Milwaukee Mile

Milwaukee Mile
America’s Legendary Oval
The Mile
Wisconsin State Fair Park Speedway

Address: Wisconsin State Fair Park 7722 West Greenfield Avenue, West Allis, Wisconsin, 53214
West Allis , Wisconsin , USA
Owner:	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Operator:	Milwaukee Mile LLC
Opening:	September 11, 1903
Speedway oval
oval
Route data
Route length:	1,660  km (1.03  mi )
Curve superelevation:	Curves: 9.25 °, straight lines: 2.5 °
Audience capacity:	45,000
http://www.milwaukeemile.com

Coordinates: 43 ° 1 ′ 15 ″  N , 88 ° 0 ′ 40 ″  W.

The Milwaukee Mile is a racetrack opened in 1903 in West Allis , Wisconsin, USA . The oval course was unpaved until 1953 , it was not paved until 1954. Contrary to its name, the oval is a little longer than a mile with a length of 1.66 kilometers. In the current configuration, as of 2009, the grandstands of the racetrack can accommodate 45,000 people.

The Milwaukee Mile is the world's oldest active speedway, and has hosted at least one car race a year since it opened in 1903. It is located on the grounds of the Wisconsin State Fair . Events from a wide variety of motorsport associations have taken place there, including the American Automobile Association , the United States Automobile Club , NASCAR , CART / Champ Car and the Indy Racing League . In addition to these large series, races from various regional series took place.

history

Dirt racetrack

The history of the racetrack goes back to the end of the 19th century. At that point was a mile long private racecourse circa 1876. In 1891 the Agricultural Society of the State of Wisconsin acquired the site for the Wisconsin State Fair .

The first event took place on September 11, 1903. Chicago's William Jones won a five-lap race and set the first course record with 72 seconds per lap, which is a speed of around 50 mph. In 1907 and 1908 a 24-hour race was held on the Milwaukee Mile. The first 100 mile race in 1915 was won by Louis Disbrow with an average speed of 62.5 mph.

Barney Oldfield had particular success on the racetrack , which had a decisive influence on his status as a legend. In 1905 he set a new lap record and in 1910 he stepped up his “Blitzen Benz” and increased the average speed to 70.159 miles per hour. A year later, Ralph DePalma won the first race of the Championship Cars, just a week before his Indianapolis 500 victory . In June 1917, however, he had to admit defeat to Oldfield with his spectacular racing coupé Miller "Golden Submarine" with aerodynamic body, which won a series of races between 10 and 25 miles against him.

The first Champ Car event took place on July 17, 1933. However, the day was rainy. Wilbur Shaw and the other drivers convinced the organizers to start the race the following day. This led to the formation of the term "Rain Date".

In the 1930s, new grandstands were installed that offered a total of 14,900 spectators. They replaced the original grandstands from 1914. In 1938 they were also roofed over. These grandstands stood until September 2002, when they were replaced by new grandstands made of aluminum.

In 1937 there was a Champ Car race that became known due to a counting error. Instead of the planned 100 laps, only 96 laps were completed. Rex Mays won this race and continued his dominance into the 1940s, when he won the race in 1941 and the first after World War II in 1946.

A year later, the tradition began to hold the race after that in Indianapolis. Since then, between 1947 and 1980, more touring car and champ car races have taken place on the Milwaukee Mile than on any other circuit in the United States.

Asphalt track

In 1954 the one-mile oval was paved. The 0.25 mile unpaved course in the track's infield was maintained for the weekly events in the 1950s and 1960s.

In 1963, Jim Clark won the first race in a rear-engined Champ Car in a Lotus-Ford. A year later, AJ Foyt dominated the final race in a roadster before rear-engined cars began to dominate. But in 1965 there was still an unexpected race. AJ Foyt had to get his replacement front-engined car from Springfield to the Milwaukee Mile because his crew couldn't make it to qualifying in the squad car. Since the car was actually designed for unpaved racetracks, Foyt had to set it up for asphalt alone. With this car he achieved pole position at a speed of 107.881 mph. In the race, he led 16 of a total of 200 laps and finished second.

After the 1967 season, the route was re-paved. The remaining tracks in the infield were closed in 1970 to accommodate the pit lane.

