Riverside Speedway Reconstruction Passes Pivotal Point With Paving

JAMES RIVER, NS (2006 July 9) - The reconstruction of Riverside Speedway passed a pivotal point Friday with the paving of the high-banked 1/4-mile race track. The paving project has been in the planning stages since late February so that a seamless racing surface would be the end result. Temperature would be critical as would a clear, dry day - and a paving crew that didn't mind operating such heavy machinery on the 30-degree banked turns. All of the planning culminated Friday - and the plan worked - with near perfect weather conditions of 26 degrees, blue skies and a light breeze.

"We did it 35 years ago," said John Chisholm, new track owner - and original track owner that built the track in 1969. "So I knew it could be done."

The first stage of the paving process actually happened Wednesday. With a good forecast for Friday, a special tack coat was spread on the old asphalt surface to prepare it for the new asphalt.

"It's a new material that allows us to keep the asphalt base we had and causes the new asphalt to stick to the old," explained Chisholm. "This will actually work out better than digging up the old - it also ensures we keep the integrity of the track shape."

Then they crossed their fingers and waited to see if the forecast would indeed materialize. As of 4:40 Thursday afternoon there was still some question as there was now a threat of showers for Friday. Luckily, that system passed and clear skies prevailed.

A steady convoy of asphalt trucks rolled in and out of Riverside Speedway Friday. But they only got as far as the pit entrance - they were too big and too heavy to be on the track and use the traditional process where they dump the asphalt straight into the paving machine. So the asphalt was dumped on a conveyor belt which loaded the asphalt in the buckets of front end loaders that continuously carried the asphalt to the paving machine on the track. They started with the two pit roads (front and back) then three laps around by the paving machine would be needed to do the racing surface, plus another for the apron. The paving project work started at daybreak and was finished by nightfall.

And just in case there was a mechanical malfunction, there was a spare piece of equipment in the parking lot for each of the machines used in the paving process - as timing was critical to ensure the smooth seamless surface Chisholm not only envisioned, but insisted on.

Work has been steadily ongoing since January when original track owner John Chisholm re-purchased the historic oval. The 37-year-old facility was in dire need of renovations, so much so that Chisholm decided to totally rebuild.

And rebuild he has done - and continues to do. Excepting the Trans Canada Highway that runs alongside the facility and a restaurant billboard that sits in the back stretch area parking lot, the site does not even resemble it's former look. Acres of trees have been cleared to make room for the spectators expected to fill the 8,000 seats in the new grandstands, for which the first support pole was driven Friday. The bank that the stands sit on has been totally reshaped to be about eight feet higher than it's former plateau, and now stretches all the way from turn four to turn one.

The infield is totally cleared and free from obstruction, except for the elaborate red brick multi-unit tech building, that will also house pit washrooms and the pit canteen. There are now two pit roads, one on the front stretch and one on the back stretch - both paved - and accessible from the paved apron that runs around the inside of the racing surface. The infrastructure (wiring, water, etc.) required for the infield structures is all underground. A new vertical 10-position electronic scoreboard has just arrived and is awaiting installation. Lighting will be powered by self-sufficient generators - eliminating the problematic electrical glitches that have plagued the speedway in recent years.

Just about the only thing that hasn't changed is what made Riverside Speedway famous - the track. A course that is counted among the favorites of racing legends, locally and beyond. Even in it's dilapidated state the past few years it was still the most popular and exciting track in the Maritimes. Add a fresh coat of smooth asphalt and one can only imagine the excitement to come.

George Koszkulics, Maritime racing veteran from nearby New Glasgow who honed his racing talent at Riverside Speedway in its early years, and a multi-time pro stock winner at Riverside Speedway since then, was on hand observing the paving process.

"It should be at least a full second faster," said Koszkulics with a twinkle in his eye and a grin on his face. "I can't wait."

Chisholm, too, was excited Friday. To see a vision that he's had in his head for a long time come to fruition.

This is a big step," said Chisholm. "You'll be amazed how fast the rest will come together now."

Riverside Speedway reopens August 19 with The Antigonish Mall 100 for the CARQUEST Pro Stock Tour - expected to draw as many as 40 entries. Advance tickets will be available; location details will be posted on CheckersToWreckers.com and RiversideSpeedway.ca when available.

Riverside Speedway is located in James River, between New Glasgow and Antigonish, next to Trans Canada Highway 104 at exit 30.

Click here to see the Rebuilding of Riverside Speedway Photo Gallery - lots and lots of pictures...

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