Amaroo Park

[elephino]

Ray, I'm going by what I was told the place was originally built on. This is why it was supposed to be for housing development as everyone had forgotten about it. I repeat, only what I've been told.

[redback]

As a race mechanic I don't have a lot of good memories of Amaroo.

e.g.
walking up and down that bloody hill!!!

choking in the dust in the pits

having a sore throat, headache and watery eyes from being in the pits during the Turbo touring car days

the high class amenities blocks

trying to get in and out of the circuit (anytime)


Nostalgia aside, its time had come anyway regardless of the ARDC.

[Ray Bell]

There were dunnies everywhere there, redback! Mind you, some of them didn't smell the best, but they weren't bad by some standards... you should have seen the offerings at Warwick Farm (if you weren't in the grandstands)!

But I agree that there was little scope for the place to come up to more modern standards, especially in the pit area. You probably saw it at its best, too, when all the carports were along the back and all...

Didn't you just love little old Keith Neville in the scrutineering bay?

[Aussiegay]

Thanks for the pic Buckshot. Is there anything else at all remaining? Has all the track surface and Armco and earth banks been dug up?
Thanks.

u

Originally posted by Buckshot
Ok, I've been out to what's left of Amaroo Park and this was the only photo I took. All that is left standing of the track is that dunny in the background.

The land to the left of this photo is where the track was and it can kinda be made out through the grass but I didn't take any photos as I didn't think they would come out any good.

There is a new small road out there with about 4 houses on it called Amaroo way or something which is part of the old track but if you didn't know there was once a race track there you wouldn't have any idea. There is even a Tennis Court where the last 2 turns would have been.

This land has been subdivided and is being sold off.

So there you have it...

[Buckshot]

What I actually should have done is printed out the photos from the website you sent me to so I could at least match up the shape of the land to know I was actually on the track. I took my camera with me and those toilets are the absolute only thing left standing from this race track.

Having never been there when it was operating I didn't even know if were I was standing was formerly the track or not until I got home and had a look at the photos on that website.

The toilets are it...nothing more !

[racer69]

What a huge shame. There should be a law against tearing up racetracks like that. How is it that Catalina Park is still there, armcos and everything ( even down to an old Start/finish sign on the main straight ), and amaroo is unrecognisable. I'm only 18 so i wasn't around when amaroo was in its prime in the 70s and 80s, but i went there once for an AMSCAR race in 1991 i think, and the sight of longhurst throwing the BMW around was awesome. If i had the money i'd buy the land and bring back the track.

[RaceTime]

Catalina Park, Katoomba...memories.

As a Scrutineer in those days (not saying when!) I remember being at Catalina on the Saturday for Prac/Qualifying, then having my 21st bash at Cambridge Park on the Sat night and going back up to Catalina on Sunday morning for the rest of the meeting - just to make sure I got my 100% attendance in!

The days of Harry Firth, Colin Bond and The Beast <g> - interesting that the guy that organises a school kids 24 hour race in Victoria now (RACV Energy Breakthrough) was a mechanic with Firth and HDT in those days and remembers well the old Beast - V8 Torana with wide wide flares...

[Ray Bell]

Sorry, Race Time, the 'Beast' never ran at either Catalina (too late for that) or Amaroo, though the later M-HDT Sports Sedan did, the nice one that had smooth flares etc.

If you scrutineered at Katoomba, you would have known Keith, and also probably Ted Moir, do you remember white-haired old Ted from Dunedoo?

Or are you talking about the Rallycross?

BTW, the reason Catalina hasn't been ploughed in is that it's in a reserve, while Amaroo was private land and could be subdivided for sale.

[racer69]

Buckshot,
any feature's there that you could make out, like the lake, or the contours of the land, the track was basically carved into the bush, and any of the banks. I reckon that dunny should be made a heritage area, as its the only thing that remains of amaroo.

Also, why'd they close down catalina, i've walked around it a few times and its awesome, but you'd think alot of the things would have been ucked by vandels. but they haven't

[RaceTime]

Originally posted by Ray Bell
Sorry, Race Time, the 'Beast' never ran at either Catalina (too late for that) or Amaroo, though the later M-HDT Sports Sedan did, the nice one that had smooth flares etc.

If you scrutineered at Katoomba, you would have known Keith, and also probably Ted Moir, do you remember white-haired old Ted from Dunedoo?

Or are you talking about the Rallycross?

Keith Neville? If that's who you mean - definately yes - he and I scrutineered a couple of Bega Valley Rallies and Southern Cross Rallies together. Still try ad look him up when I get to NSW.

And sorry - yes Catalina Rallycross - it was The Beast - empty inside <g>

[Michael Hickey]

Catalina Park, Katoomba...memories.

I grew up in Katoomba and I could see about half of catalina out the back window ... on a clear day.
Peter Brock going crook at us for pinching the levi stickers of the beast in the Carrington carpark.
Keith Neville was Scrutineering at Eastern Creek supercars about a month ago and he is always good for a laugh.

[Crash Test]

Heheheh

Welcome aboard Michael!

The best I can do with respect to Catalina was driving around the outside...never got a chance to go inside

[Michael Hickey]

Catalina was a great circuit to lap dash on lots of flat out blind corners and a hell of a rollercoaster down hill,it's a pity the place has been let fall apart.

[Buckshot]

Ok, here is Amaroo in the old days...

[Buckshot]

...and here it is now.

[Buckshot]

Old days again...

[Buckshot]

...and now again.

[Buckshot]

And once more then...

[Buckshot]

and now...

I did take more photos than the ones I have posted here but the disks in my gf's digital camera were corrupted and his was about all I managed to bring home.

[Alan Jones]

Thanks Buckshot,nothin worse than an old racetrack sold off and closed down. Feels like an old friend has passed on

[Ray Bell]

Thanks Buckshot, what I should do is scan the bunch of photos I took about three years ago, just before the final meeting... they were from the 2.5 mile stretch, the bit that never got paved, and it was pretty delapidated because the ARDC just ignored it when they moved in back in the late sixties.

A crying shame, but that's the way the world goes...

[Airhead]

So it really has all gone!

The times I spent watching Touring Cars and the Castrol Six Hour Production Bike races I went to.

Very evocative images Buckshot.

The hill climb track I did a 'StayUpright' advanced riding course on in 1985. Watching the arena sections that started rallies near where Grice had his pits, and later his home.

I haven't bonded to Eastern Creek. Never been there. But Oran Park and Amaroo, that was my youth.

[DNQ]

Those photos make me sad. Very Sad.

[mtpanorama]

Oh my god, my favorite corner, Mazda house (2nd photo) gone.

Its a very sad day

[Ray Bell]

A number of drivers rated Mazda House as a top corner... and changed their minds when they learned how much damage the corner could inflict when they got it wrong!