Palm Beach International Raceway
Encyclopedia
Palm Beach International Raceway (formerly Moroso Motorsports Park) is a motorsports facility located west of Jupiter
, Florida. It is currently awaiting an FIA Grade II Certification.
In September 1965 racing promoter Alec Ullman was set to move the 12 Hour Race In Sebring
, which had been hosted at Sebring International Raceway for the previous 16 years, to the facility. Those plans eventually fell through due to the $1.5 million it would cost to expand the site. In November 1969 a controversial rock concert was held at the facility after months of legal battles. During the rock festival artists such as Janis Joplin
, The Rolling Stones
, Sly & The Family Stone
and Jefferson Airplane
performed. Since then, several artists including Eric Clapton
have performed there. Another concert featuring Led Zeppelin
, Bachman–Turner Overdrive and J. Geils Band
was in the works in 1975 but organizers cancelled it when they decided the facility couldn't handle the estimated 50,000 fans that were expected to attend.
In April 1971 the Grand American Series of Professional Drag Racing had one of the first major drag racing events held at the track. The facility hosted an air show November 7, 1971. The Air Force Thunderbirds were scheduled to perform but had to cancel due to flooding on the track. In 1979 famous sports car and Indy 500 racer Lyn St. James
made her professional debut at the facility, which ended in a major accident in which her car crashed into the swamps and sank in the mud.
in 1987, but it was cancelled after promoters found out about a poor safety record.
The Facility hosted several SCCA national and regional events. The track was also host to several IHRA
and NHRA
special events and the "Super Chevy Show" which drew more than 100,000 spectators over the three-day event for several years. The event was later replaced with the "All Chevy Show" which generally occurs in March. In 1996 Moroso considered spending $2 million on a one-mile oval track for stock car racing, but those plans fell through. In 1998, Moroso died from brain cancer and his family inherited ownership of the track. In 2002 MTV
filmed a drag racing documentary at the track. The Speed Channel
show Pinks
visited the facility in 2007 to film an episode.
— and Keith Wilson also became partners. The new owners closed the track, remodelled it into a state-of-the-art motorsports facility and changed the track's name back to "Palm Beach International Raceway." The old facility was completely altered, adding a new road course similar to the original but with some minor modifications. Low-glare lighting was added to the track along with brand new safety barriers and an amount of other upgrades. The track hosted an ARCA Remax Series event and several drag racing events. The facility again hosted to the show "Pinks All Out"
on March 6, 2010. The facility also host a wide variety of motorsports events, including "Mud Bog" — an event for ATV
and Off Road Enthusiasts — CCS
, Radical East USA's racing school, Skip Barber Racing School
, the Ferrari
Cavallino Classic, Porsche
BMW
Owner's Club (PBOC) and the Florida Sports Car Championship.
The facility is popular with teams from all forms of racing for testing. Several IndyCar Series
teams use the track for winter testing, as do several sports car teams from the Rolex Sports Car Series
including locally-based Orbit Racing. Once the track gets its FIA Grade 2 certification it will be eligible to host a wide variety of motorsports events including IndyCar Series
, Indy Lights, Grand Am
and other major forms of racing.
base. It features a 90 feet (27.4 m) section on the back straight for adding a chicane
in the future. The course is currently awaiting a FIA Class II certification.
-sanctioned ¼-mile concrete course built to NHRA
specifications, as well.
track is a 0.8-mile track with three straight and 26 feet (7.9 m) corners. The course is considered a World Karting Association
Master Track.
ARCA Remax Series
Jupiter, Florida
Jupiter is a town located in Palm Beach County, Florida. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 39,328. The estimate population for 2009 is 50,606. As of 2006, the population had grown to 50,028, according to the University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research....
, Florida. It is currently awaiting an FIA Grade II Certification.
Early days
The facility opened in 1964, costing a reported $1.5 million to build. The track was originally named "Palm Beach International Raceway" and was owned by local contractor Joe Bucheck Jr. and his brother Edward. In March 1965 the inaugural race was held at the track. Some 10,000 spectators attended the event, which was a series of sports car events.In September 1965 racing promoter Alec Ullman was set to move the 12 Hour Race In Sebring
12 Hours of Sebring
The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, a former Army Air Force base in Sebring, Florida...
, which had been hosted at Sebring International Raceway for the previous 16 years, to the facility. Those plans eventually fell through due to the $1.5 million it would cost to expand the site. In November 1969 a controversial rock concert was held at the facility after months of legal battles. During the rock festival artists such as Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
, The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
, Sly & The Family Stone
Sly & the Family Stone
Sly and the Family Stone were an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco, California. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music...
and Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane
Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
performed. Since then, several artists including Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
have performed there. Another concert featuring Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
, Bachman–Turner Overdrive and J. Geils Band
J. Geils Band
The J. Geils Band is an American rock band formed in 1967 in Worcester, Massachusetts, best known for its 1981 single, "Centerfold" which charted #1 in the U.S. in early 1982. The band played R&B-influenced blues-rock in the 1970s before moving towards a more pop-influenced sound in the 1980s...
was in the works in 1975 but organizers cancelled it when they decided the facility couldn't handle the estimated 50,000 fans that were expected to attend.
