Italuminium

A few km's from my house there's this old outdoor track. Sadly, it has been converted to a campsite for weekend trailer park residents and fat Germans in motorhomes. Nonetheless a great place to stop by on a nice ride. Here it is in all it's repurposed glory. I've shot these pics a while back, but found them again today (it's much colder now this time of the year and the campers have left - maybe one can actually ride there in this season!).

Banking (very slight)

P1040935 by ctjr, on Flickr

Home stretch


P1040937 by ctjr, on Flickr

Infield


P1040938 by ctjr, on Flickr

banking 2


P1040940 by ctjr, on Flickr

My RIH on the spot.


P1040941 by ctjr, on Flickr

cb400bill

Better to cater to the tourists than to abandon it like Detroit's Dorais Park Velodrome.

rootboy 

Tarmac looks to be in very good shape. At least they didn't demolish the track. Nice place to do some laps.

Capecodder

That's a shame....

cb400bill

The above pic was after a group did a bunch of cleanup. Here is a before pic. Note car in the infield.

CV-6 

Makes me appreciate all the more the track here in St Louis at Penrose Park. They call it Mr Bumpy. It is bumpy, but it is a rideable track and does get used for its purpose. Gotta get down there and take advantage of it.

SteveSGP

I really need to check out the Velodrome we have locally, it's only about 20 minutes from my place but I've never found time to go see the races.

SvenMN 

Yes indeed we are fortunate to have the National Sports Center Velodrome here in Minnesota.

Our LBS owner has suggested we dust off some of the 80s vintage track bikes he has hanging and give it a go for one of their amateur team events... looks like a blast!

Here are some of the pros going at it this summer:

https://youtu.be/spWO-VeS5tc Steve: I can just envision Jake blazing around... he looks like he has his share of fast-twitch.

Italuminium

Cool, that old detroit track. I remember it from this article on Jalopnik. https://jalopnik.com/5631873/racing-m...lost-velodrome

SteveSGP

I've been meaning to get him up there, I'd like to see how he does.

I think they have a youth program up there don't they?

Mercian Rider

The track I grew up with was similar. We jokingly called it the "Powell Velodrome." It was a 1/4 mile inner track inside a larger track used to race Corvettes called Powell Speedway. It was banked, slightly--much like yours--and had potholes and plenty of weeds gwowing through the numerous cracks. We cleaned it up the best we could. It didn't stop us from having a huge amount of fun.

I've got a photo of fellow FBCI members on the Detroit track for the National Championships in 1973 or 74?--Bill Shook and Ted Waterbury. I'll share later.
My retired old Track Iron:

jwood72

I'll do my best to get up a picture of the closest thing we around here have to a track soon. I wish i had something like this to ride around on.

cb400bill

I'd be negligent if I didn't point out that there is a velodrome in the suburbs of Detroit.

"Welcome to The International Velodrome at Bloomer Park, Rochester Hills, Michigan
44° banking, 200 meters and pure excitement."

https://www.velodromeatbloomerpark.com/

Velognome 

Even in there current state, places like Wassenaar and Dorais Park Velodrome should be cheerished for what remains. Newark NJ used to be a hot bed of track racing; sadly all the tracks and buildings are gone!

Mercian Rider

Agreed--go and visit, take pictures, and ride while you can. The Powell "Velodrome" is long gone.

repechage

Must have been before that, The Track Nationals were held at Northbrook for 1973, 74 & 75 unfortunately. I really disliked Northbrook, was too shallow and the 200 meter line was in a bad place. The track did make one think more, on a track with decent banking to slow down all one had to do was ease up the track, Northbrook was essentially flat in the straights, you had to backpedal.

Pontiac held the Road Nationals in 1974, on a section of Woodward avenue and Wide Track Circle. With carpets over the train tracks. In '74 I rode the track in Detroit for training a bit, even then it was not a place I would want to be near after dark. If I remember, kind of like Encino but the turns were of equal radii, and a bit less banked. Encino is a bit different, the straights are not parallel. Turn 1 & 2 are a bit tighter than 3 & 4.

Mercian Rider

Found it--I had the right track, right riders, but wrong race. It was the September 1973 Detroit Six. Wife has hidden the camera, and I'll photo and post when I find it. It will be low quality--what I have is a low tech newsletter.

Do you remember any FBCI riders? Bill Shook, Ted Waterbury, John Chaimberlain? We wore green and white striped jerseys:

divineAndbright

I'd love a place like that just to do classic time trialing without having to worry about traffic and such (at least if no one else is planning on using it!), plus its flat and consistently the same.

Mercian Rider

As promised. I see Waturbury and Shook are not wearing FBCI jerseys in the race. I don't recall the story, but there's references to Shook being an "ex-FBCI" rider in the '74 PPCs. He did still ride in some club events.

The text is from the page opposite the photo.

Chuck Winkelman had a dream of buying a portable wodden track--I recall him asking me to hit my dad up for money. It never got off the ground.

Also included from the page opposite the photo are results of one night at Powell Speedeway. I was a junior--Keith M.

Ray R

Newark was managed in the teens by Major Taylor's archrival Floyd MacFarland. He was stabbed to death there during an argument with a vendor who wanted to post advertising on the boards. It was one of the top tracks in the country in the early 20th Century.

Robofunc

Newark, the murder capitol of America.

-holiday76

speaking of Velodromes, I just realized this place is right down the road from where I am now and where i'll be living shortly:

https://www.ridethetrack.com/index.html

anyone ever been?