Stafford Motor Speedway (iRacing)
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Information
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| Location | Stafford Springs, Connecticut |
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| Country |  USA
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Configurations
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Oval Course
0.5 mi
0.805 km | |
Information
Racing began at the Stafford Springs Agricultural Park in 1870, but the powerplants propelling the drivers were purely equine until the end of World War II, when Midgets, Sprint Cars and, on occasion, stock cars displaced the horses on the half-mile flat dirt track.
In 1959 the management of Stafford Speedway obtained a NASCAR sanction, an arrangement that endures to this day. Track visitors from the south – Lee Petty, Joe Weatherly and Curtis Turner challenged their northern counterparts – Pete Corey, Ernie Gahan, Bill Wimble, Frankie Schneider and a youngster named Eddie Flemke.
In 1967 the track was paved, with flat, sweeping turns that put a premium on driving skill. Bugs Stevens, Fred Desarro, Jerry Cook, and Richie Evans all won at Stafford on their way to NASCAR National Modified Championships.
In 1969 the Arute family took over management of the facility and in short order made changes that brought Modified racing back from its slide toward extinction. The Arutes encouraged a change in bodywork that did away with the 1930s-era coupe and sedan coachwork and put shells from contemporary cars over the tube-frame chassis. This gave the cars a more modern, up-to-date appearance, one that fans in the grandstands could better identify with. And then, a few years later, the Arutes, alarmed at the accelerating costs of racing, drew up a set of technical rules for something they called the SK Modified. The rules retained the chassis and bodywork of the standard Modified, but reduced the costs for tires and engines, the most expensive aspects of racing.
Configurations
Oval Course
