Johnny Hawkins has been coming to Southeastern Dragway since 1959 when he raced a ’57 Ford and the track wasn’t much more than a piece of pavement out in the country. “Now it’s got all these neighbors, but it was here when they moved in; I don’t feel sorry for them,” said the 65-year-old, who now competes in Super Pro with a 406 Chevy-equipped ’33 Willys.

This narrow sliver of crumbling pavement was the original Red’s Dragstrip in 1955, but four years later the current strip opened about 50 yards to the right of this picture.

DRO’s own Dale Wilson had his blown alcohol front-engined dragster out at SED, where he went 5.62 at dead on 124 mph.