Altamont Motorsports Park
| AMS | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | 17001 Midway Road, Tracy, CA 95376 |
| Capacity | 7,500 (NASCAR) |
| Owner | Riverside Motorsports Park, LLC |
| Operator | Riverside Motorsports Park, LLC |
| Opened | July 22, 1966 |
| Former names | Altamont Raceway, Altamont Speedway, Altamont Raceway Park |
| Major events | NASCAR Camping World West Series Dan Gamel RV Centers 200
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series |
| 1/2 Mile Oval | |
| Length | 0.5 miles (0.8 km) |
| Banking | Turns - 12 degrees Straights - 4 degrees[1] |
| 1/4 Mile Oval | |
| Length | 0.25 miles (0.4 km) |
| Road Course | |
| Length | 1.1 miles (1.8 km) |
Altamont Raceway Park is a motorsports race track located in Alameda County in Northern California between the towns of Tracy and Livermore. It first opened on July 22, 1966, and has variously operated under the names Altamont Speedway, Altamont Raceway, Altamont Motorsports Park, and Altamont Raceway Park and Arena.
Track description
The Raceway Park contains a variety of different racetrack configurations including a 1/2 mile oval, 1/4 mile oval, 1.1 mile road course, and a figure 8 track. The course is the largest oval racetrack north of Los Angeles. The track features a pit lane that is uncharacteristic when compared to larger ovals for the weekly events. Pit lane is located on the outside of the course on the opposite side of the oval from the start finish line. However during Grand National West races, pit lane is moved to the 1/4 mile oval so as to be inside the larger oval, as is customary for most oval tracks, since live pit stops are used during the higher level NASCAR-sanctioned race.
Track history
In 2006 the park came under the ownership of Riverside Motorsports Park, LLC. They initated several upgrades to the park including fresh asphalt, the addition of the 1.1 mile road course and the new Figure 8 track. Altamont currently stages a variety of motorsports events, including NASCAR Whelen All-American Series races weekly as the schedule permits for the California State and Whelen National Championships.
The park also host to a race on the NASCAR West Series schedule, the Dan Gamel RV Centers 200 in the fall. Additionally, Formula 4, Sprint Cars, Motorcycle races and the 24 Hours of LeMons are held at the racetrack. The latter being a play on the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans, however in the place of top dollar racing machines, the 24 Hours of LeMons features cars with a maximum price of $500 (excluding safety gear, brakes, and tires), hence the title 'lemons'.
The park is well known for its December 1969 hosting (while unused at the time as a racetrack) of the notorious and ill-fated Altamont Free Concert; during a performance by The Rolling Stones, several people were injured and another stabbed to death by members of the Hells Angels motorcycle club. In March 2008 it was revealed by the BBC that incident led to an alleged assassination attempt on Rolling Stone front man Mick Jagger's life.[2]