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Port Huron Dirt Colosseum
250px
Location Port Huron, Michigan, United States
Time Zone UTC-5/-4
Capacity 84,500
Opened 1895
Major Events
Former Name(s) Port Huron Fairgrounds (1895 - 1980)
Modern Layout (1978 - present)
Surface Dirt
Distance 0.877 mi (1.411 km)
Turns 4
Banking
Fairgrounds Layout (1895 - 1977)
Surface Dirt
Distance 1.000 mi (1.609 km)
Turns 4
Banking

The Port Huron Dirt Colosseum, formerly Port Huron Fairgrounds, is a dirt track in Port Huron, Michigan. The track was originally a horse racing facility until it was fully converted for auto racing in 1978. The track is notable as one of the last dirt tracks on the World Stock Car Championship schedule; it, along with Eldora Speedway, last held races for the series in 1970.

History[edit | edit source]

The Port Huron Dirt Colosseum opened in the spring of 1895 as a 1.00-mile horse racing track; local auto enthusiasts began using the track for racing soon after. While horse racing was the track's primary business, it began sanctioning multiple classes of auto races, and by the late 1930's sprint cars, modifieds, and stock cars could all be found on the weekly schedule. While auto racing was suspended nationwide during World War II, it returned in late 1945 at the Fairgrounds with the first running of the Port Huron Turkey Bowl, an annual race held the second Sunday in November.

The track began hosting races for the upstart National Stock Car Series in 1951; its proximity to Detroit (Port Huron is roughly 60 miles northeast of downtown Detroit) boosted the race's profile among the auto manufacturers, resulting in nearly twice the expected fan turnout for the inaugural race. The track would also host races for the American Stock Car Tour in each of the series' ten seasons.

The track closed for one year in 1977 to be converted fully to a motorsports facility; the track reduced to a 0.877 mile dirt oval (initially, the distance was given as 7/8 of a mile, but a track survey completed in 2006 confirmed it was slightly longer) with modern walls and amenities.

Notable Races[edit | edit source]