The busiest months of the race season (leaving aside the NHRA Winternationals in February and Bakersfield in March) were March through October and the vast majority of racers didn't have time to mess around with a one- to two-shot deal like the Riverside half-mile drags.

"In 1960, I attended the half-mile show at Riverside and about all I remember was that the side-mounted twin "Dragmaster Special" of Jim Nelson and Dode Martin ran there," recalled Baskerville. "I do remember that the car turnout was very small, under 100, and that the anticipated big top ends never materialized. My guess is that the racers didn't put in a taller gear, but left their quarter-mile set-up in. The result was speeds right around what they ran in the quarter."

Dick Landy, one of drag racing's pioneer Funny Car drivers, ran at Riverside's half-mile drags in 1964, and he filed his experience under the heading of "novelty."

"I went largely because Chrysler was backing my Automotive Research A/FX Dodge and that Hot Rod magazine and Riverside Raceway had asked me to help promote it," he explained. "I remember that my Dodge ran 153-mph for a track record and Chrysler had a field day in the ads with it. Normally, our cars ran in the 120-mph range.

"Looking back, I realize now that we knew nothing about aerodynamics and that really affected our performance. For one thing, the old Super Stocks and A/FXers sat with the front end a good three to four inches up in the front. I'd go speeding down track and we'd go through a cut in the dirt berm under the Champion bridge, and when we got out, the winds would really create handling problems. Had I to do it over, I'd have lowered the front end and put a spoiler on the front and rear to plant the car better to the surface.

"Ill handling was a big problem for us," Landy continued. "Also, as our cars got faster, it became apparent that the half mile distance needed more shutoff because you'd go uphill and turn to the right shortly thereafter. After all, you're running on a road course. The first time I ever used a parachute in my life was slowing from a run at Riverside on the half mile."

From all accounts, the 1965 season was the last one for the half-mile cars at Riverside. Going into what was a five-race series that ran from December to April, Dick Guyette's "Music Maker" held the fuel record at 213.77 mph in a blown and injected Chrysler-powered, rear-engined lakester. That time, from all we could learn, was not bettered in '65.

Of the five events, Nolan White's blown gas-burning Chevy-powered roadster won four races and Ronnie Hood's unblown Chevy roadster the other. Guyette's lakester ran the year's best time with a 15.85-second, 189.32 charge in his Mike Fair-tuned blown Chrysler, which was considerably better than the competition, as none of them got out of the 16s. Why didn't he win? Apparently, he was hampered by breakage.

From everything we've been able to learn, half-mile drags disappeared by 1966. It's possible that Riverside might've snuck in one more or possibly some track east of California, but quarter-mile drag racing was a booming and growing sport in January 1966.

Growing big enough that it could not be contained in a half-mile distance.

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