8/9/21 2:59 PM SANTA MARIA RACEWAY HAS SUSPENDED OPERATIONS; RACES CANCELLED

http://usacracing.com/news/sprint-ca...aces-cancelled



SANTA MARIA RACEWAY HAS SUSPENDED OPERATIONS; RACES CANCELLED

By Lance Jennings

AUGUST 9, 2021... Earlier today, officials with Santa Maria Raceway have announced that they are suspending operations. From their social media post “It is with deep regret that we are forced to announce the indefinite suspension of operations at Stadium805 and the Santa Maria Raceway. The ongoing efforts of the County of San Luis Obispo and the Costa Pacifica Estates Homeowners Association to shut down our facility, and the legal fees defending the actions, has made it financially impossible to continue operating this facility in the way it has operated for decades. This is extremely frustrating as from the beginning we have made every effort to operate under the direct guidance from the County of San Luis Obispo.”

The announcement also states that there are two contracted events that will be run at the facility in August. Those events are non-racing related. All upcoming races at Santa Maria Raceway have been cancelled.

USAC officials are looking into other options for the dates that were scheduled at Santa Maria. As of this writing, the following races are cancelled:

AMSOIL USAC/CRA SPRINT CAR SERIES:

August 14: Santa Maria Raceway – Santa Maria, CA (Bud Stanfield Memorial)

USAC WEST COAST SPRINT CAR SERIES:

August 28: Santa Maria Raceway – Santa Maria, CA (Ron Otto Memorial)

USAC WESTERN STATES MIDGET SERIES:

August 28: Santa Maria Raceway – Santa Maria, CA (Ron Otto Memorial)

The AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series will return to Perris Auto Speedway (Perris, CA) on Saturday, August 21st, for the “California Racers Hall of Fame Night.”

The USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series will clash at Bakersfield Speedway (Bakersfield, CA) on Saturday, September 18th. The following night, the series will make their first appearance at The Dirt Track at Kern County Raceway Park (Bakersfield, CA).*

The USAC Western States Midgets will battle at Ventura Raceway (Ventura, CA) on Saturday, September 11th.

For more information on the AMSOIL USAC/CRA Sprint Car Series, USAC West Coast Sprint Car Series, or the USAC Western States Midgets, visit the United States Auto Club (USAC) website at usacracing.com and the social media for USAC Racing. You can also find exclusive content on the USAC/CRA Sprint, USAC West Coast, Sprint, and USAC Western States Midget Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.*

FloRacing.com has live, flag-to-flag coverage of the United States Auto Club (USAC). You can catch the action by subscribing to FloRacing on a monthly or yearly basis to view their huge catalog of live and on-demand auto racing and sporting events.

That's a gut punch. The track was there long before urban sprawl encroached. Another of the great tracks of my youth about to go under unless a miracle occurs. Carpinteria Thunderbowl, Gardena Stadium, Ascot, Saugus, Baylands, all gone too soon.

The spirit of private property rights in this country are hanging by a thread. It is sad to see.

If greedy property owners didn't sell the land around it to make sub divisions it wouldn't be happening

[QUOTE=BrentTFunk;543162]If greedy property owners didn't sell the land around it to ma
ke sub divisions it wouldn't be happening[/Q

I've been racing there since the mid 80's and it blows my mind to the amount of the development that has happened in the Santa Maria area over the past few decades.
It was only a matter of time.

The greed often extends to the elected officials who climb into bed with developers who then use eminent domain or unrealistic tax revaluation to force the property owner to sell. I've seen it before. The powerful win and they don't care if it's not fair.

I’m surprised that Perris is still open with all of the high dollar houses around them.