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                                                      PRINTER'S NO. 1932

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA


HOUSE RESOLUTION

No. 337 Session of 2007


        INTRODUCED BY PAYNE, HALUSKA, SURRA, SCAVELLO, BOYD, GILLESPIE,
           BEYER, BOBACK, CALTAGIRONE, CONKLIN, CREIGHTON, CUTLER,
           DiGIROLAMO, DONATUCCI, FAIRCHILD, FLECK, GEIST, GEORGE,
           GIBBONS, GINGRICH, GODSHALL, HENNESSEY, HESS, JAMES,
           M. KELLER, KIRKLAND, KORTZ, MANTZ, MILLARD, MOUL, MUSTIO,
           NAILOR, PALLONE, RAMALEY, READSHAW, REICHLEY, SAINATO,
           SAYLOR, SEIP, SIPTROTH, SOLOBAY, SONNEY, VEREB, VULAKOVICH,
           WALKO, WANSACZ, YOUNGBLOOD, FABRIZIO AND SANTONI,
           JUNE 18, 2007

        INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
           JUNE 18, 2007

                                  A RESOLUTION

     1  Designating June 19, 2007 as "Oval Race Track Day" in
     2     Pennsylvania.

     3     WHEREAS,  Auto racing has been an exciting sporting and
     4  entertaining event for over a century in Pennsylvania, and the
     5  first oval track auto racing can be traced back to 1904; and
     6     WHEREAS, Preceded by road racing, organized oval track auto
     7  racing was often sanctioned by the American Automobile Club and
     8  by car manufacturers and dealers; and
     9     WHEREAS, In the early years of organized oval track auto
    10  racing, horse racing tracks were used, but after World War I,
    11  specially built auto tracks became the norm; and
    12     WHEREAS, These were steeply banked wooden, or board, tracks
    13  which appeared mainly at fairgrounds in Pennsylvania and at the
    14  famed Altoona Board Track which measured one and one-quarter

     1  miles in length and had 32 degrees in banking in the turns; and
     2     WHEREAS, The first oiled dirt surface track opened in
     3  Langhorne in 1926 and remained a one-mile dirt oval until 1965
     4  when the surface was paved, although unfortunately Langhorne
     5  closed after the 1971 race season; and
     6     WHEREAS, Autos were modified to go faster around these
     7  stylish new tracks, and crowds grew; and
     8     WHEREAS, While the fairground tracks that were the common
     9  venue of racing during the early part of the 20th century have
    10  faded, the tradition of weekly oval track racing in Pennsylvania
    11  was launched; and
    12     WHEREAS, During the 1930's Midgets, or miniature versions of
    13  the Indy and Big Cars, were built and, because of their smaller
    14  size, could race on compact tracks, but following World War II,
    15  racing went back to its original roots and stock car racing once
    16  again became popular, leading to many different versions of
    17  modified stock cars racing at tracks across Pennsylvania; and
    18     WHEREAS, Today Pennsylvania is home to many stock-car racing
    19  tracks, and Williams Grove Speedway, near Dillsburg and
    20  Mechanicsburg, is the second oldest speedway in continuous use
    21  in the nation, second only to Indianapolis Motor Speedway; and
    22     WHEREAS, Oval track racing today in Pennsylvania includes all
    23  of the various classes and circuits of automobile racing and
    24  enjoys great popularity among Pennsylvanians; and
    25     WHEREAS, A 1994 study noted that over the years Pennsylvania
    26  has had 310 different oval tracks, with more than 50 still in
    27  operation today; therefore be it
    28     RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate June
    29  19, 2007, as "Oval Race Track Day" in Pennsylvania.

    F13L82JAM/20070H0337R1932        - 2 -