I-55 Drag Strip

Thanks for all the replies, So no one has any pictures of the drag strip when it was running??? I was hoping to see some.
 
Thanks for all the replies, So no one has any pictures of the drag strip when it was running??? I was hoping to see some.

Man, that was a long time ago, they'd all be black and white!!! lol

THANX RICH

People say I'm getting crankier as I get older. That's not it. I just find I enjoy annoying people a lot more now. Especially younger people!!!
 
Drag Strip

in the early 80's while the Drag strip was still in operation a MX track was open on the other side of 55. You could ride under the bridge between Moto's and check out the drag races. on a few weekends we were able to make a few passes down the strip.. on a 1/8 mile YZ 250's and 400's were pretty quick!! They had a few special match races at both I-55 and Sullivan dragway in the 70's with some of the original funny cars in the area.


Shortly after that MX track closed and they opened one at Gateway .. several of the facilities in Florida have multi use .. getting several events out of one property.


Orlando Speed world has A Drag strip , MX , 1/2 Mile asphalt and a dirt track.
 
the one thing that i remebered unique about the drag strip was one of the few weekends i went there two truck drivers were argueing over who had the fastest truck. so we got a bonus race that day they unhooked from their trailers and lined them up for a pass down the track. they didn't set fast time for the day but it was neat to see lol and don't forget the mud runs that the jaycees would put on there as well and one drunk dude trying to ride his harley through the mud pits. definitely a classic move. bike wasn't worth much after it was drug out of the pits. big paul
 
Give me some time I will get with my sister, my brother-in-law use to race at I-55 Drag Strip every weekend. I went with them all the time, course I was much younger and wasn't into pictures. He use to race a Blue Pontiac GTO called Ole Blue. It was a Pure Pontiac.
 
A buddy and I raced the Drag Strip for a few years. Mostly 79-83 and we had alot of fun, got 2nd in point's one year and didn't even know they had points..lol We had a 1967 Chevelle called SWEET EMOTION, that's one thing I loved about Drag Racing. You could name the car. Anyone remember the other Ed Dixon and his little ChevyII?
 
A buddy and I raced the Drag Strip for a few years. Mostly 79-83 and we had alot of fun, got 2nd in point's one year and didn't even know they had points..lol We had a 1967 Chevelle called SWEET EMOTION, that's one thing I loved about Drag Racing. You could name the car. Anyone remember the other Ed Dixon and his little ChevyII?

My Black 427 66 Biscayne Tudor was called Super Bogus III, the name was on the car when I bought it
We just moved and I have some pics packed away, I'll post them as soon as I can find them.

A guy named Stan Lynn used to run a ChevyII there back in the late 70's early 80's

I believe Stan was killed while working on his car alone in his shop
 
remembering I-55 dragway in the 70s

Actually a flood is what built the dirt track.
In the 70's an elderly lady was leasing the drag strip to a fellow who had raced a modified with Allied (old coupe with 348/409 power). There came a flood and he was paid for the damage done to the strip, tower, out buildings, ect. He repaired what need to be repaired to continue racing and used the left over money to build the dirt track.
Some of the old timers on here will probably remember seeing the track from the Interstate as it progressed, only to find progress stopped. At that time flood ins. was, and may still be, backed, provided by, guarenteed by, whatever they called it .... the Federal Goverernment. They paid off on these ins. policies. Some how they found out all the money had not been spent on what it was paid out for and wanted the funds returned or the insured property repaired. He figured that rather repay the money he would fix what the funds were payed to fix.
At that point the dirt track layed dormant for a time until he had the money to go forward and finish up. Floods have played a LARGE part in the history of I55 Raceway.

THANX RICH

People say I'm getting crankier as I get older. That's not it. I just find I enjoy annoying people a lot more now. Especially younger people!!!


I remember back in the 70s we lived at the end of Big Bass lake road at 67 at a place called Millers resort and as kids we walked to the track almost ever Sunday. We would sit on the bank accross the road from the end of the dragstrip and watch because we couldn't afford to go in all the time. I loved it and my greatest time was going in when the Mongoose Tom McQeuin came to race and I still have photos of that white pontiac he raced. A lot of times we would watch as they were building the dirt track. I even was there when Big Foot and the power wagon was there at the mud runs they used to have. Great memories we have. Dave
 




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