Adventure Time! Earlier this week we hit the road to discover Catalina Park, a disused motor racing venue located at Katoomba, in the Blue Mountains.
The 2.1 km circuit opened on 12 February 1961 (lap record is 53 seconds). Originally used for top level motorsport in the 1960s. The mountain location caused problems with fog causing delays in the race programs, also the track was very narrow by today’s standards and surrounded by walls, armco railings and hillside. The track became used less with the opening of other circuits nearer to Sydney such as Oran Park and Amaroo Park.
Catalina Park is commonly known as The Gully, a beautiful piece of land with quite an interesting history; In 1957, the traditional owners were forcibly removed from the gully to make way for a racetrack organised by a group of 83 local businessmen (the Blue Mountains Sporting Drivers Club Limited) who were supported by the then Blue Mountains City Council. The trauma caused to the land and to the community of people who were living in and around the Gully was profound – and still reverberates.
The Gully was declared an Aboriginal Place on 18 May 2002.
We parked up at the Aquatic Centre, which has an entrance right into Dunlop Corner. We then spent the day walking the amazing circuit, which has amazing undulation and isn’t anywhere near as bad shape as we were expecting. We couldn’t help but feel super emotional about not being able to drive on it anymore.
View the entire feature: http://zengarage.com.au/2014/01/catalinaraceway/