A Visit to the Kissena Park Velodrome, a Relic of the 1964 Olympics

Kissena Park, a large 234-acre tract bounded by Kissena Boulevard, Oak Avenue, 164^th Street and Booth Memorial Avenue, is one-half “regular” city park with walkways and playgrounds, and half “natural” with bridle paths and heavily wooded areas where you shouldn’t be too surprised to see pheasants and rabbits darting about. It was developed gradually in the early years of the 20^th century, with NYC slowly acquiring territory from private owners and police department property. Kissena Lake was once fed by streams, some of which emanated from the Flushing River, but it was cut off by the Works Progress Administration in 1942 and placed in a concrete retainer. It is periodically cleaned of algae buildup and is stocked with fish that support herons, egrets, cormorants and even snapping turtles. “Kissena” is thought to be a Chippewa Indian term meaning “it is cold”; though the Chippewa lived in Michigan, 19^th-century horticulturalist Samuel Parsons, whose tree grove is in the park at Rose Avenue and Parsons Boulevard probably named it.

One of Kissena Park’s most unusual features is its velodrome, or bicycle track, officially named the Siegfried Stern track after a philanthropist who was treasurer for the Hartz Mountain line of pet care products. The track was built in 1963. Olympic bicycle race trials took place at the velodrome, the only outdoor bike track in NYC, that year. Jack Simes III appeared in the 1960, 1964 and 1968 Olympic Games, and won the 1964 Olympic trials and national championships at Kissena. Simes was a third-generation racer; both he and his father, the late Jack Simes II, are U.S. Bicycling Hall of Famers.

By the 1980s the Flushing velodrome was well past its Olympic trial days, and in a deteriorated state was mainly used for kite fliers and toy car racers. But it’s another Flushing happy ending: in 2003 the velodrome was completely rehabilitated and repaved and given a new 400-meter banked asphalt race track, and once again began to hold national events. If New York City ever aspires to host the Olympics again the Flushing velodrome would be able once again to hold Olympic trials!