Cars were inexpensive to build and fans were coming out in record numbers to watch these events with hopes of witnessing a crash. Figure-8 tracks began popping up all over the country. The Figure-8 boom occurred in the early 1960s. Historians also believe this concept was introduced a few years earlier with a bridge where cars would race above the crossover.īut the Speedrome Figure-8 race was the first where cars came in close quarters with each other without a bridge in place. It is believed to have taken place at the fifth-mile Indianapolis Speedrome.

Historians claim the first Figure-8 race occurred in 1947. I guarantee you half these guys in NASCAR right now couldn’t run Figure-8,” Riddle said. “You don’t think about getting hit at the crossover while you’re racing, but when it’s over you think what just happened? It takes a special kind of driver. Riddle agrees one must have nerves of steel to be a successful Figure-8 driver. There is no right of way rule, but racing etiquette usually is given to the leader.”

Hopefully, he has a little bobble in the turn at the other end.

If you’re meeting a guy in the crossover and you know you’re faster than him, you gotta put down a good lap in the turn. “You know what your speed is and the speed of cars around you that you’re racing with. “You start looking at the crossover when you’re in the center of the turn,” Riddle noted. The former National Crown champion who competes at the Indianapolis Speedrome explained how important timing is when attempting to safely navigate the crossover. is a second-generation racer from Greenwood, Ind. Late model Figure-8 driver Mike Riddle Jr. To be successful, it takes a special kind of driver who is fearless and possesses excellent timing. They view it as racing, not a demolition derby, as many older promoters have tried to label it over the years. The drivers who compete in this style of racing take it seriously. Lap after lap, the cars come inches from crashing into each other and occasionally, they do crash. Cars intersect each other while racing through an “X” or “crossover” carved out in the middle of a dirt or asphalt oval. This form of auto racing is usually contested on tracks three-eighths-mile in length or shorter. Although Figure-8 racing lost popularity for a short time, it‘s slowly coming back - bigger and better. It continues to be a fan favorite, particularly for those looking for edge-of-your-seat action and hoping to see spectacular crashes. Figure-8 racing is a form of motorsports that dates back to the end of World War II.

Figure 8 race track