Drag strips closing in US...

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cojohnso said:
One of the problems with drag racing? Is that it takes alot of real estate. Thus older tracks that city growth approaches? Racing revenues are too low. This is what killed door drive in theaters. Just too easy for land developers to buy. And even if a track owner digs in their heels? Then county needs begin their pressures.

It's all about the $$
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In Topeka there used to be 3 Drive In Theaters. One was the Chief Drive In Theater. It had the neatest lighted sign out front. It closed back in the 80s, and in the 90s, Walmart bought the property and built a huge store. To their great credit, they took the dilapidated sign, had it restored to like new, and it sits proudly on 37th street right where it used to be.
 
Guess I shouldn't complain. Still have a track within 60 miles. We have lost 2 in 10 or so years. One track is closed and the owner won't sell.
 
We are pretty fortunate. I think we have 5 in the state. 4 are within 2 hours drive.
@memike has George Ray's in his neighborhood. There's a rich history there.
 
ch1ll said:
Truly sad. When IRP closes and Great Lakes I’m going to be pissed.
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there is a 'great lakes dragaway' sign eastbound on KR just east of 94......if they close I would grab that sign. Im not a thief, but somehow I could find it in my soul to justify it if they closed. Id be surprised if it was still there really.
 
Just Send It said:
When they announced that PBIR was closing, I legitimately got really sad. I have so many good memories at that track and I'm so upset that I didnt get back 1 last time to see it.

My wife and I used to go to the drag races there during college. 25 years ago! Back when the name was "Moroso Motorsports Park."

I met some amazing people there. Got on TV for the 1st time with Joe from Horsepower! Broke countless parts and quite a few hearts. I loved that place.

And now it'll be a goddamn housing development on that hallowed ground. Money always wins and sometimes it sucks.

Go hug your local tracks.

Just Send It
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The racetrack is being torn down by Atlanta-based Portman Industrial LLC to make way for 2 million square feet of warehouses. Portman bought the track from its New York owner in 2021.
 
subcom said:
The racetrack is being torn down by Atlanta-based Portman Industrial LLC to make way for 2 million square feet of warehouses. Portman bought the track from its New York owner in 2021.
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On the flip side, Immokalee put a lot of money into their track last year to renovate it including all new concrete.
 
People need to stop complaining about the facility's and and start going to them. They do this out of passion for drag racing not all for profit.
 
The kids nowadays have video games and the internet to distract them from getting their hands dirty. Finding a suitable car is a bit harder than it was, the days of $100.- Dusters are gone too.

It's similar on the east coast. The local track to me, Cecil Co Dragway, didn't have enough turnout on Wednesdays to pay the crew. So, they're closed on Wed. instead of losing money.
 
toolmanmike said:
We are pretty fortunate. I think we have 5 in the state. 4 are within 2 hours drive.
@memike has George Ray's in his neighborhood. There's a rich history there.
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Yes, George Rays is just 12 or so miles away, drag racing is going strong here near by, New Port race track is 30 minutes away, 5 track with in 2 hours.
Yes, here in the south it's still charging young guns minds to race.
I will be wheeling this mustang for a friend, he likes seeing it run, and I must say my lights are consecutive..

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Drag racing has been dead (for me) for some time. The tracks are far and few between, and more are closing with essentially none opening. Then....the scene has gotten over run with scumbags. Dopers, black t shirts, and all sorts of losers. It doesn't help that almost all my friends who used to race sold their cars, live in big houses with tiny garages, and drive $65,000 pickup trucks that they take to Jiffy Lube to get the oil changed.
 
clementine said:
there is a 'great lakes dragaway' sign eastbound on KR just east of 94......if they close I would grab that sign. Im not a thief, but somehow I could find it in my soul to justify it if they closed. Id be surprised if it was still there really.
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It's still there! They just re-surfaced the track and they have at least 4 or more really big events that draw huge crowds. Any given night of the week you can find racing. Wednesday is ladies night and it draws quite a few racers
Great Lakes Dragaway | 1/4 Mile IHRA Drag Strip
 
The only reason Pomona in southern California hasn't been sold for redevelopment is it takes up a small corner of land owned by the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds across the street from an airport. Also it only operates during the day twice a year and generates money from parking fees. Now the closest strip to me is the 1/8th mile at Irwindale and it was almost closed a while back. If you have one support your local drag strip.
 
