Riverside Park Speedway

Riverside Park Speedway was a 1/4 mile oval race track, located inside of Riverside Amusement Park in Agawam, Massachusetts, one mile north of the Massachusetts/Connecticut state line.

To capitalize on the nation's new attraction to auto racing following World War II, park owner Edward J. Carroll demolished the dance hall that had burned down in 1948. In its place rose a flat 1/5 mile oval track, pit area and grandstand alongside the Connecticut River. The first full season of "modified" stock car racing was 1949. International sports car racing star Phil Walters, who raced modifieds and midgets under the name "Ted Tappett", won the season championship. The United Stock Car Racing Club events drew 6,000-8,000 fans every Saturday night.

Each summer's signature event was the "Riverside 500", a 500 lap "tag-team" race with 16 two-car teams. One car would pull into the infield pit area for service, and "tag" his teammate's bumper to go out and replace him on the track.

The track was reconfigured twice over the years, ending up as a progressively banked 1/4 mile oval under NASCAR sanction. The track was used several times for rock concerts, notably Radio 104.1 WMRQ's "Radio 104 Fest" and "The Big Day Off."

The track closed at the end of the 1999 season.^[1] In 2000 when the park re-opened as Six Flags New England the race track was gone, with the new DC Comics-themed amusement park in its place.

References

Coordinates: 42°2′17.7″N 72°36′42.96″W / 42.038250°N 72.6119333°W / 42.038250; -72.6119333