Lions,Orange,Riverside, Ontario, Fontana,Ascot and many more. Back when Southern California was Mecca of all racing in the entire World. Boy have times changed. Thanx for posting this.
So cool! I did'nt know that any footage of the old Fontana dragway existed! This place sat empty up until at least the late 1980's. People would fly their RC planes and ride go-karts there while it was abandoned. But I remember a few of us snuck in at night and raced our cars on the strip!
Biscuit Boy haha you must have lived in my area, we did the same thing late 70’s early 80’s! I grew up in Alta Loma and we drove to the strip every Friday night
Wow, great memories, grew up in Glendale, grad GHS '64; friends and I at the drags each weekend, Fontana, Irwindale, Pomona, Lions. All changed now, old school was to see cars go at the drags and try to buy one like it. I did, a 67 Cyclone, after seeing Dyno Don and his super stock Comets!!
I'da been creamin' my jeans if I coulda seen this back in '65. I was building models of them, but never saw them actually go. Thanks for the unrealised memories.
My dad was asst director of Lions under CJ Hart.....We had a bracket car that we took to Fontana when they reopened in early 70s on Sundays......So fun!!!!
Can't believe that is 55years past.........ridiculous! !!! Am l right that even today's super cars can not match those times? And only a very few that speed! Wonderful footage. Thankyou!
WOW ! The Fontucky Strip. Brings back memories from long ago. I remember when it closed. People still raced there . I remember an Anglia called "Scratchy" it was fun to watch.
Hate to date myself but I didn't miss many events at drag city. Was probably there for this one I was 15 at the time. Doubt I could even find it now. Not many grapes there either. Wonderfull memories thank you.
I was there too! or at Morro Field drag strip in Colton or at Riverside when they ran there. I loved to watch the Gene Brake Shop special. Blown Cackling flat head that put many a chevy on the trailer, they would run Colton a lot
You can actually still see a part of the asphalt today. It's in a wash between housing complexes. I'm doing a little historical video where I talk about the "speedway monster." Did you ever hear any stories about that during your time attending??
This is the coolest thing I've seen EVER! 😃!! My Father bracket raced his 59 Pontiac Star-Chief here back when I was born, he took me ( well mom too 😂 ) to my first meet when I was just 8 days old!! Of course I don't have any memory of it, so this is the only time I've seen race's there!!! I'm 61 now & as excited as going to the first race I do remember, Snake, Roland & Keith Black winning The Winternationals at Pomona in 65, I was 4 🤗 Thank you for this 👍 Reading the team/driver list at the end was amazing too, the legendary name's of drag racing, Garlits, Ace, Big Jim Dunn, Jim Warner, The Flyin Hawaiian Danny Ongais ect...and the last name on the list of what must have been a very young Gary Orsmby 😎 It's amazing to think that the legend's of Don "Big Daddy" Garlits, Big Jim Dunn, Ed "The Ace" McCullough started 60+yrs ago, especially since both Big's & Ace are still with us today, hell, Big Jim Dunn is still at it with his Funny car team! 💪 Sorry to babble on, but the last time I was this excited, I got my first senior's discount at Denny's!! 😂👍 Btw, sub button smashed & like button pounded!!
I was there with my soon to be brother in law when they ran four jet dragsters at the same time. Vibrated the tower so badly I blew all the monitoring gauges. Took em almost an hour to get the races going again. "Beautiful Fontana Drag Raceway". Can still hear the radio advertisement.
@@onazram1 oh yeah, it was very exciting, especially if your Dad was a total gearhead & you knew he would be taking you to the drag meet on Sunday-Sunday-Sunday! 😁👍
My Uncle Gordon Williams and aunt Geraldine Williams (Gerry) were racing at Fontana back in the sixties...Studebakers I think. Would it have been this track? I was quite young then and lived back east, so memories are foggy! As an adult I remember her talking about Don Garlitz.
Bobby Langley- Good grief! He was legend at Green Valley Raceway when we were teens with his "Scorpion" red dragster in 1962... we just shook our heads watching him take off the line whilst still putting on his gloves...miss those days like crazy. One never quite gets the smell of Nitro out of their consciousness.
Wow, I barely had time to catch my breath! That's an outstanding "Greatest Hits" version of the T/F race! I wqs pulling for Pal "The Kid" Sutherland or Ronnie Hampshire, but am totally OK with the Surfers getting the win. ANd anyway, whenever you beat Garlits it's a good day.
I would have loved to have been at a Chrysler exec. meeting in the early 60's. " Yes sir , remember that old POS dual rockershaft engine that we stopped making in 58 ... "
wow, my favorite, the surfers ! They used to cover fuel pump on crankshaft with a blanket, that was their secret a high pressure fuel delivery system (200 psi) others had 60. They quit in 1966 and I went into army 7/28/1966
David Lee Roth once claimed while visiting here as a teenager he seen a car named the Panama express and years later wrote Panama..then changed his story saying it was in Las Vegas..guess only Dave knows the truth
Just found your channel today Nick and love it ! Thanks so much for sharing these old videos. You offer a step back in time to drag racing roots. Just wish I had found you sooner Nick, but I’m subbed and the binge watching can start now ! Love the 60’s era racing, great channel !
