Mission Raceway Park, also known as MRP, is an

auto racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

facility located in

Mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The facility features a ¼ mile

NHRA The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorspo ...

-sanctioned

dragstrip A dragstrip is a facility for conducting automobile and motorcycle acceleration events such as drag racing. Although a quarter mile (1320 feet, 402 m) is the best known measure for a drag track, many tracks are eighth mile (201&n ...

, a 9-turn

road course Road racing is a form of motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held either on a closed circuit or on a street circuit utilizing temporarily closed public roads. Originally, road races were held almost entirely on publ ...

, and a

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

track. It is owned and operated by the B.C. Custom Car Association, and the BCCCA operates the drag strip directly. The road course and motocross tracks are operated independently by the Sports Car Club of British Columbia (SCCBC) and the Lower Mainland Motocross Club (LMMC) respectively.

Drag strip history

The BCCCA originally drag raced on unused runways at Abbotsford Airport from 1952 to 1957. The original Mission Raceway Park opened in 1965, and the facility operated until 1978 (a motocross track was added in 1973). However, MRP was shut down when the District of Mission wanted to establish an industrial park on the site. After years of negotiating and legal wrangling, the new MRP was opened on March 14, 1992, on land near the

Fraser River The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of Vancouver. The river's annual d ...

. The drag strip was awarded a National Open by the NHRA in 1993. Drag Bike (4658129537)

MRP won the NHRA Division 6 Track Of The Year Award five years in a row, from 1994 to 1998. It then won the same award three years in a row from 2005 to 2007.Mission Raceway Park History

Road course history

The SCCBC originally road raced on unused runways at Abbotsford Airport. In 1958, the SCCBC opened the Westwood Racing Circuit, which operated until the club lost their lease in 1990. The SCCBC worked out an arrangement with the BCCCA, and in 1992 opened the ''River’s Edge Road Course'' at Mission Raceway Park. The road course was used for driver training classes during the first two years, and began full road racing operations in 1994. The road course was changed for 2008 with lefthand turn 7 becoming a left-right combination (7A-7B) leading into a new lefthand turn 8 (previously a right) and a longer, wider turn 9. This caused higher exit speed onto the straight, and may have contributed to the trackday death of Suzuki TLR-1000 rider Cam Gillispie, 33, on 12 June 2009 when he struck the outside concrete wall after exiting turn 9. The track was reconfigured for motorcycles in 2010, returning to a lefthand turn 7 followed by a righthand turn 8 leading into the original turn 9 feeding onto the straight. Cars continue to use the new configuration.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official site

Sports Car Club of B.C.

Lower Mainland Motocross Club

Westwood Motorcycle Racing Club

Map of River’s Edge Road Course

Satellite view of Mission Raceway Park on Google Maps
Mission, British Columbia Motorsport venues in British Columbia Drag racing venues in Canada NHRA Division 6 drag racing venues Motocross racing venues in Canada Road racing venues in Canada Sports venues completed in 1992 1992 establishments in British Columbia

Drag strip history

Road course history

See also

References

External links