Story About Beeline Dragway, Mesa, AZ

**Bill Pritchard** · #1 12-09-2010, 04:08 AM

In the Mesa Republic section of today's Arizona Republic newspaper, there was a brief story about the old Beeline Dragway that operated just north of Mesa from 1963 to 1974 [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/burnout.gif[/img] I scanned it and posted it to my Photobucket account. I believe that the 3 story timing tower (whose remains are pictured at the bottom of the article) was constructed after the picture at the top was taken. Hope you enjoy the read...

**Xplantdad** · #2 12-09-2010, 02:09 PM

I've been by that tower many times!

al8apex · #3 12-09-2010, 04:20 PM

I ran there in the late 70's ... 77 & 78 ...

1st turbo charged dragster I remember ... quiet and powerful it was ...

I also remember the LONG (it seemed like it anyway) drive back to civilization along Shea to Scottsdale Road in the dark ... dodging coyotes, etc

this was my ride then (L34 T400 69 Indy Pace car):

the location of that shot was the large parking lot that someone built to compete with Greyhound Park n Swap, it bombed and a local drag racer/ADRA member bought the property & tried to use it for "practice" starts for the drag crowd. That bombed too.

It was then it was rented for Autocrosses (the surface sucked, that was probably the only autox there & probably why the drag car practice launch theory failed) and ultimately ended up being the current Post Office complex on Van Buren/Washington

**Dicky** · #4 12-10-2010, 03:17 AM

The "Republic's" notation that the Impala was a popular MUSCLE CAR in competition with the GTO & Mustang, might leave the Pontiac & Ford owners with a little bit of heartburn. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/mad.gif[/img] LOL Dicky [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/flag.gif[/img]

**markjohnson** · #5 12-10-2010, 07:26 AM

Well, I don't know about that. The Impala SS's were quite the competetive Musclecars and certainly do belong in same sentence as GTO's and Mustang's. Stuff an early one with a 409-425 HP or later one with a 427 and you got quite the street stomper. You could get the solid lifter L-72 427-425HP as a regular RPO option for several years in the Full-Size line where the same engine is a Camaro/Chevelle was a one-year-only, extremely scarce COPO option.

TA Guy · #6 12-25-2010, 03:47 PM

Beeline closed down around 1980. I remember my High School shop teacher at Chaparral High School took us on a class trip to Beeline and that was in 1979. 1st time I ever went to a drag race. I have an original Beeline Dragway sticker on my 1964 VW Herbie the Love bug clone.