In 1983 there was a controversial decision in the CART race. Tom Sneva won the race by 10 seconds. During the inspection of the racing cars after the race, an invalid ground clearance was found on the sides of the front apron, so that the second-placed Al Unser was awarded the victory. Sneva's objection was granted and two weeks later the victory was granted again. The following year, he benefited from extending the race from 100 to 200 miles when he overtook Rick Mears on the final lap and took his third straight win at Milwaukee.

In 1984 and 1985, two races of the NASCAR Nationwide Series were held in Milwaukee. Among the drivers were legends such as Alan Kulwicki , Dick Trickle , Bobby Allison , Davey Allison , Dale Jarrett and Darell Waltrip . The 1985 CART race was won by Mario Andretti after having secured pole position earlier. It was his fourth win on the Milwaukee Mile. The races for the next two years were won by his son Michael Andretti .

A year later, Al Unser Jr. won after Michael Andretti ran out of fuel two laps to go. In doing so, he secured a ninth win for the Unser family in Milwaukee, after his father Al Unser and Uncle Bobby Unser had each won four times.

The CART race in 1991 was again dominated by the Andretti family. It was the first time in the history of automobile racing that members of a family took the top three places. Michael Andretti won the race, his cousin John Andretti finished second and his father Mario Andretti third. His brother Jeff Andretti was also eleventh.

When there was a risk of losing the CART series race in 1992, Carl Haas was hired to organize all activities relating to the race track. This year's race was won again by Michael Andretti. A year later, the reigning Formula 1 world champion Nigel Mansell won in Milwaukee and secured his first victory on an oval course.

Until 2006 the Champcar made guest appearances on the oval course. From 2004 to 2007, races of the Indy Racing League were held parallel to the Champcar World Series . Since 2008, with one interruption in 2010, the Milwaukee Mile has been an integral part of the Indycar calendar following the merger of CCWS and IRL to form the new IndyCar Series . The traditional date was given up in early June as the first race after the Indy 500 .

Portions of this article appear since 2009 is out of date to be .
Please help to research and insert the missing information .

On July 3, 1993, the NASCAR Nationwide Series returned to Milwaukee. This first race was won by Steve Grissom . The race of the 1996 season went down in history. Wisconsin native Dick Trickle was overtaken by Buckshot Jones with four laps to go . Jones won the race 0.002 seconds ahead of Mike McLauglin. It was the narrowest lead in the history of the Nationwide Series and at the same time the race that was won from the highest starting position (32nd place). The only double success in two consecutive years was achieved by Greg Biffle in 2001 and 2002. Since 1995, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has also been a guest in Milwaukee. Mike Skinner won the opening race .

Route length

Historically, the Milwaukee Mile is a one-mile oval. The route length of exactly one mile is also used by NASCAR . After a new measurement by the CART, the route length in their timekeeping since 1997 has been given as 1.032 miles. The IRL and its successor ICS have determined the route length to be 1,015 miles.

Records

ARCA Racing Series

Type	distance	date	driver	time	Average speed ( mph / km / h )
Qualifying	1.006 miles 1.619 km 1 lap	2005	David Ragan	0: 00: 30,016	119.936 / 193.018

Indy Racing League

Type	distance	date	driver	time	Average speed ( mph / km / h )
Qualifying	1.015 miles 1.633 km 1 lap	2005	Sam Hornish Junior	0: 00: 21.456	170,302 / 274,016
run	228.375 miles 367.455 km 225 laps	2004	Dario Franchitti	1:46:49	128.281 / 206.403

NASCAR Nationwide Series

Type	distance	date	driver	time	Average speed ( mph / km / h )
Qualifying	1.006 miles 1.619 km 1 lap	June 25, 2005	Johnny Sauter	0: 00: 29.365	122.595 / 197.298
run	201,200 miles 323,800 km 200 laps	June 26, 2004	Ron Hornaday Jr.	2:26:59	105.052 / 169.065

Web links

Commons : Milwaukee Mile  - collection of pictures, videos, and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ imscdn - Website: ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 - Verizon IndyCar Series 2015. At: www.imscdn.com , accessed July 18, 2019 .