16th Street Speedway ( Bush Stadium) A Wreck

Tony Barhorst · 5/23/10, 9:03 PM

I knew that Bush Stadium was crumbling...But I did not know junk cars were being stored there. Check out this photo gallery from Star News.

http://photos.indystar.com/galleries...id=9624&num=15

There are 22 photos in the slide show..it seems that the link I have above is not showing them all..there are photos of the field and everything. Go to the Star News front page about half way down if you do not see all 22 photos.

http://www.indystar.com/

wildthing1h · 5/23/10, 9:13 PM

I didn't either until i was by there on fast friday. What a shame.
Posted via Mobile Device

Hurryinhoosier · 5/23/10, 9:19 PM

I thought i read somewhere that those were all Cash For Clunker cars....and if so, i think they should have been crushed by now as there was a time frame for disposal.

bobO · 5/23/10, 9:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hurryinhoosier

I thought i read somewhere that those were all Cash For Clunker cars....and if so, i think they should have been crushed by now as there was a time frame for disposal.

no its been a junk yard for over a year now maybe longer

Hurryinhoosier · 5/23/10, 9:41 PM

ahhh, I stand corrected...maybe.

http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=11472968

Torry · 5/23/10, 9:43 PM

The structure is there ONLY because it in on the Registry of Historic Places and it would cost the city a mountain to tear it down.

Call it a scam or whatever but the powers-that-be wanted it ripped down ( a la Market Square Arena and the Hoosier Dome) as soon as its replacement was built. The historical preservation people put a stop to that.

The period it spent as a racetrack was nothing more than an attempt to further insure it would never be used for baseball and to save the city the $100,000+ they were paying to be responsible for its maintenance.

the1jet17 · 5/23/10, 9:50 PM

I look at this and am saddened. I wanna go there one of these days. Summer is here. I wanna see and feel all the old memories. I have a poster of the track on my bedroom wall. It has a group photo of midgets done by Chris Young. I've wanted to go there since i can remember. I always admired that it was a dirt track that on a baseball stadium. And the place is just trashed now. All the papers and stuff thrown everywhere. It almost seems like whoever left it was pretty mad. I wonder what it would take to bring it back?

Tony Barhorst · 5/23/10, 10:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the1jet17

I look at this and am saddened. I wanna go there one of these days. Summer is here. I wanna see and feel all the old memories. I have a poster of the track on my bedroom wall. It has a group photo of midgets done by Chris Young. I've wanted to go there since i can remember. I always admired that it was a dirt track that on a baseball stadium. And the place is just trashed now. All the papers and stuff thrown everywhere. It almost seems like whoever left it was pretty mad. I wonder what it would take to bring it back?

When I was looking to expand USAC Midget Week in 2007..The thought crossed my mind to look into 16th Street...I took one look through the fence..and knew then that it would cost a fortune to get in shape...without the junk cars...I moved on to Kamp Motor Speedway...

But 16th Street when it was in good shape would have been a perfect place for a Thursday Midget Week race.

There is something very haunting about an old crumbling stadium or racetrack....I remember seeing Randy Johnson, Joe Oliver, and Rob Dibble play there in the late 80's.

bobO · 5/23/10, 10:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony Barhorst

When I was looking to expand USAC Midget Week in 2007..The thought crossed my mind to look into 16th Street...I took one look through the fence..and knew then that it would cost a fortune to get in shape...without the junk cars...I moved on to Kamp Motor Speedway...

But 16th Street when it was in good shape would have been a perfect place for a Thursday Midget Week race.

There is something very haunting about an old crumbling stadium or racetrack....I remember seeing Randy Johnson, Joe Oliver, and Rob Dibble play there in the late 80's.

tony -you & jet are both right she was a grand old lady that stod proud and with class it pisses me off everytime i have to drive by her now ... but in my heart i know what once was......

the1jet17 · 5/23/10, 11:11 PM

Atleast some of you have gotten to go. There are a lot of old historic tracks that you hear people talking about and that are closed now. I was lucky enough to go to Manzanita, but never got to race there. Places like this are places that i wish i could've gone too once.

5/23/10, 9:03 PM	#1 16th Street Speedway ( Bush Stadium) A Wreck
Tony Barhorst Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 752	I knew that Bush Stadium was crumbling...But I did not know junk cars were being stored there. Check out this photo gallery from Star News. http://photos.indystar.com/galleries...id=9624&num=15 There are 22 photos in the slide show..it seems that the link I have above is not showing them all..there are photos of the field and everything. Go to the Star News front page about half way down if you do not see all 22 photos. http://www.indystar.com/ _________________________________________________ Last edited by Tony Barhorst; 5/23/10 at 9:30 PM.

5/23/10, 9:13 PM	#2
wildthing1h Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 85	I didn't either until i was by there on fast friday. What a shame. Posted via Mobile Device

5/23/10, 9:19 PM	#3 Re: 16th Street Speedway ( Bush Stadium) A Wreck
Hurryinhoosier Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 172	I thought i read somewhere that those were all Cash For Clunker cars....and if so, i think they should have been crushed by now as there was a time frame for disposal.

5/23/10, 9:41 PM	#5 Re: 16th Street Speedway ( Bush Stadium) A Wreck
Hurryinhoosier Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 172	ahhh, I stand corrected...maybe. http://www.wthr.com/Global/story.asp?S=11472968

5/23/10, 9:43 PM	#6 Re: 16th Street Speedway ( Bush Stadium) A Wreck
Torry Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 66	The structure is there ONLY because it in on the Registry of Historic Places and it would cost the city a mountain to tear it down. Call it a scam or whatever but the powers-that-be wanted it ripped down ( a la Market Square Arena and the Hoosier Dome) as soon as its replacement was built. The historical preservation people put a stop to that. The period it spent as a racetrack was nothing more than an attempt to further insure it would never be used for baseball and to save the city the $100,000+ they were paying to be responsible for its maintenance.

5/23/10, 9:50 PM	#7 Re: 16th Street Speedway ( Bush Stadium) A Wreck
the1jet17 Senior Member Race Count This Year: 5 Race Count Last Year: 21 Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 327	I look at this and am saddened. I wanna go there one of these days. Summer is here. I wanna see and feel all the old memories. I have a poster of the track on my bedroom wall. It has a group photo of midgets done by Chris Young. I've wanted to go there since i can remember. I always admired that it was a dirt track that on a baseball stadium. And the place is just trashed now. All the papers and stuff thrown everywhere. It almost seems like whoever left it was pretty mad. I wonder what it would take to bring it back?

5/23/10, 11:11 PM	#10 Re: 16th Street Speedway ( Bush Stadium) A Wreck
the1jet17 Senior Member Race Count This Year: 5 Race Count Last Year: 21 Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 327	Atleast some of you have gotten to go. There are a lot of old historic tracks that you hear people talking about and that are closed now. I was lucky enough to go to Manzanita, but never got to race there. Places like this are places that i wish i could've gone too once.