It didn't take long for a separate class to emerge. If a track had enough cars, they might be divided into an "A" Class (the faster cars) and a "B" Class (the slower cars) but the cars were basically the same. There was only one class in those days and they were just usually referred to as "stock cars" or "stox". There is a direct line from these race cars of the late 1940s and early 1950s to the Canadian Vintage Modifieds of today. The cars at that time were mostly all 1930s coupes and coaches. Many of these tracks did not survive past the 1950s but stock car racing took hold in Ontario and many more tracks were built in the years that followed. Thomas Raceway, Ridgetown Raceway, Warwick Raceway and Tilbury Speedway. Some of those early Ontario tracks included Brodie's Delaware Raceway (now Delaware Speedway), Ascot Park Speedway (Tillsonburg), Bluewater Speedway (Port Elgin), Bridgeport Speedway (Kitchener), CNE Speedway (Toronto), Ailsa Craig, Dayus Raceway (Windsor), Merrittville Speedway, Mohawk Speedway (Brantford), Nilestown, Oshawa, Pinecrest (Concord), Pleasure Valley (Oshawa), Speedway Park (Concord), St. "Big" cars and Midgets were not affordable to the local driver so the idea of a home-built stock car quickly took root. With purpose-built ovals, it became more feasible to run a regular schedule with local drivers. They were mostly dirt at first, but many were paved as the years went on. Around the same time, purpose-built ovals began popping up all over Canada. The horse racers weren’t happy with their track being ripped up by race cars. The dust was horrendous at times and the wooden posts and lack of fencing were dangerous to drivers and spectators. Racing on fairgrounds horse tracks started to die out in the late 1940s and early 1950s as it became clear that the horse tracks were not suitable for cars. The "Big" Cars and Midgets tended to be touring groups that were brought in by the local promoter for special events, usually only a few times a year.Ĭhuck Walker at Delaware in the early 1950s. "Big" Cars could best be compared to a sprint car today. Midgets would be recognized today as being very similar to a modern midget. There were predominantly two types of cars: "Big" Cars and midgets. Many fairgrounds across Canada ran races some examples from Ontario were Essex, the Canadian National Exhibition, Western Fairgrounds (London), Leamington, plus many more. Although the article focuses on Southern Ontario, similar evolution was happening all across Canada.įor the first half of the 20th Century oval track racing was done primarily on half-mile or larger horse tracks, usually located at a fairground. Touring classes and series will be covered in future articles. The article will focus on the common classes that ran throughout Ontario on the regular race program. Some tracks had a class that was unique to them. Not all classes will be covered in this article. Until that time it was common for a driver to switch between a paved track and a dirt track with the same car. Dirt track racing started out with similar classes in the early 1950s but by the mid-1960s the classes had diverged. In order to keep this article to a reasonable size, it will focus on stock car classes on paved tracks in Southern Ontario. Otherwise, thank you for your contribution to Canadian racing Of any of the photos on this page and don't wish to have it on this website, and
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