Angeles Times Grand Prix of Endurance
  • The 1960 United States Grand Prix
  • 24 hours of Riverside, testing the Chevy Corvair Chevrolet Corvair

    The Chevrolet Corvair was an automobile [i] produced by the Chevrolet [i] division of General Motors [i] ... 

  • IROC International Race of Champions

    Due to its similarity to NASCAR [i] in tracks and cars, the series is dominated by NASCAR drivers.... 

  • NHRA drag racing Drag racing

    Drag racing is a form of auto racing [i] in which cars [i] or motorcycles [i] attempt to comp ... 

     in the mid sixties.
  • SCORE International Off Road World Championships, the last one was held in August 1988.
  • IMSA International Motor Sports Association

    The International Motor Sports Association is an American [i] auto racing [i] sanctioning ... 

     and SCCA Sports Car Club of America

    The Sports Car Club of America is a club and sanctioning body supporting road racing [i], rally [i] ... 

     car races
  • Rex Mays 300

References

  • Riverside Raceway, Palace Of Speed by Dick Wallen


  • Motorsport Memorial entry on Rolf Stommelen , . Retrieved February 1, 2005.

External links

  • - Contains videos and books related to Riverside Raceway.