Bridgehampton Race Circuit was a race track located near

Sag Harbor, New York Sag Harbor is an Administrative divisions of New York#Village, incorporated village in Suffolk County, New York, United States, in the Administrative divisions of New York#Town, towns of Southampton, New York, Southampton and East Hampton (town) ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The circuit opened in 1957, following a series of road races held from 1949 until 1953. It was one of the first permanent road racing venues in the United States, opening after Thompson Speedway, two years after

Road America Road America is a motorsport Road racing, road course located near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin on Wisconsin Highway 67. It has hosted races since the 1950s and currently hosts races in the IndyCar Series, IMSA SportsCar Championship, Sports Car Club ...

, the year after

Watkins Glen International Watkins Glen International, nicknamed "The Glen", is an automobile race track in the Northeastern United States, northeastern United States, located in Dix, New York, just southwest of the village of Watkins Glen, New York, Watkins Glen, at the ...

, and the same year as

Lime Rock Park Lime Rock Park is a natural-terrain motorsport road racing venue located in Lakeville, Connecticut, United States, a hamlet in the town of Salisbury, Connecticut, Salisbury, in the state's northwest corner. Built in 1956, it is the nation's thi ...

and

Laguna Seca Raceway Laguna Seca Raceway (branded as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and previously Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for sponsorship reasons) is a paved road racing track in central California used for both auto racing and motorcycle racing, built in 1957 ...

. In its early years, Bridgehampton was host to major international series, including the

World Sportscar Championship The World Sportscar Championship was the world Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing series run for sports car racing, sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), from 1953 World Sportscar Championship, 1953 t ...

Can-Am The Canadian-American Challenge Cup, or Can-Am, was an SCCA/ CASC sports car racing series from 1966 to 1974, and again from 1977 to 1987. The Can-Am rules were deliberately simple and placed few limits on the entries. This led to a wide variet ...

, and

NASCAR Grand National The name NASCAR Grand National Series refers to former names of the following NASCAR series: *National-level stock car series: **NASCAR Cup Series (the top NASCAR series, known as NASCAR Grand National Series between 1950 and 1970, then the NASCAR ...

. By the early 1970s, the track was used mostly for amateur events. The track closed permanently in 1999. Bridgehampton was renowned as a fearsome course, requiring the utmost of driver skill.

History

Early road races

The first road races in Bridgehampton were held on public roads around the hamlet of Bridgehampton from 1915 until 1921. The course ran counterclockwise on an approximately 3-mile (4.8-km) rectangle, beginning on

Montauk Highway Montauk Highway is an east–west road extending for across the southern shore of Long Island in Suffolk County, New York, in the United States. It extends from the Amityville, New York, Amityville–Copiague, New York, Copiague line, where ...

, then turning left onto Halsey Lane, left onto Pauls Lane, left onto Ocean Boulevard, and left back onto Montauk Highway. The races were revived in 1949, utilizing a circuit adjacent to the pre-war circuit in Bridgehampton and Sagaponack. It ran clockwise beginning on Ocean Road, turning right onto Sagaponack Road, right onto Sagaponack Main Street, right onto Bridge Lane, and right back onto Ocean Road. The races proved successful, and joined the

SCCA National Sports Car Championship The SCCA National Sports Car Championship was a sports car racing series organized by the Sports Car Club of America from 1951 until 1964. It was the first post-World War II sports car series organized in the United States. An amateur championship ...

when it was created in 1951. The road races came to an end in 1953, after a driver was killed in practice and three spectators injured during the race. These events, combined with a spectator death in a crash at Watkins Glen in 1952, led the

State of New York New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...

to ban racing on public roads.

Permanent circuit

Local racing enthusiasts formed the Bridgehampton Road Races Corporation in 1953 to finance the construction of a permanent race circuit in the area. The corporation purchased a parcel known as Noyack Hills in 1956, and constructed a , 13-turn road course. Although construction was not completed, the first races were held in 1957. The headline event, the Bridgehampton Sports Car Races, were a part of the SCCA National Championship; Regional races would be added in 1958. The race would shift to the professional

United States Road Racing Championship The United States Road Racing Championship (USRRC) was a Sports Car Club of America series for professional racing drivers. SCCA Executive Director John Bishop helped to create the series in 1962 to recover races that had been taken by rival USAC R ...

in 1965, and resurrected the

Vanderbilt Cup The Vanderbilt Cup was the first major trophy in American auto racing. History An international event, it was founded by William Kissam Vanderbilt II in 1904 and first held on October 8 on a course set out in Nassau County, New York, Nass ...

, which had been run on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

from 1904 until 1910. A second National event was added in 1961. This event would shift to the

for 1962, marking Bridgehampton's biggest event. The WSC gave way to

from 1966 until 1969. Can-Am was scheduled to return in 1970, but the race was moved to the newly opened

Road Atlanta Road Atlanta (known for sponsorship reasons as Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta) is a road course located just north of Braselton, Georgia, United States. The facility is utilized for a wide variety of events, including professional and amateur spo ...

after heavy storms damaged the track. A 1971

IMSA GT Championship IMSA GT was a sports car racing series organized by International Motor Sports Association. Races took place primarily in the United States and occasionally in Canada. History The series was founded in 1969 by John and Peggy Bishop, and Bill ...

event was the last major event at the track.

Decline and demise

Bridgehampton's included a small media and scoring building and a small grandstand. The Bridgehampton Road Races Corporation did not have the money to upgrade and maintain the tracks infrastructure to world-class standards. The track's land had appreciated to several million dollars in a few decades. Locals began complaining about noise in the mid-1970s, and in 1983 the town passed an ordinance limiting noise and effectively ending any chance of big-league racing returning. Plans were announced in 1994 to turn the property into a golf course. Races continued until 1997, and a racing school and club meets lingered until 1998. A portion of the course, including the Chevron Bridge, are preserved on the grounds of the golf course.

Events

** '' Bridgehampton Grand Prix'' (1966–1969) *

Formula Atlantic Formula Atlantic is a specification of open-wheel racing car developed in the 1970s. It was used in professional racing through the IMSA Atlantic Championship until 2009 and is currently primarily used in amateur racing through Sports Car Club ...

(1979–1980) *

** '' Bridgehampton Sports Car Races'' (1971) *

NASCAR Grand National Series The name NASCAR Grand National Series refers to former names of the following NASCAR series: *National-level stock car series: **NASCAR Cup Series (the top NASCAR series, known as NASCAR Grand National Series between 1950 and 1970, then the NASCAR ...

(1958, 1963–1964, 1966) * SCCA Grand Prix Championship (1967) *

** '' Bridgehampton Sports Car Races'' (1952–1953, 1957–1964) *

Trans-Am Series The Trans-Am Series presented by Pirelli is a sports car racing series held in North America. Founded in 1966, it is sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). Primarily based in the United States, the series competes on a variety of ...

(1968–1970) *

** '' Bridgehampton Sports Car Races'' (1965–1968) *

** '' Bridgehampton Grand Prix'' (1962–1965)

NASCAR Grand National results

Trans-Am results

Lap records

The fastest official race lap records at Bridgehampton Race Circuit are listed as:

Notes

References

{{Authority control Motorsport venues in New York (state) Defunct motorsport venues in the United States 1957 establishments in New York (state) 1998 disestablishments in New York (state) Sports venues in Suffolk County, New York IMSA GT Championship circuits Sports venues completed in 1957