New England Dragway: Difference between revisions
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New England Dragway hosts weekly [[bracket racing]] events for locally and regionally-based non-professional drag racers on the weekends, and races for street-legal vehicles two times during the week. The track also hosts annual drag racing special events for import cars and nostalgia drag racers. For many years the track has also held major events featuring [[match racing]] between nitromethane and alcohol-powered funny cars, (Funny Cars Under The Stars), and jet-powered dragsters and funny cars (Jet Cars Under The Stars) |
New England Dragway hosts weekly [[bracket racing]] events for locally and regionally-based non-professional drag racers on the weekends, and races for street-legal vehicles two times during the week. The track also hosts annual drag racing special events for import cars and nostalgia drag racers. For many years the track has also held major events featuring [[match racing]] between nitromethane and alcohol-powered funny cars, (Funny Cars Under The Stars), and jet-powered dragsters and funny cars (Jet Cars Under The Stars) |
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[[File:Shirley Muldowney at Nitro Cars Under The Stars.jpg|thumb|alt=Shirley Muldowney at Nitro Cars Under The Stars in 1996 at New England Dragway|Shirley Muldowney at Nitro Cars Under The Stars in 1996 at New England Dragway]] |
[[File:Shirley Muldowney at Nitro Cars Under The Stars.jpg|thumb|alt=Shirley Muldowney at Nitro Cars Under The Stars in 1996 at New England Dragway|[[Shirley Muldowney]] at Nitro Cars Under The Stars in 1996 at New England Dragway]] |
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== NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series == |
== NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series == |
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Revision as of 16:32, 4 May 2021
 New England Dragway logo | |
 Aerial view of New England Dragway | |
| Location | Epping, NH |
|---|---|
| Capacity | 25,000 |
| Opened | September 11, 1966 |
| Major events | New England Nationals |
| Drag Strip | |
| Surface | asphalt |
| Length | 1/4 mile miles |
New England Dragway is a 1/4 mile NHRA dragway in Epping, New Hampshire, a small town in Rockingham County, United States. The track hosts the New England Nationals event as part of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. The track also hosts a regional event as part of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series.
History
New England Dragway opened for racing on September 11, 1966. Organized drag racing in the New England area had begun in 1950 at various public and military airports in the region. In that same year, a small number of Boston-area enthusiasts formed the New England Timing Association (NETA) to promote the sport. NETA based its organization and rules on those used by the Southern California Timing Association (SCTA), and began hosting drag races on an irregular basis at airports in Newington, NH, Beverly, MA and finally at {Sanford, ME]]. Three years later, five regional hot rod clubs joined forces to form the New England Hot Rod Council (NEHRC). The NEHRC began hosting regularly scheduled events at Sanford which began to attract racers from all over New England. Sanford proved to be a popular drag racing venue that drew large spectator crowds and attracted the attention of numerous nationally known racers such as Don Garlits and Art Arfons. [1]
By the mid-1960s, it became clear that airports were not completely satisfactory for conducting organized drag races. Conflicts with pilots, limited control over the condition of the racing surface, and the lack of permanent facilities made it difficult for volunteer organizations to set and maintain a regular schedule for events. Numerous races had to be canceled at the last minute due to this lack of control over the venues.
The NEHRC began looking for a suitable location to purchase land for the construction of a drag strip that would service the Boston market. After an exhaustive search, a large tract of land on the border of the rural towns of Epping, NH and Brentwood, NH was purchased by a group of shareholders, and construction of the racing surface and permanent facilities was completed in the late summer of 1966.
The track was sanctioned by the American Hot Rod Association (AHRA), and was also qualified by the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) as an officially recognized track for speed and elapsed time records. New England Dragway played host to an annual stop on the AHRA Grand American Series of Professional Drag Racing Series until that organization's demise in the mid-1980s. The NHRA then become the sanctioning body for the track but did not include it in their national event schedule. In 1992, the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) began sanctioning the track, and starting in 1998 New England Dragway became the venue for the IHRA North American Nationals. [2]In 2010, sanction returned to the NHRA, and in 2013, following improvements and upgrades to the facility, the drag strip began hosting the NHRA New England Nationals.[3][4]
Events
New England Dragway hosts weekly bracket racing events for locally and regionally-based non-professional drag racers on the weekends, and races for street-legal vehicles two times during the week. The track also hosts annual drag racing special events for import cars and nostalgia drag racers. For many years the track has also held major events featuring match racing between nitromethane and alcohol-powered funny cars, (Funny Cars Under The Stars), and jet-powered dragsters and funny cars (Jet Cars Under The Stars)
NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series
New England Dragway will host the New England Nationals as part of NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series on the weekend of June 11-13, 2021.[5]
New England Hot Rod Hall of Fame
The New England Hot Rod Hall of Fame' is a memorial located at the entrance to the racing pits of New England Dragway listing more than 100 people, teams, and businesses that have had a significant impact on the hobby of hot rodding and the sport of drag racing in New England.
The New England Hot Rod Hall of Fame was created in 2005 by the Orientals Hot Rod Club of Reading, MA. Each year since the club has inducted at least four new honorees. The list of inductees includes hot rodders, drag racers, drag racing teams, photographers and journalists, promoters, businesses and business owners, and individuals involved in hot rodding and drag racing as support personnel at various drag racing facilities in the New England region.
As of 2021, there are 106 inductees. Sixty-two of them are individual hot rodders and/or drag racers, along with 14 drag racing teams, 16 businesses and business owners, six journalists and photographers, four employees of drag racing facilities, and four clubs or organizations. Many of the inductees can be categorized as belonging to more than one of those groups.
Notable inductees include Frank Maratta, founder of the Hartford Autorama Car Shows and builder and promoter of Connecticut Dragway; Chuck Etchells and Al Hofmann, professional funny car drivers from Connecticut; Arnie "Woo Woo" Ginsburg, a radio personality who provided the musical soundtrack for the hot rod cruising culture in the 1950s and 60s; Moroso Performance, provider of aftermarket performance parts, and Marvin Rifchin, founder of the M&H Tire Company that provides specialty tires for drag racing.
External links
- New England Dragway website
- IHRA North American Nationals results
- Roaring engines a welcome sign at New England Dragway
- New England Dragway in New Hampshire has ambitious plans for 2021
43°1′15″N 71°1′38″W / 43.02083°N 71.02722°W
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- ^ Shuman, Bernie & Arnie (2006). Cool Cars, Square Roll Bars (Second ed.). Foxboro, MA: Hammershop Press LLC.
- ^ "Watch The 1992 IHRA Nitrous Nationals From New England Dragway". BangShift.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
- ^ "Major Improvements Continue At New England Dragway As NHRA National Event Looms Large In Just A Couple Of Weeks". BangShift.com. BangShift.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
- ^ "How Long Term Planning And Strong Leadership Brought New England Dragway Onto The National Scene". BangShift.com. Bangshift.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
- ^ "NHRA New England Nationals". NHRA.com. NHRA. Retrieved 4 May 2021.