Abandonded drag strips

[Aero426]

Deep into the back side of the course, we are now on the original track pavement.  

[Aero426]

Back in the 1990's,  I found pieces of bleachers in the field.   I'll bet they are gone now.

[Aero426]

Also taken back in the 90's,  the drive through tunnel under the main straight has now been completely filled in. 

[charge69]

Great pictures of the remains of an "era-gone-bye" and the remnants of the old raceway, Aero426  !!  It must be amazing to explore the area and attend the car shows held there !!

[Aero426]

Turn one at the end of a VERY long downhill straight was a banked corkscrew.  

[Aero426]

Great pictures of the remains of an "era-gone-bye" and the remnants of the old raceway, Aero426  !!  It must be amazing to explore the area and attend the car shows held there !!

It was probably a little more fun when it was in a feral state and you had to sort of sneak in.    The property was definitely a hangout and a dumping ground for many, many years.    I never had any trouble, but visiting near sunset by yourself could be a little spooky.   It is a big property with hills and some rough terrain.   Late fall is the best time to see it when the leaves are down.  

Here's a good example of nature taking its course.    There is a small stream running through the property.     I believe it had been filled in when the track was built.   Eventually, it eroded the front straight leading to the collapse you see here.   Vandals would dump cars down in the gully.   This is another old pic from the 1990's.   It has all been cleaned up and a large pedestrian bridge has been placed over the chasm.  

Drag strip return would be to the right of the photo under the bridge.    This bridge was removed a five or so years ago.   

[Aero426]

Down the front straight in 1959.  The 2nd, 3rd and 4th cars are what became the washout area.    You can see on the sides how the dirt was piled up by man.   Nature eventually fixed that.

The front straight was very, very, VERY high speed.   You ran flat for the drag strip portion then plunged downhill as shown here.   Just out of view is a small rise and another plunge into the banked turn one right hander.     There was little to no run off area designed into the course.

[Aero426]

There was a short course cutoff turn from the main straight.   Sports car clubs and some stock car races used this.  This photo is from a 1963 USAC stock car race won by Curtis Turner #26 leading Norm Nelson in #3.   

[Aero426]

I am running 51 years behind Turner and Nelson.   How many laps down am I?

[Ghoste]

Wow, that was quite a track!

[Aero426]

Wow, that was quite a track!

The full course was a very hairy in a big HP car.   Little to no run off anywhere.    Lots of embankments to run into.   That played a role in the downfall of the course eventually.   It was never a money maker for several different promotors and politics played a role too.    

Here's a short video clip from 1962 that isn't bad to give you the flavor of the course.     You will see a high banked corner called the Monza Wall dumping onto the front straight where the drag strip timing tower was eventually placed.   Probably the most famous feature of the track, it predated Daytona by a year.   It was very rough and a known as a car breaker.   It was leveled for that 1968 Trans-Am race in a flat left hander.     

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2CZ_rYtwW8

[hemi-hampton]

I took a visit to the old MOTORCITY Dragstrip in northern Detroit area about 5+ years ago. It's located near expressway I-94 & 26 mile rd. It was all weeds & run down, not much left of it. My old uncle in his 70's told me some cool stories about it from the 1970's. I'd post some Pictures but they are on my old computer. LEON.

[tan top]

 interesting  , stuff ! thanks for sharing 

[rt green]

how a guy would like to take a metal detector through where the consession stand and pits were.

[Ghoste]

I have to go up by the Motorcity one later this week, I should try and get some photos if I can.

[66FBCharger]

Great topic! Thanks for posted the pictures.

[Highbanked Hauler]

  WOW great pix. Doug, thanks for posting.  North Carolina has a lot of abandon tracks to find and check out.

[Aero426]

 WOW great pix. Doug, thanks for posting.  North Carolina has a lot of abandon tracks to find and check out.

Thanks Al.   Here's another local site a few minutes from home.   It was called Lynndale Farms Road Racing Course.     It operated 1963-1966, then closed.  It was a nice facility that failed financially.   The owner ultimately developed it for housing.  A lot of the original track layout was used for streets in the subdivision.

The original tech barn had been repainted years ago.    That paint is now failing and has revealed the original Sinclair Oil advertising underneath.    The pic with the Superbird was taken a couple of weeks ago.

[Aero426]

One of the last races in '66.   

[Aero426]

The same spot today.   I am "spun out".

[Aero426]

What it looked like in 1964

[Aero426]

A rare poster.    Great graphics.

[Ghoste]

I wonder if those are any of the same trees in the before and after.

[Aero426]

I wonder if those are any of the same trees in the before and after.

Have wondered the same thing myself.    They separate the former track property from the farm field that is still behind the trees to this day.    I don't think they were ever cleared.   

[Aero426]

Going back to Meadowdale, here is a shot at the bottom of the monster front straight.   What you can't see is the dip back by the third car in the line.      You shot down that big hill WFO.   Then you hit the dip and bottomed out.  The third car is just emerging out of the dip, suspension getting light and then about to plunge down the last hill towards turn one.   Nuts.