With Super Dirt Week having taken its final checkered flag at the Fairgrounds track, the sun is now setting over the Grandstand. SUNSET OVER GRANDSTAND 15The new possibilities and boundless potential that will be created with demolition of the century-old racetrack and the concrete-and-steel stadium must now overtake the sense of loss of the historic facility.

It’s understandable that racing fans are disappointed that their beloved one-mile dirt oval will fade into history. But it came down to the making a decision to use that area for more than Dirt Week and a couple of Fair events. For some fans it’s a tragic loss. For the New York State Fair, it’s a new chapter.