Opening ceremonies lauded the vision of California Speedway's Les Richter who had always seen a quarter-mile being part of the Master Plan. Parks signed the official NHRA Sanctioning papers and the cars began to stage for Wally to wave the ceremonial green flag starting the first pair of a California Highway Patrol cruiser and a California Speedway vehicle.

Pair after pair tried unsuccessfully to get hold of the slick concrete and bumpy transition to asphalt on this parking lot strip.

While this is a formal NHRA Street Legal Strip, Division Director Charlie Neilson was quick to note "we need to show the community that things are going really well. We want this to naturally blossom and then we can open it up to more different types of cars. Our target is to give those illegal street racers a place to go, to get them off the streets; then see where this goes."

Five hundred cars are expected on the September 8-9 opening weekend. California Dragway will be running on fourteen weekends in the first year of operation. The new strip will operate under current NHRA Street Legal rules and 100-decibel sound limits.

(more stories)