Is The Future of Skyview Drags In Question? Track Is For Sale After First Operational Season in 5 Years
We’ve discussed several tracks closing up shop for alternative uses of the land in the last year, including most recently Heartland Motorsports Park.
But we’ve also seen tracks come back to life after sitting for several years, including Rocket City Dragway in Alabama and Skyview Drags in New York. But is the latter’s future in doubt after the track has been listed for sale?
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Originally opened in 2004 in Barton, New York, Skyview Drags is part of a 389 acre piece of property known as Skyview Motorsports Park / Skyview Drags and Speedway, which includes a half-mile banked concrete oval track (known as Shangri-La II Motor Speedway), a five-mile dirt bike course, and a ton of wooded area that could have several potential uses.
The track operated until 2018 under International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) sanctioning, and saw everything from bracket racing, to test and tunes, and even their signature ‘Night of Fire’ events, one of which caught the tower on fire!
But by 2018, declining attendance numbers led to the closure of the track, and after five years of sitting vacant, a new owner purchased the track.
Combining a reported half-million dollar investment in repairs and upgrades with several volunteers to get the drag strip operational again, Skyview Drags opened in 2024 under World Drag Racing Alliance (WDRA) sanctioning.
Now, the facility has been listed for sale by the real estate brokerage United Country Tom Mullen & Associates for 3.5 million dollars. The track is continuing to host events currently, but is the future of the track be lost if a buyer isn’t found?
UPDATE: As of September 4th, it has been reported by the current owner and multiple sources that the track has been abruptly closed, and all remaining events, including a stop on the inaugural NYS Drag-and-Drive, have been suspended.
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Skyview Drags.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com