- 1969 – built, opened, and operated by John Chisholm
- 1973 to 1976 – Terry Sacks became the promoter
- 1975 – NASCAR’s Benny Parsons became first celebrity driver, just a few months after his win in the Daytona 500
- 1977 to 1978 – Jerry Lawrence and Ron King were the promoters
- 1977 – hosted the first 250 in Eastern Canada, won by Ontario’s Billy Watson
James River, Nova Scotia
MILESTONES & MEMORIES
We opened in 1969, rebuilt in 2006, celebrated our 50th-anniversary in 2019, and continue to make lasting impressions on generations of race fans. Open each section below for milestones and memories from that decade...
- 1981 June 27 & 28 – NASCAR North Twin 100s; first race won by Robbie Crouch, second by Mike Barry
- 1984 to 1989 – Ernie McLean became the promoter
- 1985 July 20 – NASCAR North 150, won by Robbie Crouch
- 1989 – track sold to Eric Vandaalen
- 1991 July 28 – ACT sanctioned annual 250 – won by Junior Hanley
- 1992 July 26 – ACT sanctioned annual 250, won by Junior Hanley
- 1993 to 1998 – Scott Fraser won six consecutive 250s
- 2005 – track leased to Maritime Pro Stock Tour for two events – both won by Rollie MacDonald
- 2005 December – track purchased by the original owner, John Chisholm
- 2006 March – bulldozers moved in to make way for a total rebuild
- 2006 July 9 – track paving day
- 2006 August 19 – grand reopening to capacity crowd, race won by Shawn Turple in SFR car
- 2006 October 14 – Annual 250 revived as the Fall Foliage 250, won by Ben Rowe
- 2007 July 21 – first visit to IWK Health Care Centre in Halifax as part of IWK 250 weekend
- 2007 July 22 – 250 rebranded ‘IWK 250’ – won by Maine racing legend Mike Rowe PASS North; celebrity drivers were Ricky Craven and Regan Smith
- 2008 July 19 – celebrity drivers for the IWK 250 were Aric Almirola and Regan Smith; Regan Smith was the winner
- 2008 August 16 – Scott Kelly Memorial 100, won by Craig Slaunwhite, driving for SFR
- 2009 July 19 – IWK 250 celebrity drivers were David Reutimann and Regan Smith; race winner was Wayne Smith
- 2010 July 17 – Marcos Ambrose was the celebrity driver for the IWK 250; the race was won by Kent Vincent (the first 250 winner from Prince Edward Island)
- 2011 July 23 – Marcos Ambrose made his second celebrity appearance in the IWK 250; the race winner was Darren MacKinnon
- 2012 July 19 – Joey Logano was the IWK 250 celebrity driver; the race winner was John Flemming
- 2013 May 24 – Defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski announced as celebrity driver for the IWK 250
- 2013 July 20 – Shawn Tucker wins the IWK 250 on a day that saw the Chisholm family make a surprise $1 million donation to the IWK Foundation
- 2014 June 10 – 2014 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton announced as 2014 IWK 250 celebrity driver
- 2014 July 4 – The passing of John Chisholm, founder of Riverside International Speedway
- 2014 July 19 – John Flemming becomes the first two-time winner of the IWK 250
- 2014 August 16 – Antigonish’s Donald Chisholm scores his first-ever NASCAR win in front of a hometown crowd
- 2015 July 18 – The John W. Chisholm Memorial Cup is unveiled as part of opening ceremonies for the IWK 250
- 2015 July 18 – Kent Vincent wins the IWK 250, joining John Flemming as the only two-time winners of the event in its modern era
- 2015 September 12 – Antigonish’s Donald Chisholm wins the 2015 Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour championship
- 2015 October 17 – Riverside’s founder and builder, John Chisholm, is posthumously inducted into the Canadian Motorsports Hall of Fame
- 2016 July 16 – Donald Chisholm, son of Riverside founder – the late John Chisholm, won the IWK 250
- 2017 July 15 – NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Mark Martin and legendary fuel man Chocolate Myers are special guests at the IWK 250 presented by Steve Lewis. Martin was the celebrity driver in the event and Myers regaled fans with stories of his days as a crew member for the late Dale Earnhardt.
- 2017 July 15 – At 22 years, 9 months, Dylan Blenkhorn became the youngest winner of the modern era IWK 250 (since 2006)
- 2017 September 9 – Two-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton enters the RIS season finale, Crafton’s fourth appearance at RIS
- 2018, July 14/15 – IWK 250 postponed by rain after 74 laps; the race resumed at lap 75 on Sunday and was won by NASCAR celebrity driver Kenny Wallace.
- 2019 – A year-long celebration for our 50th anniversary, including:
- January 24 – Victory Laps, our RIS50 podcast, debuts with host Dylan Langille who also became our house announcer in 2020
- June 8 – New Glasgow Town Crier James Stewart kicked off at-track celebrations along with John Chisholm’s grandchildren cutting a gold ribbon to start the season
- July 18 – Music legend Matt Minglewood rocked the IWK 250 Tailgate Party
- July 20 – Kenny Wallace returned to defend his IWK 250 title
- The race was won by Maine’s Cassius Clark, becoming the first-ever winner of the Maritime Triple Crown
- August 16 & 17 – Motoring TV visited to film a 50th-anniversary segment for their show, broadcast nationally on TSN
- August 17 – The inaugural Rev it Up Show & Shine was held in conjunction with the NASCAR Pinty’s Series event
- September 7 – the season finale event was postponed by Hurricane Dorianm to Sept. 14
- September 14 – RIS50 at-track celebrations concluded with a spectacular fireworks display
- 2019, September 13 – Emily Chisholm, daughter of Donald – granddaughter of John, won the Bandolero Beginner division championship at Scotia Speedworld – a third generation of winning Chisholm’s.
- 2020 –Â Covid-19 pandemic restrictions began in March and so delayed the start of the racing season.
- 2020, June 29 – Riverside hosted the Dr. John Hugh Gillis graduation ceremony under strict public health guidelines, a first for the track and for the students.
- 2020, August 14 – After several months of communications with Nova Scotia’s Public Health Authority, Riverside was short-listed as one of only four facilities in the province to be considered for larger gatherings.
- 2020, September 26 – According to our approved Public Health plan we hosted the Toromont Cat 150, won by Nicholas Naugle (his first Maritime Pro Stock Tour victory). With approx. 1500 in attendance, while it was the smallest crowd ever for us it is believed to be the largest organized gathering in Canada since the start of Covid-19 restrictions in March.
