Illinois State Fairgrounds Racetrack facts for kids
| The Springfield Mile | |
|---|---|
| Location | Springfield, Illinois |
| Time zone | GMT-6 |
| Coordinates | 39°50′12.8″N 89°38′31.2″W / 39.836889°N 89.642000°W |
| Owner | State of Illinois |
| Operator | Bob Sargent / Track Enterprises |
| Opened | c. 1853 |
| Major events | ARCA Racing Series SuperChevyStores.com 100 USAC Silver Crown Series Bettenhausen 100 American Flat Track |
| Oval | |
| Surface | Clay |
| Length | 1 mi (1.6 km) |
| Turns | 4 |
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Illinois State Fairgrounds
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| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Location | Jct. of Sangamon Ave. and Peoria Rd., Springfield, Illinois |
| Area | 366 acres (148 ha) |
| Built | 1894 |
| Architect | Hammond, Charles Herrick |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| MPS | Historic Fairgrounds in Illinois MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 90000720 |
| Added to NRHP | May 14, 1990 |
The Illinois State Fairgrounds Racetrack is a famous one-mile long oval track made of clay. It's located on the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield, Illinois, which is the capital city of Illinois. This track is often called "The Springfield Mile."
It was built a long time ago, in the late 1800s, and then rebuilt in 1927. Car races have been held here since 1910, making it one of the oldest racetracks in the United States. It's also the oldest track that has continuously hosted national championship dirt track races, with the first one taking place in 1934. The Springfield Mile holds five world records for car racing, showing it's one of the fastest dirt tracks anywhere! Since 1993, Bob Sargent's Track Enterprises has been in charge of managing the venue.
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About the Springfield Mile
The Illinois State Fairgrounds Racetrack is a very special place for racing fans. It's known for its unique clay surface, which makes for exciting and sometimes unpredictable races. The track is exactly one mile long, shaped like an oval, and has four turns.
What Races Happen Here?
Today, the Illinois State Fairgrounds Racetrack hosts several big racing events. These include:
- The Allen Crowe Memorial 100 ARCA stock car race.
- Races for USAC Silver Crown championship dirt cars.
- Events for UMP Late Models and Modifieds.
- The A.M.A. Grand National Championship for motorcycles.
A Historic Track
Many famous racers have competed at the Springfield Mile. Billy Winn won the very first national championship dirt track race here in 1934. A.J. Foyt, another racing legend, had his first national championship race at this track in August 1957.
The track is also home to two of the oldest memorial races in the U.S.:
- The Bettenhausen 100 for USAC dirt championship cars, which started in 1961.
- The Allen Crowe Memorial 100 stock car event, which began in 1963. This race is now part of the ARCA series.
Both of these important races are held on the last weekend of the Illinois State Fair each year. Chuck Gurney has won the Bettenhausen 100 seven times, which is a record! ARCA driver Frank Kimmel also won the Allen Crowe Memorial seven times, with his last win in 2008.
Championship History
The Bettenhausen 100 race was once part of the AAA/USAC Championship Car schedule for many years. It was included from 1934 to 1940, then from 1947 to 1970, and again in 1981 and 1982.
From 1946 to 1953, the winner of the A.M.A. Grand National Champion title was decided only by the results of the Springfield Mile race. In 2020, the Silver Crown race was held later than usual, on October 18. This was the latest a race had ever been held at the track in a year, and it became the final race of the season for the series.
See also
In Spanish: Illinois State Fairgrounds para niños
