Cattaraugus County Fairgrounds
 | |
| Full name | Cattaraugus County Fairgrounds Grandstand and Track |
|---|---|
| Location | Little Valley, New York |
| Owner | Cattaraugus County Agricultural Society |
| Capacity | 2,300 seated in grandstand Over 4,000 standing |
| Surface | Dirt |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1931 |
| Opened | 1932 |
| Tenants | |
| Cattaraugus County Fair (1932-present) Little Valley Speedway (1997-present) | |
The Little Valley Speedway is a multi-purpose race track based in the village of Little Valley, New York, USA. The one-half-mile dirt track is situated in the western portion of the village and is part of the Cattaraugus County Fairgrounds facility.
Uses
The speedway promotes itself as the only half-mile dirt track in the region and is built as an originally unbanked oval track. Adjacent to the track is a 3,000 seat grandstand (the third-largest sporting venue in Cattaraugus County, behind 4,000 seat Bradner Stadium and 5,780 seat Reilly Center) with ample standing room, in front of which is a wider dirt patch (slightly larger than an American football field) to use for other motor sports, such as truck pulls. The track was configured in its current form in 1997. A 2012 renovation to the speedway partially replaced the dirt patch with an asphalt surface, banked the tracks, added fresh clay to the track and added additional bench seating in front of the grandstand to accommodate large, sometimes overflowing, crowds.
Predominant classes of dirt track racing include late models, super late models, super stocks, street stocks, sprint cars and modified cars (most commonly "E-Mod" class, but also 358 modified). Organizations who have raced at Little Valley Speedway on their circuits include the Bicknell Racing Products Can-Am Series, the United Late Model Series, the American Sprint Car Series Patriot Sprints, the National Dirt Racing League Northeast Circuit, and the Empire Super Sprints. Seven racing events of these classes are held at the speedway each year, between the Sunday before Memorial Day to the end of September.[1] The World of Outlaws Late Model Series made its debut at the track in August 2012.[2]
The track shares some staff and promotions with McKean County Raceway in Smethport, Pennsylvania, a race track that, like Little Valley Speedway, is also used for their county fair in August.
In addition to the racing events, four demolition derbies are held at the track each year. The first is held every July 4 as part of the annual "Freedom Daze" celebration; the three others are during the Cattaraugus County Fair in early August. The last of these is labeled the "Western New York Championship" and determines who represents the county in the Great New York State Fair derby. One of the derbies features a school bus class, which is also paired with a short figure 8 race; these were discontinued after the 2009 fair but returned in 2013.
The track also holds concerts, typically one or two country music acts during each county fair.[3] Relay for Life established an event at the grounds in 2016.[4]
References
- ^ Speedway schedule
- ^ http://woolms.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=932:little-valley-joins-tour&catid=82:frontpage-featured-tabs
- ^ McDonnell, Samantha (July 30, 2014). Fair Representation. The Post-Journal (subscription required). Retrieved August 4, 2014.
- ^ http://www.oleantimesherald.com/news/relay-for-life-of-the-fairgrounds-kicks-off-new-event/article_77bde2b2-2d9d-11e6-aea7-1bcf27bda90b.html