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East Windsor Speedway (aka: East Windsor Fairgrounds, Acella Speedway)
East Windsor Speedway Video
(6/11/1965 - 8/23/2002)
The speedway was built by Don Jones on the site of the old Hightstown 1/5-mile paved track located off Airport Road in East Windsor Township near the border of Hightstown and was a true 1/2-mile clay oval.
The fairgrounds were leased several times over its existence to the likes of Ken Brenn, Sr., Joe Scamardella and legendary Reading Fairgrounds Promoter Lindi Vicari. However, the speedway was best known for being family owned and operated under the Jones family. The Jones' were well known for their; "It's my way or the highway" style of managing the speedway that saw top speedway competitors Billy Pauch Sr. and Doug Hoffman both get suspended from competition.
East Windsor was also well known for Modified racing under the RSCA banner until the days of Lindi Vicari came to a close on November, 2 1980 with Jimmy Horton III winning their last event held at the famed track. It was then that Don Jones took back promoting his family owned track for the last time and in 1981 became one of the first speedways in the nation to feature true Small Block Modifieds as the headline division offering a truly great purse. From the 1981 season until the track closed, no one other then a member of the Jones family would operated the speedway.
Shortly after the switch was made to Small Blocks, the township began to fight with the speedway over noise. The speedway was the first to have a strict noise ordinance placed upon it. The level of noise was measured by the township just off the property to ensure racecars did not exceed the town's new ordinance. To ensure all racecars would stay under the appropriate noise limit, street legal mufflers became mandatory for all division that raced at the speedway from 1981 until it closed.
To further ensure the speedway would not exceed the noise limit opposed by the township the track also had a device located at the start/finish line that also measured the noise level of all racecars and any racecar that exceeded the set limit would be disqualified from action.
East Windsor hosted one DIRT sanctioned Modified event that was won by Phil Meisner while Doug Hoffman was the sole Small Block Modified representative for their yearly Super DIRT Week events held in Syracuse, New York.
Jimmy Horton III is the speedways all-time Big Block Modified winner, Doug Hoffman the all-time Small Block Modified winner and Billy Pauch Sr. the speedways all-time winner for all divisions combined. Kenny Brightbill was the tracks last premier division champion with Doug Hoffman winning the last event held at the speedway on August 23, 2002.
(Aerial photo of speedway taken on 2/12/2002 showing new developments) ____________________________________________________________________
Copyright © 2003 - 2009
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