Race Track - History

History

There is some evidence of racetracks being developed in several ancient civilizations, but the most impressive ancient racetracks were certainly the hippodromes of the Ancient Greeks and the circuses of the Roman Empire. Both of these structures were designed for horse and chariot racing. The stadium of the Circus Maximus in Rome, Italy, is an example that could hold 200,000 spectators.

Racing facilities existed during the Middle Ages and there are records of a public racecourse being opened at Newmarket in London in 1174. In 1780 the Earl of Derby created a horse-racing course on his estate at Epsom; the English Derby continues to be held there today.

With the advent of the automobile in the late 19th/early 20th century, racetracks were designed to suit the nature of powered machines. The earliest tracks were modified horse racing courses, and racing automobiles in these facilities began in September, 1896, at Narragansett Park in Cranston, RI. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway was opened in August 1909.

During the 1920s, many of the races on the AAA Championship were on high banked wooden race tracks called board tracks.

Modern racetracks are designed with spectator safety paramount, following incidents of spectator and track marshals fatalities. These often involve run off areas, barriers and high fencing.