I haven't been to a drag strip in many years, but several years ago, I watched them when they were on TV. Pro Stock has always been my favorite, but I take no pleasure watching a field of Camaros running against each other. Not hard to figure out that a Camaro is gonna win. When NHRA put the rpm limit at 10,000 rpm's, they essentially put the Hemi engine out of the competition. Always bee tilted to the bowtie crowd, ain't gonna change.
 
I live in West Central Indiana (Terre Haute) and still have five drag strips within an hour of me that are all going strong. I can't imagine a World without one and I really feel for the guys that lose them that have spent lives at them. I read a few days ago that Pacemakers Dragway in Mt. Vernon, Ohio is not opening this year and the owner isn't interested in selling it. I was only there once for a AMC GAD day, but it was a nice little track. On the plus side Windy Hollow Dragway in Owensboro, KY has reopened this year after being closed for probably at least 10-years. I haven't been there yet, but plan to sometime this season. Like it or not times change and nothing stays the same. I am glad for the time being I'll still be able to go close to home.

Tom
 
PROSTOCKTOM said:
I live in West Central Indiana (Terre Haute) and still have five drag strips within an hour of me that are all going strong. I can't imagine a World without one and I really feel for the guys that lose them that have spent lives at them. I read a few days ago that Pacemakers Dragway in Mt. Vernon, Ohio is not opening this year and the owner isn't interested in selling it. I was only there once for a AMC GAD day, but it was a nice little track. On the plus side Windy Hollow Dragway in Owensboro, KY has reopened this year after being closed for probably at least 10-years. I haven't been there yet, but plan to sometime this season. Like it or not times change and nothing stays the same. I am glad for the time being I'll still be able to go close to home.

Tom
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When the tracks close up, what do the people do with their $100,000 or more investments? Most racers are into a life long, family hobby. They opened drag strips years ago to offer a "safe" way of racing. What will happen now will put these cars on the streets, where they are not meant to be. A solution may be, local governments need to step in and give these track a reprieve on taxes and other expenses that they are able to absorb, as in "EMS" services or law enforcement.
 
MoparDave said:
Used to have one 20 min away. MAR. Mid America Raceway. Been closed now for about 20years. Used to go every weekend, they sold the land and put in a subdivision. If you are lucky enough to have one close, especially a small "local" track get involved support it any way you can. If it closes you'll miss it.
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i too went to mar.miss that track.bonne terre dont come close to what mar was
 
I guess I am lucky. We have two tracks within 30 miles of my house. One on the west side of Cincinnati (Edgewater) and the other in NKY. Both packed on the weekends most of the time. Thorn Hill (Thornhill Dragstrip) in NKY is the oldest continuous running drag strip in the country. I will be taking my 340 Dart to race in a couple weeks.
 
4spd340Swinger said:
I guess I am lucky. We have two tracks within 30 miles of my house. One on the west side of Cincinnati (Edgewater) and the other in NKY. Both packed on the weekends most of the time. Thorn Hill (Thornhill Dragstrip) in NKY is the oldest continuous running drag strip in the country. I will be taking my 340 Dart tower re still
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Support your local tracks anyway you can !! We are still reeling from losing the iconic Englishtown / Raceway Park a few years ago. We almost lost Atco but the town wouldn't allow it to become a junk yard and it got a new lease on life . Maple Grove was just purchased by a racing family so its future looks great! My home track ( Island Dragway ) closed briefly back in 2013 while some family and tax issues were cleared up now it is ran by the third generation of the family that founded it , we were devastated when it closed but knew it was only temporary. The track is doing well especially with its special events.
 
My nearest dragstrip to my Arizona house is 120 miles, Las Vegas, and I don't see that closing. The nearest street racing spot (that I know about) is about ten minutes away.....
 
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