Fire threatened Kissena Park Velodrome

A wind-whipped wildfire burned several acres of small trees and tall grass in Kissena Park to within inches of the City’s only Olympic Velodrome - a bicycle-racing track. Fortunately, the track which underwent a two year, nearly $200,000 renovation in 2004, appears to be undamaged.
The fire, which went to two alarms on Sunday afternoon, February 11, is under investigation by the Fire Department of New York (FDNY), according to a spokesperson. Eyewitnesses to the blaze said a “large metal gas container” was burning in the middle of the area, but no official report will be forthcoming for several weeks, according to the FDNY.
The track was built in 1962 under the direction of Robert Moses, and was the site of the 1964 Olympic trials, during which Queens racers took five of the eight places on the U.S. Olympic squad. The Velodrome fell into disrepair, and “the bike track” was better known as a lover’s lane among the local young people.
Between the Velodrome and 164th Street, Kissena Park is wild vegetation, traversed by a few unmarked footpaths and known to shelter homeless persons. According to local children at the nearby Four Seasons Playground, “They’re in there, but they don’t bother anybody.”
Two days after the fire, amid the ashes, there was evidence that the area had been inhabited. The remains of a metal laundry cart made a twisted mat in the center of a burned out patch. A few items of scorched clothing hung from saplings at the edge of an area spared from the flames.
Deep in the burned area, hidden from view of the streets and Velodrome parking lot, sat a pristine shopping cart containing a large blue plastic bag, a silent testimony to the presence of the homeless in the park.