Riverhead Raceway Owner Reveals Passion for Painting

Barbara Cromarty, who owns the Riverhead Raceway on Route 58 with her husband Jim and has long been devoted to the racing life, has found a new passion that revs her creative engine.

Cromarty revealed recently that when she's not busy at the track, she is a painter who captures her vision on canvas.

"I have been painting for about ten years," Cromarty said. "It was not a lifelong passion, just something I started doing and realized I loved doing it."

Cromarty finds inspiration in her daily life. "I only paint what I love, so I was painting mainly New York City scenes, the block we live on, our poodle, restaurants we go to, Central Park — personal things to me."

But for a woman who's spend decades at the Riverhead Raceway, it was inevitable that Cromarty would turn her artistic eye to the track.

'Last year I thought about Riverhead Raceway and how much I love it and how much it means to me and my husband, Jim," Cromarty said. "Of course, what represents Riverhead Raceway the best, in my mind, are the race cars, how beautiful they are and all the love and hard work that goes into them from our drivers and their crews, their families and their sponsors."

Her first painting of the Raceway depicts the cars during a race. "Painting the cars was quite emotional for me as I looked at them in such detail and thought," Cromarty said. "It became a whole different thought process."

While Cromarty's most recent work is an homage to the raceway and what it means to the fans and drivers who turn out each week, Cromarty said collectors shouldn't count on snapping up any of her paintings soon.

"My problem is lack of time and energy now," Cromarty said. "The racetrack is all consuming so I just can't paint as much as I would like. I am working on a race car painting now but it takes me a long time. I would probably sell some paintings, but I only have one completed race car and one that I am working on.  It is beautiful and truly representative of Riverhead Raceway."

Cromarty added that after finishing her first racing painting, she had a message to share. "Thank you to all of our races for the inspiration."

The Cromartys have owned Riverhead Raceway for 37 years and have been married for 50 years.

They first began their career organizing a county fair. When promotors were needed for Islip Speedway, which no longer exists, the Cromartys signed on. Soon after, they were asked to promote Riverhead Raceway, which celebrates its 64rd season in 2013, and the pair began a journey that has lasted over three decades.

Before the began promoting the Islip track, Barbara Cromarty laughed, "We had never seen a race before."

But soon, the Cromartys became a fixture on the racing scene, with their quarter mile track drawing scores of fans to Saturday nights that also include family friendly events such as fireworks, monster truck expos, and school bus demolitions.