Trenton International Speedway which was located on the former New Jersey State Fairgrounds in the capital city and closed in 1980 will again be in the spotlight as one of the key attractions of the weekend of the Motorsports 2009 Race Car & Trade Show at the Atlantic City, NJ Convention Center, January 16 & 17th. “In my younger years I spent a lot of time at the speedway. My family operated the souvenir concession,” said Motorsports 2009 produced Len Sammons. “It is a shame that there has been little or nothing done to remember what a great speedway it was. We are going to try to change that with our trip down “memory lane’ at our show.” For the Motorsports 2009 weekend, many of the race cars that were seen in action at Trenton International Speedway will be on view. And, plans are in the works to have a number of the drivers and team members who participated there at the show to meet the fans. Originally a dirt oval, Trenton became a one-mile paved track in the mid-fifties. By the 1970s, until its final race, Trenton Speedway was a peanut shaped one and one-half mile track. Overall, it produced some exciting racing events throughout the years. Notable organizations such as NASCAR, USAC, ARDC and URC sanctioned the events. The final race run at Trenton was for the asphalt Modified stock cars, in June, 1980. That scheduled 134-lap event, which was called official after 79 circuits due to rain, was won by Geoff Bodine. The fairgrounds and speedway location has since been turned into an industrial complex and is also the site of the New Jersey Sculpture Gardens and the very classy Ratz Restaurant. The Motorsports 2009 Race Car & Trade Show will fill close to 300,000 square feet of the Atlantic City Convention Center and will offer just about everything imaginable in motorsports. Attendees will have the opportunity to collect autographs from a variety of national and regional racing figures. And as Motorsports 2009 takes place during the day on January 16th and 17th, the Gamblers Classic Indoor Auto Races [where Jayski first saw racing live] will be take place at night at Atlantic City’s famous Boardwalk Hall [some drivers include: Ted Christopher, Billy Pauch Sr.]. Information on both events can be had at www.aarn.com. Ticket information is also available at the site or by telephoning (609) 888-3618.(AutoRacing1)(11-22-2008)