In April 1971 the Grand American Series of Professional Drag Racing had one of the first major drag racing events held at the track. The facility hosted an air show November 7, 1971. The Air Force Thunderbirds were scheduled to perform but had to cancel due to flooding on the track. In 1979 famous sports car and Indy 500 racer Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James
Lyn St. James is a retired professional IndyCar driver with 8 CART and 5 Indy Racing League starts to her name. She is just one of seven women who successfully qualified for the Indianapolis 500, and became the first woman to win the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year award...
made her professional debut at the facility, which ended in a major accident in which her car crashed into the swamps and sank in the mud.
Moroso era
In 1981 Dick Moroso the owner of Moroso Racing Parts, purchased the track and renamed it "Moroso Motorsports Park." In 1982, Moroso spent a reported $100,000 to upgrade the facility to host the opening event in the SCCA Trans Am Series. The facility was scheduled to host a circusCircus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
in 1987, but it was cancelled after promoters found out about a poor safety record.
The Facility hosted several SCCA national and regional events. The track was also host to several IHRA
International Hot Rod Association
The International Hot Rod Association, also known as IHRA, is the 2nd largest drag racing sanctioning body after the NHRA.-The Carrier Era:The IHRA was formed in November 1970 by businessman Larry Carrier. Throughout this period the organization was operated primarily in the south-eastern United...
and NHRA
National Hot Rod Association
The National Hot Rod Association is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and host events all over the United States and Canada...
special events and the "Super Chevy Show" which drew more than 100,000 spectators over the three-day event for several years. The event was later replaced with the "All Chevy Show" which generally occurs in March. In 1996 Moroso considered spending $2 million on a one-mile oval track for stock car racing, but those plans fell through. In 1998, Moroso died from brain cancer and his family inherited ownership of the track. In 2002 MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
filmed a drag racing documentary at the track. The Speed Channel
SPEED Channel
Speed , is a cable and satellite television network broadcast to various parts of North America, but primarily the United States...
show Pinks
Pinks
Pinks is a franchise series of television programs on Speed Channel based on illegal street racing, held at legal closed drag strips with a theme around drag racing. The original aired from 2005 to 2008, with the spinoff Pinks: All Out following in 2006...
visited the facility in 2007 to film an episode.
Modernization
In 2008, local motorsports enthusiasts Raymond Graziotto, Joseph G. Lubeck and J.C. Solomon II purchased Moroso Motorsports Park. Later Scott Revell, Ron Dixon—father of Indy Car racer Scott DixonScott Dixon
Scott Ronald Dixon, MNZM is a New Zealand motor racer who became the most successful all-time driver in the Indy Racing League championship in the United States when he won the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio in August 2009. This took his total to 21 wins...
— and Keith Wilson also became partners. The new owners closed the track, remodelled it into a state-of-the-art motorsports facility and changed the track's name back to "Palm Beach International Raceway." The old facility was completely altered, adding a new road course similar to the original but with some minor modifications. Low-glare lighting was added to the track along with brand new safety barriers and an amount of other upgrades. The track hosted an ARCA Remax Series event and several drag racing events. The facility again hosted to the show "Pinks All Out"
Pinks
Pinks is a franchise series of television programs on Speed Channel based on illegal street racing, held at legal closed drag strips with a theme around drag racing. The original aired from 2005 to 2008, with the spinoff Pinks: All Out following in 2006...
on March 6, 2010. The facility also host a wide variety of motorsports events, including "Mud Bog" — an event for ATV
All-terrain vehicle
An all-terrain vehicle , also known as a quad, quad bike, three wheeler, or four wheeler, is defined by the American National Standards Institute as a vehicle that travels on low pressure tires, with a seat that is straddled by the operator, along with handlebars for steering control...
and Off Road Enthusiasts — CCS
Championship Cup Series
The Championship Cup Series is an American motorcycle racing sanctioning body. The American Sportbike Racing Association LLC is the parent company of CCS....
, Radical East USA's racing school, Skip Barber Racing School
Skip Barber Racing School
The Skip Barber Racing School is one of the largest racing schools in the world. It conducts racing schools, defensive and high performance driving schools, amateur and professional racing championships and corporate entertainment schools. Skip Barber started the school in 1975 with two borrowed...
, the Ferrari
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929, as Scuderia Ferrari, the company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving into production of street-legal vehicles as Ferrari S.p.A. in 1947...
Cavallino Classic, Porsche
Porsche
Porsche Automobil Holding SE, usually shortened to Porsche SE a Societas Europaea or European Public Company, is a German based holding company with investments in the automotive industry....
BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
Owner's Club (PBOC) and the Florida Sports Car Championship.
