A few years ago I got turned onto TV shows like Expedition Unknown with Josh Gates, he gets to travel the World looking for hidden cities and treasures. I have fantasized about making my own show, looking for long lost race cars and tracks (Yes, I know Dale Jr. has a similar show but it is circle track based). I have pitched the idea to international team owners and racers, everyone loves the idea but we all have the same reality, not enough of the general public cares. So instead, you get this, my Voodoo Speed Cult version, Circuit Expedition. Things come, things go, It’s the way it is. The things that go away are always missed, they hold a place in our hearts and minds. Over time the memories become grander, exaggerated and often bigger than life. Race tracks are one of those things that unfortunately always go away, if you were lucky enough to go while they were around you are lucky, if you never got to a track that is now gone, you missed out but luckily you get to hear the grand stories of the past, the epic battles, the close calls, the amazing drives. Lets take a look at some of those legendary circuits that are no more.
Reims Circuit
The rest of the tracks in this article are in the USA but the Reims Circuit needs to be here simply for what still remains. Located in the Champagne region of north-eastern France was a 2.8 miles track that started hosting races in 1926. The front straight and pit lane were on a public roadway. The track ran races until 1972 and hosted Formula One and sports car races. Racers like Fangio, Ascari, Moss and Brabham raced and won at the Reims Circuit. The front straight of the track on the public roadway is still being used today, the grandstands are still there as is the race control tower and the pit stalls thanks to a small non-profit that is dedicated to maintaining the buildings. It has become a very popular place for car enthusiasts to shoot photos and videos.
Continental Divide Raceway
This is a track that you may have actually driven right past and not even known it. The track is/was right off Interstate 25 north of Denver Colorado and the Pikes Peak Mountain. From the freeway the bridge is still very visible as is much of the 2.8 mile race track. The track hosted a number of professional races with the likes of Jerry Titus, George Follmer and Mark Donohue running SCCA Trans Am races, Indy Car raced there too with Mario Andretti winning the Rocky Mountain 150. The track stopped running in 1982. The land was bought for a housing development which to this day has never happened.
Bridgehamption
Races took places in Bridgehampton all the way back in 1915 on public roads, in 1949 the actual circuit opened but quickly closed in 1953 due to safety issues. In 1957 the track reopened with a safe and very fast 2.8 mile track. The track, located in New York hosted Can-Am, SCCA Trans Am and NASCAR races until 1983 when the town passed a sound ordinance which ended any professional racing. The track remained open for club/amateur racing until 1997 when the land was bought and turned into a golf course. Much of the track still remains today as does the famous Chevron Bridge.
Agusta International Raceway
This is another story of people moving close to a race track and then complaining that the track was to noisy. No shit! You moved next to a race track and expected it to be quiet? Fucking people! This track is mostly still there today in Georgia. The 3 miles circuit raced around a lake between 1960 and 1970. The track featured many European features like big elevation changes, long high banked corners, trees right along the track, they used the Zandoort circuit (which was supposed to see F1 action in 2020 before the Covid pandemic schedule change) in the Netherlands as inspiration for design
Marlboro Motor Raceway
Marlboro has been gone for a long time, they last raced in 1969 yet you can still see remains of the track off of US Route 301 just outside of Upper Marlboro, Maryland. The track was a staple for racing on the East Coast, it was such a popular track that Chevrolet created a Corvette color named after the track, Marlboro Maroon Metallic. Now get this, the track had nothing to do with the tobacco company, it was named after the local town yet Marlboro cigarettes received tremendous free marketing due to the tracks name and is largely responsible for Marlboro cigarettes becoming a large motorsports sponsor due to the free exposure they received from the track. Each year the track hosted a 12 hour endurance race which in 1966 was part of the SCCA Trans Am series. The end of the track came when Summit Point Raceway opened which was much safer and offered more amenities. Summit Point pays tribute to the Marlboro still to this day in a number of ways including a similar layout on their Jefferson Circuit and with a large art piece Posted at the top of this article) in the track classroom.
There are hundreds more around the World, get out there and find one.