Palm Desert R/C Raceway originally HobbyTown Raceway opened in 2002. The city of Palm Desert offered some dead land behind the shopping center in which Hobbytown USA was located.  The track had a weekly club program for several years before Steve Burgess brought in several large race series and also started the Annual Toys for Tots race.  In 2008 Hobbytown USA closed the doors & track.  Several people and business tried to restart the track with no avail.

Chris Marrale @ the age of 14 was instrumental in bringing Palm Desert R/C Raceway back to life. “The city of Palm Desert said no, but it didn’t realize that teenager Chris Marrale doesn’t take no for an answer. Seven months after that first defeat, Chris, 14, had the yes he was seeking and Palm Desert R/C Raceway was open for business. “In the beginning I was just bored and looking for a place where my friends and I could run our remote control cars,” Chris said. “My mom had decided we’d played enough video games for the summer and we had to find something to do. ”Palm Desert officials, though, had requirements and procedures that would have stopped most people from pursuing the use of this land. Chris was told the lot needed wheel chair ramps and the electricity had to be brought up to code, among other obstacles.”  In the spring of 2010 Palm Desert R/C Raceway was open for business.  Later that year the Annual Toys for Tots race was brought back to the Track where it all started.  In June of 2011 the track got a complete makeover with new dirt from the famed Beaumont area, new awning for the driver stand, pit tables with power and lighting, and many more upgrades.

Races Held:

2005  Toys for Tots #1

2006  West Coast Shootout

2006  Toys for Tots #2

2007  Best of the West

2007  JBRL Nitro Series

2010  Toys for Tots #6

2011  Grass Roots Series 2011

2011  JBRL Electric Series

2011  JBRL Nitro Series

2011  Toys for Tots #7

2012  Grass Roots Series 2012

2012  JBRL Electric Series

2012  JBRL Nitro Series