The facility is popular with teams from all forms of racing for testing. Several IndyCar Series
IndyCar Series
The IZOD IndyCar Series is the premier level of American open wheel racing. The current championship, founded by Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony George, began in 1996 as a competitor to CART known as the Indy Racing League . Citing CART's increasing reliance on expensive machinery and...
teams use the track for winter testing, as do several sports car teams from the Rolex Sports Car Series
Rolex Sports Car Series
The Rolex Sports Car Series is the premier series run by the Grand American Road Racing Association. It is a North American-based sports car series that was founded in 2000 under the name Grand American Road Racing Championship to replace the failed United States Road Racing Championship...
including locally-based Orbit Racing. Once the track gets its FIA Grade 2 certification it will be eligible to host a wide variety of motorsports events including IndyCar Series
IndyCar Series
The IZOD IndyCar Series is the premier level of American open wheel racing. The current championship, founded by Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony George, began in 1996 as a competitor to CART known as the Indy Racing League . Citing CART's increasing reliance on expensive machinery and...
, Indy Lights, Grand Am
Grand American Road Racing Association
GRAND-AM Road Racing or GRAND-AM is an auto racing sanctioning body that was established in 1999 to organize road racing competitions in North America...
and other major forms of racing.
Road course
The road course's length is 2.043 miles and was designed by Martyn Thake with help from several other in-house designers. It is paved with 5 inches (127 mm) asphalt on an aggregateConstruction Aggregate
Construction aggregate, or simply "aggregate", is a broad category of coarse particulate material used in construction, including sand, gravel, crushed stone, slag, recycled concrete and geosynthetic aggregates. Aggregates are the most mined material in the world...
base. It features a 90 feet (27.4 m) section on the back straight for adding a chicane
Chicane
A chicane is an artificial feature creating extra turns in a road, used in motor racing and on city streets to slow cars to lower speeds.- Motor Racing :...
in the future. The course is currently awaiting a FIA Class II certification.
Drag strip
The drag strip is an IHRAInternational Hot Rod Association
The International Hot Rod Association, also known as IHRA, is the 2nd largest drag racing sanctioning body after the NHRA.-The Carrier Era:The IHRA was formed in November 1970 by businessman Larry Carrier. Throughout this period the organization was operated primarily in the south-eastern United...
-sanctioned ¼-mile concrete course built to NHRA
National Hot Rod Association
The National Hot Rod Association is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and host events all over the United States and Canada...
specifications, as well.
Kart course
The go-kartGo-kart
thumb|A [[Kart racing|racing kart]] at the [[Commission Internationale de Karting|CIK-FIA]] European Championship 2008A go-kart is a small four-wheeled vehicle...
track is a 0.8-mile track with three straight and 26 feet (7.9 m) corners. The course is considered a World Karting Association
World Karting Association
The World Karting Association, or WKA, is the largest sanctioning body for kart racing racing in North America. The WKA was founded in 1971 and is located directly behind Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. The WKA is believed to currently have approximately 5,000 members...
Master Track.
Road course
ARCA Remax Series
| Year | Date | Driver | Car Make | Distance (miles) | Average Speed (mph) | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | February 27 |  Justin MarksJustin Marks Justin Marks is an American race car driver. He currently drives the #66 GoPro Chevrolet Silverado for Turn One Racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.-Early years:... |
Dodge Dodge Dodge is a United States-based brand of automobiles, minivans, and sport utility vehicles, manufactured and marketed by Chrysler Group LLC in more than 60 different countries and territories worldwide.... |
150 | 73.037 | Construct Corps |
Incidents and accidents
- On May 26, 2009, a 9-year-old boy was seriously burned when his go-kart overturned and caught fire. He was rushed to Jackson Memorial Burn Center in Miami in critical condition, The boy's family filed suit against the Palm Beach International Raceway, the track's investors, go-kart maker Carter Brothers, and go-kart engine manufacturer Briggs & Stratton for personal injury, after the accident caused the 9-year-old to lose all 10 of his fingers.
- In January 2010, 18 year old Casey Bicknell crashed his ChevroletChevroletChevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
CorvetteCorvetteA corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...
on the Quarter Mile Drag Strip while travelling over 109 mph. He Sustained a TBI (traumatic brain injury) in the incident and was not expected to survive but is currently in an assisted living facility.
Fatalities
| Year | Name | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Theodore Detar | Road Course |
| 1976 | Randolph Thomas | Road Course |
| 1983 | Oliver Chandon de Brailles | Road Course |
| 1987 | Paul Gant | Drag Strip |
| 1989 | Jack L. Roberts | Drag Strip |
| 1989 | Leon Backus | Drag Strip |
| 1992 | Graig Hinton | Road Course |
| 1992 | Dana Kyle | Road Course |
| 1998 | John Davis | Road Course |
| 1998 | Phil Kane | Road Course |
| 1999 | Mario Robinson | Road Course |
| 2001 | Greg Russakis | Drag Strip |
| 2007 | Chris Could | Drag Strip |
| 2007 | Gary Cole | Road Course |