Home Archives About This Site Photo Gallery Advertise
Carson City, Nevada; September 25, 2005
As the sun set above Champion Speedway at round six of the MX West Fall Series, it marked the ending of more than just another day at the track. It marked the end of the track itself. The 42-year-old northern Nevada racetrack closed its gates forever after a final day of motocross that drew more than 350 riders, many of whom attended to pay their last respects to a course that they have raced at for decades. Jimmy Hazel (317), 19, who raced his very first race at Carson when he was 4, topped the 125cc and 250cc Pro classes. He paused when asked how many laps he has done on the circuit in the past 15 years. “Hundred and hundred and hundreds,” Hazel said. “Yesterday at practice I must have put in at least a hundred, just to get the most out of it. I’m going to miss this place a lot.” The track, which opened in 1963 as an auto-racing oval and later added a motocross track, met its end earlier this year when the track owners sold the land, citing falling car-race turnouts and ever-higher offers from real-estate developers. But despite the dwindling number of racecar fans appearing at the track, the motocross track has been growing in popularity for years. “I remember that a hundred riders used to be a good turnout for me,” said Robert Hansen, the promoter of Carson’s motocross events from 1988 to 1999 and the current director of arenacross for Clear Channel. “Now they’re getting 300 to 400 easily. So many people have put so much effort into this over the years, like Rod Dunivent, Jim Holley, Tom DiLoreto, Greg King, Steve Garnett, Rich Thorwaldson and Vic Wilson. I understand why it’s closing, but a lot of kids are going to miss this place.” Ty Erquiaga, the head of Nevada Motocross Development, which promoted the Carson motocross events during its final two years, has himself raced at Carson for more than 20 years. Erquiaga said that recent circumstances, which included legal challenges from the track’s neighbors, made the closing an inevitable conclusion. “It’s bittersweet,” Erquiaga said of the success of the final race. “It’s really unfortunate that the neighbors and community in this area didn’t support the place better. Our livelihood here has been crippled by permit restrictions. The natural conclusion of that was the sale of the track.” The actual racing at this final event, however, conveyed none of the sorrow that longtime riders inevitably felt at the loss of the track. The motos went on as usual atop the famously loamy Carson soil, closing the final chapter of a track that nearly everyone on hand said they will miss deeply. “It stinks,” said Aron Harvey, 17, of the closure. Harvey topped the 125cc Intermediate, 250cc Intermediate, and Schoolboy Division One classes and has raced Carson since he began racing three-and-a-half years ago. “But we’ll get something better. There’s always something better. (Motocross) is just going to get bigger here.” Look for coverage of this event in Cycle News in a few weeks. Results
|