NEW RACING TRACK

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22741, 29 May 1937, Page 12 (Supplement)

NEW RACING TRACK

CRYSTAL PALACE CIRCUIT BUILT AT COST OF £25,000 [from our owx correspondent] A new road circuit for car racing has been built at the Crystal Palace at .a cost of £25,000. Winding through the grounds for two miles, it has been declared by Lord Howe to be the most pelfect surface ho has ever driven on. In order that as much of the racing as possible may be seen by the public, the course is so constructed that the people will be able to see all the most exciting incidents—the cornering where the vital few yards of advantage are gained, the passing and re-passing on gentle curves, and the furious braking for hairpin bends. From the grandstand racing at six or seven different points will be plainly visible. None of the competitors will be out of sight of the majority of the crowd for more than a few seconds, and every provision has been made to keep them acquainted with the progress and the result of the racing. Between 60 and 70 loudspeakers have been installed, and they will be connected to 12 telephone points on the circuit. At each point thero will be fln observer attended by flag marshals. Three score-boards, each 53ft. long and 25ft. high,, with yellow lettering on a black background, will show the racing numbers of the first five immediately the cars have passed over the'finishing line. When the formal opening ceremony took place recently, the chairman of the Crystal Palace Trustees, Sir Samuel Hill-Wood, said that London was being offered a new and a clean sport which, it was hoped, would compensate in some degree for the destruction of the Palace last November. The first race held on the new circuit was the Coronation Trophy Race, for which many prominent British drivers entered.