THE HARRY CLAY OVAL

The New Grandstands 1923

Middletown Times-Press  Saturday, July 14, 1923
Text: With the concrete construction on the new grandstand at the Orange County Fair grounds rapidly being rushed to completion, the task of placing the steel structure and roof will shortly begin.  M.J. Cleary is the contractor, and E.P. Valkenburgh, the architect.
Photos by Times-Press

This photo was taken from the area between turns one and two. The new grandstands can be seen clearly.  The building in the infield appears to be the starter’s stand, which is where it remained into the 1950’s until it was moved to the base of the main grandstand.  Also note the wooden fence which circled both the inside and outside of the track

The covered grandstand was built in 1923 to replace the stands that had collapsed under a heavy load of snow and ice the year before.  The construction of the grandstands took only 60 days to complete! The half-covered stands were built in 1926.  Total capacity for both grandstands is 3,800.  In the years to come, crowds at the Annual Race grew, hitting a peak in 1933. The first and fourth turn bleachers were built in the 1950's to accommodate the thousands of fans who turned out for the "Stock Car" races.

If you look carefully, you can see that the grandstand is a considerable distance from the track.  What a great spot for a lawn chair!  Over the years the track expanded toward the grandstand which increased its length from 1/2 to 5/8 of a mile, making this track the longest  -  and FASTEST-   in the New York Metro area.

There were no Jersey barriers, no chain link fence, just wooden rails.  Nor was there a starters stand.  That was in the infield.  At the time this photo was taken, the Harry Clay Oval was, first and foremost, a horse racing facility.

That would change…!

Other tracks in the area have newer aluminum seating.    What makes the grandstands at Orange County Fair Speedway different is that they are COMFORTABLE!!!

When you come to Orange County Fair Speedway, you are visiting a living, working museum.  NO existing dirt track in the USA is as old, or has hosted as many famous drivers as our beloved Hard Clay Oval.  Although you may not realize it, you are hip-deep in HISTORY!!!

So sit back, relax, make new friends, and ENJOY!!!