Pan American 2005

[txtom]

Made a trip out to the remains of the track.

Here is what is left 27 years after it ran it's last race.

This pic is the front stretch of the track looking from turn 4. If you look at the right side, that is the Gunn overflow lot that was recently built over the old track parking lot. The back fence is directly over the old road that the cars travelled down to enter the track. The row of lights is where the stands started.

[txtom]

This was Bill Lay's office. As good a flagman as there was anywhere, and a heck of a nice guy. Had Dick Caulfield helping him most nights.

[txtom]

You won't find much metal anymore, all the boiler plate wall is gone. This was the control box in the flag box.

[txtom]

Half-way down the frontstretch, entering turn 1.

[txtom]

This is the infield "X", looking from turn 2 back to turn 4.

[txtom]

How many remember the concrete section of wall they put up coming out of turn 2? Eliminated cars hitting the wall and turning over, such as what happened to Gary Banks and Billy Constable.

[txtom]

This is the back straight, looking back from turn 3.

[txtom]

The track exit at the top of turn 4.

[txtom]

Right between turn 3 and 4.

[txtom]

Remember the concrete islands in the pits that had water and air?

This is one of them.

Very little left of the paving in the pits.

[txtom]

I took a couple more, but this should give you a good idea of what is left.

The only winners now are Father Time and Mother Nature.

[Budman]

Tom

I've "harvested" four old photos from other threads, all taken at different times at Pan American (Toepperwein). They are shown below. The common element in all four photos that "jumps out" at me, is the size of the crowds in the background. They're in there shoulder to shoulder. As best I remember, there was a pretty large grandstand there.

I also remember a time when the crowds at old Speed-O-Rama in Austin were the same way.

 

Wouldn't it be nice if we could get those kinds of crowds at our races now!

[Budman]

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[Budman]

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[Budman]

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[FryarFan]

Good job txtom!!

 

Wow, even with the trees and underbrush, those pics bring back the memories...

 

If that ol' asphalt could talk, just think about the stories it would tell........

 

Thanks for the effort.

 

Billy

[ratdaddy]

This photo may have been displayed on a previous post. I have this web sight on my favorites called The vintageracer.com this is an awsome sight for racing history in general. You will find newspaper articles from the 1930's and beyond. The thing I found intresting is that most of the crowd counts at the time were between 3 to 5 thousand people. Any go to the websight and check it out.

here is Pan American taken on January 06, 1995

[racerjim2]

I worked for Ricci at Pan Am when I was 16 years old it was a great facility had some good times at the races and after the races

[txtom]

Click this link to see the track in a color satellite image:

Pan American

 

Since this image, the track infield has been used as a dumping ground for everything from dirt and concrete to used roofing materials.

[HORSEPOWER]

I remember going there when I was like about 5 yrs old, right before it closed. That would have been a prime location had it stayed opened, not lost it's grand-father rights. Just like several other short tracks throughout the country, almost in the middle of downtown.

[Racer Duck]

The track exit at the top of turn 4.

couple of memories:

 

there was a pit gate on the back straight, but after it was almost destroyed several times in a couple years, they closed it for good and opened up the wall in Turn 4 .. I happened to like the Turn 4 exit much better even if it was extra hard making the cars turn right (almost 135 degrees) and go uphill at the same time!!! the only time a car was allowed to enter the track from Turn 4 was for special ceremonies (or after the racing was over to load up.)

 

the entrance to the track was in Turn 1. there was a "parade" road between the flagman and the stands along the front straight. every race lined up "at the chain" guarding the entrance to the "parade" road. I always thought that was a great PR advantage for the track and the racers 'cause the fans could be up close to the cars while they were moving and could look their favorite (or least favorite) driver right in the eye....

[NickHolt]

Corpus Christi Speedway has their track entrance road very much like Pan Am's. The track exit is a turn 3, though, instead of turn 4.

 

Lots of positive and negative communication takes place between fans and drivers on that trip down the entrance road. LOL

 

Nick

[HiTech]

NICK IVE MADE THAT TRIP A FEW TIMES DOWN CC PIT ROAD AND HAD MY EYES BRIGHT .... ALMOST HIT THE CAR IN LINE UP ONCE ..

[AMRacer89]

I'm the first in my family to race cars (aside from a few distant relatives who raced drags), but my dad is a cop for Live Oak and told me sometimes when there was absolutely nothing going on, him and a few others would race around on the track. I covered up the title and showed him the photos txtom took, and not but a few seconds later he chuckles and immediately knew what the pics were of. It's just funny to me that he's not real informed on racing, yet within seconds he could recognize Pan Am after 20 someodd years. From what my dad said, Pan Am was one of the biggest attractions in the city.

[Budman]

bump