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Auto racing came to Schuyler many years ago and is still a drawing card all summer at its site near Townsend in the Town of Dix.

Law student Cameron Argetsinger dreamed of bringing European style competition to the village where he spent his summer vacations and he drew up a challenging course that encompassed asphalt, cement and dirt roads in and around the village of Watkins Glen. The dream became reality on October 2, 1948, "The Day They Stopped the Trains," in the first post-World War II road race in the U.S. For five years, the top names in American sports car racing visited the small village and huge crowds came out to watch them race.

Competition moved to a temporary course in 1953, and 2.3-mile permanent circuit was built in 1956. The following year, The Glen hosted its first professional race, a NASCAR Grand National Stock Car event won by Buck Baker over Fireball Roberts. True international competition began in 1958 with the running of a Formula Libre race.

The Glen has hosted a wide variety of racing competition during this time, including Formula One, Can-Am, Trans-Am and Indy cars. Victory Circle at Watkins Glen saw many of the top names in international motorsports, including Jackie Stewart, Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser and Mark Donahue. On August 9, 1986, over 88,000 fans witnessed Tim Richmond's triumph as the NASCAR Winston Cup Series returned to The Glen for the first time in the modern era. Since then, the NASCAR Winston Cup race at Watkins Glen has grown to become New York State's largest weekend sporting event and has seen some of NASCAR's biggest names take the checkered flag ... names like Mark Martin, Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon.

For more Watkins Glen International history, click here