History Abandoned Paved Banked Oval in Northern CA

Google Earth Grass Valley, CA. Follow the main road out of town to the east towards Marysville. The track is 9-10 miles west of Marysville and about 1/4 mile north of what's left of Marysville lake, between the lake and the road.

 

evintho : That should be state hwy 20 WEST out of Grass Valley, & if it's the track I think you mean, it was the "Brown's Valley Speedway", & a part of a now defunct motorsports park south of the hwy roughly where Brown's Valley road branches off to the North. When I last saw it 20+ yrs ago there were trees growing up around it & over the entire property, so this might not be the same place. Entry after 5:00pm : Googled the area. Surprise!! the track is named Sierra Mesa National Raceway, & is claimed(on the map, anyway) to be the first paved oval racetrack on the west coast. The trees aren't as close as I remembered, so this could be the one?

 

Yep, Sierra Mesa. See my post (#19). As for my doubting the Google info of it being the first paved oval in the West...I looked up a couple of random Socal tracks. Cajon Speedway=paved 1966. Saugus Speedway-paved 1946/1956. I'm sure there's plenty more.

 

This is a group on facebook
Retired Race Cars and Abandoned Race Tracks

 

Here is a picture of our car (driven by J.C. Danielsen of Chico)at the first event. The track was not near complete and the paving began coming apart during practice. As I remember the grandstands were not completed so the promotor went to a wrecking yard and lined up take-out car seats for the spectators to sit on. The footprint of the track is still there and every time I drive by I still remember that race day. Boy am I showing my age now!

 

A Mercury, now that is cool.

 

I just found this and signed up to chime in. The way I heard it, a race was held in 1973 where a path was cut in through the trees past turn one. They raced though the wash and the trees this particular event. After exiting the trees the dirt portion met up with the asphalt in or near turn 3. Due to dust it caused issues on highway 20 and was called short of the expected number of laps after CHP involvement. This was Saturday April 28, 1973. The day the train yard explosions happened in Roseville.