Story of the Week -- Asbury Park Memories

 
 
Who Remembers “The Circuit?”
 

An open car door beckons you in for a ride on "The Circuit" as the Palace glows behind
 
Some have heard of “The Circuit” in Asbury Park while fewer, still, actually experienced it. If you were young and restless and visited Asbury Park from the late 60’s to the early 80’s, you couldn’t miss it.  You wouldn’t want to miss it!
 
As the name implies, “The Circuit” was a circular route or loop along the beachfront of Asbury Park.  At the time, Ocean Avenue was a one-way street heading North, and Kingsley ran one-way South. And, on warm summer nights, it was the track to drive your special set of wheels around and around and around.
 
Guys and girls showed up to see and be seen, with hooking up as the ultimate achievement for some. Drag racing at each intersection, when the red light turned green (definitely illegal), was one on the bigger thrills. Others would stop along the way to visit a bar, listen to music, walk the boards or ride the amusements, but primarily, “The Circuit” was a cruising experience.
 
The Palace Amusements was at the Southern border of “The Circuit’s” turnaround, at the end of Kingsley Avenue.  It was the largest structure there, and you couldn’t miss the big neon lights, iconic ferris wheel and, of course, picture of Tillie. Its mystic glow set the scene for “magic in the night.”
 
One who remembers “The Circuit” very clearly in his music is Bruce Springsteen.  He actually mentions it by name in his early song  4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy). Subsequent songs contain lyrics that unmistakably describe the experiences of desire, disappointment and ecstasy “The Circuit” invoked at a special time in Asbury Park.  Below are verses from the Boss’s songs Sandy, the famous Born to Run and Something in the Night.  Enjoy the remanences of those special days, if you were one of the lucky ones to have been there.
 

4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) (1973)        
Down in town, the Circuit's full of switchblade lovers
So fast, so shiny, so sharp
As the wizards play down on Pinball Way

Born to Run (1975)
Beyond the Palace hemi-powered drones scream down the boulevard
Girls comb their hair in rearview mirrors
And the boys try to look so hard
The amusement park rises bold and stark
Kids are huddled on the beach in a mist
I wanna die with you Wendy on the street tonight
In an everlasting kiss
 
Something in the Night  (1978)
I'm riding down Kingsley
Figuring I'll get a drink
Turn the radio up loud
So I don't have to think
I take her to the floor
Looking for a moment when the world
Seems right
And I tear into the guts
Mmh, of something in the night