Edmonton International Speedway, also known as ''Speedway Park'', was a multi-track auto racing facility located in the present

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic counties of England, historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th c ...

and Hudson neighbourhoods of

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

, Alberta, Canada. The facility featured a dragstrip, a 14-turn road course, and a -mile short oval. At its peak, it had capacity for over 30,000 fans.

History

In the late 1940s, the dirt-surfaced Breckenridge Oval opened on the site. In 1952, the oval was shortened and paved as a -mile asphalt oval, and the 8,000-seat facility was renamed Speedway Park. In 1967, the -mile drag strip opened and had a full length of . In 1968, the road course opened in time for the first

Can-Am The Canadian-American Challenge Cup, or Can-Am, was an SCCA/ CASC sports car racing series from 1966 to 1987. History Can-Am started out as a race series for group 7 sports racers with two races in Canada (''Can'') and four races in the United ...

race. Over the years, the facility also hosted Formula Atlantic, Formula 1600, Formula 5000,

Trans-Am The Trans-Am Series is a sports car racing series held in North America. Founded in 1966, it is sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). Primarily based in the United States, the series competes on a variety of track types includi ...

, as well as NHRA-sanctioned drag racing. Qualico Developments was the land owner in the latter years. The track closed in 1982, after the area was annexed by the City of Edmonton. Qualico then converted the land to housing. Edmonton would be without any form of professional racing until Capital City Raceway Park opened in 1991.

In popular culture

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...

's movie, ''

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is a monthly American business magazine published in print and online that focuses on technology, business, and design. It publishes six print issues per year. History ''Fast Company'' was launched in November 1995 by Alan Web ...

'' (1979), was primarily filmed at Edmonton International Speedway.

Major Series

Can-Am

* The thunderous Can-Am series raced in Edmonton from 1968-1973, where the race was known as the ''Klondike 200'', and the primary sponsor was Molson Brewery. * Denny Hulme won all four races from 1968 to 1971, while

Mark Donohue Mark Neary Donohue Jr. (March 18, 1937 – August 19, 1975), nicknamed "Captain Nice," and later "Dark Monohue," was an American race car driver and engineer known for his ability to set up his own race car as well as driving it to victories. D ...

won the 1972 and 1973 races driving a

Porsche 917 The Porsche 917 is a sports prototype race car developed by German manufacturer Porsche to exploit the regulations regarding the construction of 5-litre sports cars. Powered by a Type 912 flat-12 engine which was progressively enlarged from ...

for

Roger Penske Roger Searle Penske (born February 20, 1937) is an American businessman and entrepreneur involved in professional auto racing and a retired professional auto racing driver. He is most famous for his ownership of Team Penske, DJR Team Penske, ...

. * Other well-known Can-Am drivers that raced at EIS included Bruce McLaren, Jackie Stewart, Peter Revson, Jacky Ickx, and Danny Sullivan.

Formula 5000

* The Canadian Road Racing Championship raced F5000 cars twice at EIS: ** June 22, 1969 (Winner:

Eppie Wietzes Egbert "Eppie" Wietzes (28 May 1938 – 10 June 2020) was a racing driver from Canada. Formula One Wietzes was born in Assen, Netherlands in 1938, and emigrated with his family to Canada when he was 12 years old. He participated in two Formula ...

, Lola) ** June 14, 1970 (Winner: Eppie Wietzes,

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited is a British motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor, the second oldest active team, and the second most successful Formu ...

) * The

Sports Car Club of America The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting road racing, rallying, and autocross in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs many programs for both amateur and professional ...

(SCCA) raced F5000 cars three times at EIS: ** May 24, 1970 (Winner: Ron Grable, Lola) ** August 1, 1971 (Winner: David Hobbs, McLaren) ** June 4, 1972 (Winner: David Hobbs, Lola) * When the SCCA put full-bodies on F5000 cars and called them ''Can Am'' cars, this series raced once at EIS: ** August 16, 1981 (Winner: Geoff Brabham, VDS) Villeneuve & Rosberg Formula Atlantic EIS 1977

Formula Atlantic

* Formula Atlantic was originally called Formula B, and as FB it raced in Edmonton three times: ** June 20, 1971 (Winner: Jacques Couture, Lotus) ** June 25, 1972 (Winner: Ric Forrest,

March March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March ...

) ** July 3, 1973 (Winner: Alan Lader) * The speedway brought in the Formula Atlantic series from 1974–1977, and again in 1981: ** June 2, 1974 (Winner:

Bill Brack William Brack (born 26 December 1935) is a Canadian former racing driver. Brack raced in Formula One and the Atlantic Championship. Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Brack originally became involved in auto racing in the early 1960s, in the for ...

, Lotus) ** May 24, 1975 (Winner: Bertil Roos, March) ** May 16, 1976 (Winner: Gilles Villeneuve, March) ** July 3, 1977 (Winner: Gilles Villeneuve, March) ** August 15, 1981 (Winner: Tim Coconis,

Ralt Ralt was a manufacturer of single-seater racing cars, founded by ex- Jack Brabham associate Ron Tauranac after he sold out his interest in Brabham to Bernie Ecclestone. Ron and his brother had built some specials in Australia in the 1950s unde ...

) * Other well-known Atlantic drivers that raced at EIS include

Bobby Rahal Robert Woodward Rahal (born January 10, 1953) is an American former auto racing driver and team owner. As a driver he won three championships and 24 races in the CART open-wheel series, including the 1986 Indianapolis 500. He also won the 2004 a ...

, Keke Rosberg, Elliott Forbes-Robinson, Kevin Cogan, and Howdy Holmes.

Trans-Am

* The SCCA's Trans-Am series raced at EIS twice: ** June 20, 1971 (Winner:

, AMC Javelin) ** August 19, 1973 (Winner: John Greenwood,

Chevrolet Corvette The Chevrolet Corvette is a two-door, two-passenger luxury sports car manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet since 1953. With eight design generations, noted sequentially from C1 to C8, the Corvette is noted for its performance and distinctiv ...

)

Lap Records

The fastest official race lap records at Edmonton International Speedway are listed as:

References

External links

Detailed track map
{{Authority control Sports venues in Edmonton Defunct motorsport venues in Canada Defunct drag racing venues 1966 establishments in Alberta Sports venues completed in 1953 1982 disestablishments in Alberta Sports venues demolished in 1982 Defunct sports venues in Canada Demolished buildings and structures in Alberta Demolished sports venues Motorsport venues in Alberta