Riverside International Raceway

Riverside International Raceway
The dusty place
1957-1960: Riverside International Motor Raceway

Address: California 60 and Day Street, Moreno Valley California
near Riverside , California , USA
Route type:	permanent race track
Architect:	William L. Duquette
Building-costs:	$ 625,000
Start of building:	January 1957
Opening:	September 22, 1957
Formula 1 venue :	1960
Decommissioned:	3rd July 1989
Demolition:	1989
Long course
Route data
Important events:	NASCAR Winston Cup Winston Western 500 (1958–1987) Budweiser 400 (1970–1988) IMSA Los Angeles Times Grand Prix Formula 1 Grand Prix of the USA (1960) IndyCar World Series AirCal 500 / LA Times 500 (1981–1983) IROC
Route length:	5.25  km (3.26  mi )

Coordinates: 33 ° 56 ′ 13.2 "  N , 117 ° 16 ′ 21.2"  W.

The Riverside International Raceway (also known as RIR or Riverside Raceway ) was a racetrack near Riverside , California . The NASCAR Winston Cup races were among the most important events . In 1960, the US Grand Prix was also a run for the Formula 1 World Championship. The Riverside International Raceway was also a dreaded race track. After a driver had a fatal accident in the opening race, many more drivers lost their lives before it was closed.

Route configuration

The circuit was designed so that different types of motorsport races could be held. There were four different configurations available. The longest version was 3.27 mi (5.25 km) in length. The shortest was 2.5 mi (4.16 km) long, with a straight turn from the hairpin in the infield onto the back straight. The course driven by NASCAR was 2.62 mi (4.22 km) long. The infield was left out completely. In addition to these three circuit variants, there was also a 0.4 mi (0.7 km) long route for dragster acceleration races on the back straight. In the original configuration, the length of this straight line was 1.1 mi (1.77 km). In 1969 the layout of the track was changed and the curve radius at the end of the back straight was increased.

• 

  Route 1969–1989

history

Construction work on the line began in January 1957. After just eight months of construction, the inaugural race took place on September 22, 1957. The original plan was to build a 5 mi (8.05 km) long line. After the partial completion in 1957, the extension was never realized and after the renovation in 1969 the length was 3.27 mi (5.25 km).

John Lawrence from Pasadena , California, had a fatal accident right at this California Sports Car Club race . The champion in the class of production vehicles up to 1500 cm³ got off the track in turn 5, shot up the sand dune and then rolled back onto the track. Although Lawrence survived the actual accident and appeared only slightly injured, he later died in the hospital from a brain injury.

On November 20, 1960, Formula 1 was a guest at the Riverside International Raceway and hosted the US Grand Prix . This final round of the 1960 World Championship , which Stirling Moss won, was to remain the only Formula 1 event in Riverside.

On January 19, 1964, the NASCAR racing driver and champion of the two previous years Joe Weatherly had a fatal accident. As he was known as a joker in the series, his gravestone shows a likeness of the racetrack as a special tribute.

Riverside was also the only racetrack on which an IMSA driver had a fatal accident. In the Los Angeles Times Grand Prix on April 24, 1983, the lost Porsche 935 of Rolf Stommelen his rear wing in Turn 9, crashed into two barriers and overturned several times.

On June 12, 1988 Ruben Garcia came off the track at the Budweiser 400 , NASCAR's last race on the track, before the last hairpin bend. The car broke through two concrete barriers and only came to a stop shortly before the spectators in front of a protective fence. No spectators were injured in this accident.

After SCORE International had completed the last race on the racetrack in 1989, the Riverside International Raceway closed its doors after 32 years. Fritz Duda, the last owner of the route, then built a supermarket on the site, which opened in 1992. It is located at the northern end of the former racetrack. The southern end has been transformed into a residential area. After the former administration building had to make way for new residential buildings in 2005, the Riverside International Raceway has completely disappeared.

In 2003, plans were made to build a race track in Merced with a track layout based on the RIR. The project called "Riverside Motorsports Park" was finally abandoned after irregularities in the financing in 2009 before construction work had even started.

Movie and TV

The Riverside International Raceway was a popular location for filming. Parts of the TV series CHiPs , Simon & Simon and Knight Rider were shot in Riverside. The non-broadcast pilot episode “Riding With Death” of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 series also contained film footage from the race track.

statistics

Winner of the Formula 1 race in Riverside

year	driver	constructor	engine	tires	time	Route length	Round	Ø pace	date	GP the
1960	Stirling Moss	lotus	Climax	D.	2: 28: 52,200 h	5.271 km	75	159.330 km / h	20th November	United States

Web links

Commons : Riverside International Raceway  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• NASCAR statistics on racing-reference.info

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Riverside Motorsports Park CEO says plan for track is dead. (No longer available online.) Merced Sun Star, July 24, 2009, archived from the original on January 12, 2012 ; accessed on April 25, 2012 (English).