Abandoned drag srtip east of Phoenix

[Salvatore]

Man-O-Man you guys, I am lovin it! The whole state of California and New York was a drag strip!! Glad I have a lot of old papers and magazines with this stuff in it.

[ORIGLS6]

Ain't this cool!

[427TJ]

Since San Fernando, like Fontana and San Gabriel, had a drainage canal alongside the track, occasioanlly a racer would lose it and go under the fence and wind up in the canal. I read a story where Frank Pedregon went down into the canal at San Fernando, climbed out and "played dead" while the ambulance crews struggled to get to him. As they approached he jumped up and let everyone know he was okay. Here's a photo of a racer that had gone into the canal at San Fernando:

[427TJ]

Text from the Ontario City Library site:

"The Ontario Motor Speedway (the Big “O”) was designed as a replica of the 2.5 mile racetrack at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It also had an infield road course and a drag strip to maximize racing events. Designed by Walter Ted Tyler at a cost of $25.5 million, it opened on Sept. 3, 1970 with the inaugural California 500 on Sept. 6. This Labor Day event was to complement the Indy 500 traditionally held on Memorial Day. A second race, the Questor Grand Prix, was held in March 1971 and won by Mario Andretti. 86 separate days of racing, qualifying and practice for championship, sport, stock and drag races was anticipated with over one million persons in attendance per year. Although races were held each year, the actual monies coming in were below expectations. The management tried to improve attendance with three rock concerts – the California Jams I, II and III. Talks took place with promoters of the Expo ’81, a world’s fair-type extravaganza with pavilions on the racetrack grounds. By 1980, the track management company was bankrupt and the City of Ontario sold the property for $10 million to the Chevron Land Management Company. The track was demolished in 1981 at a cost of $3 million. Subsequent development, most recently the Piemonte mixed-use development of condominiums, offices and retail stores and the Citizens Business Bank Arena has largely covered the old racetrack grounds. Echoes still remain in the area’s street signs however: Concours Drive, Mercedes, Ferrari and Triumph Lanes, Porsche Way, Dusenberg and Corvette Drives, Lotus Ave, Shelby Street, Jaguar Way."


Note Fontana Drag City at upper right and the new California Speedway:





The asphalt and stucco beast overtakes the site:



The dragstrip was in the infield at far right:

[427TJ]

Terrific photo of NHRA founder Wally Parks at Pomona, mid-60s:

[427TJ]

Kingdon drag strip, just southwest of Lodi, California was built as an military auxiliary landing airfield during WWII. As with so many such airstrips, Kingdon lapsed into disuse after the war and then became a public airport and a drag strip by the early 1950s. Racing ended at Kingdon in 1978 but in 2007 Kingdon was host to a reunion drag event so perhaps one of the old strips will be back in use, if only on rare occasions.

Located north of Stockton, southwest of Lodi:



Very little has changed since WWII:



Looking west:



The Sacramento-based "Glass Slipper" made appearances at Kingdon in the late '50s:





As did Garlits in '59 on his first trip to California:



Even car customizer Gene Winfield tried his hand at the Kingdon drags in the early '50s:



Back in those much simpler times when any working man could race a car as a weekend hobby and not go broke just trying to have some fun:





Tommy Ivo at Kingdon c1970 with one of his Cadillac push cars:

[427TJ]

Great photo of the staring area not long after the track opened in 1957:



At the '64 HRM Drags Danny Ongais had to push his rail through the 1/4 after his car quit on the line:



Wild Willie crossed-up (!!!) in the lights trying to stay out of the weeds. Photo taken by Steve Reyes from the old pedestrian bridge across the top end of the track. What's he doing--about 150?--with the front wheels cranked hard left! Friggin' unbelievable!:

[Dog427435]

[b] Islip Speedway was Long Islands 1/8 mile drag strip from 1961 until 1972. But Islip was around much
longer then that, built on the Islip Airport site in 1947 it's 2/10 mile 18 degree banked oval lasted until
1984. It was the home of the first demo race, the first figure 8 race and the NASCAR great's even raced
there until the "Modern Era".
-
-

Way back when
-
-


-


-
-
Islip Speedway today
-
-

-
-
Back in the fifties and sixties you could go to the races practically every night! The drags were
Friday at Islip and Sunday at Hampton or National.
-
-

-

-

-

-

-
-
Johnny Rocco was a racer and long time Flagman
-
-

-

-
-
Steve Park got his start at Islip
-
-

-
-
The drag strip ran from the back edge of the property down between the concession stands
and the oval track. There were no concessions at the drags! The 1/8 ended at the oval racers pit
entrance and the shut down area ran out into the dirt parking lot.
-
-

-

-
-
Tommy Ivo in the pits and coming between the stands and concessions.
-
-

-

-
-
The starting line
-
-

-

-


-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-


-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-


-

-