@@kraig7777 in the early days it was better than nothing. Guys wore whatever they had that might protect them. I have heard of guys wearing old asbestos firefighter pants and jackets they had altered to fit even cotton coveralls or a leather jacket were better than nothing. We have Tony Nancy, Diest, and Simpson these are just a few to to thank for modern protection. Sadly the macho people of the time didn't wear a suit it was T shirt, sunglasses, Levi's, boots, baseball cap in some classes, and a helmet in the rail jobs and altered classes for many years. Back when you used your own common sense and didn't replace your common sense with lawyer's. It was dangerous guys knew it some were lucky others not lucky. Good old 1% Hydrazine in the fuel sure made things interesting and scary for everyone. We have came a long way.
I. Remember back in the day day. AT THE RACE TRACK C D.R THAT ,S CONTINENTAL DIVIDE TACEWAY INCASTLE ROCK COLO. BIG Daddy with The 1st swamp Rat came to the MilHigh And Raced Hometown Favorite.Mr. Alan Boclkla. Whata u . Know Alan Took on the light. HA,Ha,Ha.One of the fondest Memories grown up!
These guys and woman are the true hero's of drag racing, work thermselves to a standstill just to compete never mind the money's and time it took. Running workshops to feed these unicorns
Look out over the end of the strip and you can see why California emissions standards were implemented just a year after this. So Cal air visibility was about 5 miles on a good day. On a normal day like this it was closer to a mile and a half.
The valley was known by the local Indians as the valley of smoke - back in their day. When the Mormons came into the valley in the 1850's, Coronal Washington built his fires east of San Bernardino in the mountains so they could survey the valley at night; because during the day it was impossible to discern land references in the mountains because of the daytime haze in the valley floor. Moved to San Bernardino at age 4 in 1964 and grow up there on Arden Ave north of Highland Ave. The day was quite normal in the valley of smoke.
Most of that smog was from Kaiser steel. I think I remember six large smokestacks smoking up the valley. I also remember the vineyards were still green and being harvested.
I remember those days. 200 mph was about it, and it took a while to get even there. Yes, I'm that old. Now we're at 300+ mph and tracks are starting to use 1,000 foot runs instead of 1,320 because they weren't designed with adequate deceleration areas never thinking that we would ever reach these speeds. How things can change!
Today most folks think that Micky Thompson is the guy who makes off road tires without understanding that he was a brilliant engineer and died far too early.
A modern top fuel would blow the tires off soon as they let out the clutch back then. They didn't really get a good grip on track prep til what the early 70s?
Yeah that was my hometown and I was 6 in 1965. That kind of smog was what I grew up with. It's hard to believe now when I tell people air is a lot cleaner than it used to be.
35 minutes between rounds, singles because someone couldn't make call, shut off runs to save parts because the other guy red lights. The more things change the more they stay the same.
Look at how smoggy it was. This is not June gloom (marine layer that burns off by noon). With only half of the current California population. This must be summertime. I live 7 miles from Fontana. Most of our smog was due to dirty cars and some heavy industry. Now, it’s nearly smog free.
@@kraig7777 Wait a second had my old flight deck ear protection headphones on let me try that again. What ?? Yep my ears ring it's a small price to pay for all of the good times at the track with my dad and his front engine car. Some great memories hopefully I grow up to be just as awesome as my dad is.
Just think what speeds, would have been reached today, if they had modern slicks back then, that could've hooked up all that horse power, instead of a quarter mile burn out! Give some of those guys, back then, some sticky, wide, modern slicks and let the innovations, in speed begin!
These days were the absolute best went to the track and had fun hamburgers hot dogs greasy fries soda that's the way it was
What memories I have of the old Fontana drags
Glad to see somebody film this
Lions,Orange,Riverside, Ontario, Fontana,Ascot and many more.
Back when Southern California was Mecca of all racing in the entire World.
Boy have times changed.
Thanx for posting this.
And Irwindale!
And don't forget Pomona...Snake vs Mongoose!
kraig7777 I think Irwindale opened the 1/8 mile track back up recently
I was at Orange the last night they were open, lol riots, people running on track during races, crazy way to go out and very sad
@@samsoninthepit They did .. Irwindale is back...was on the 605 freeway last October and drove right by it! It's open
Good old school drag racing. The two dis likes were probably Prius drivers.
Haha or a grouchy old track safety official who had some resentments probably both
I remember a a saying from those days that fuelers would 'tip the can, the lid and the packing slip'.
Outstanding!! Tare shot of the Surfers running that type of injector.
Ah - the good ole days.
Push start bumpers, tire smoke for the full 1/4 mile, $250 per day to keep the engines going.
So cool! I did'nt know that any footage of the old Fontana dragway existed! This place sat empty up until at least the late 1980's. People would fly their RC planes and ride go-karts there while it was abandoned. But I remember a few of us snuck in at night and raced our cars on the strip!
Biscuit Boy haha you must have lived in my area, we did the same thing late 70’s early 80’s! I grew up in Alta Loma and we drove to the strip every Friday night
Me too. In January 1970-71. Dover drag strip Wingdale NY
Wow, great memories, grew up in Glendale, grad GHS '64; friends and I at the drags each weekend, Fontana, Irwindale, Pomona, Lions. All changed now, old school was to see cars go at the drags and try to buy one like it. I did, a 67 Cyclone, after seeing Dyno Don and his super stock Comets!!
I'da been creamin' my jeans if I coulda seen this back in '65. I was building models of them, but never saw them actually go.
Thanks for the unrealised memories.
That term/saying is related the vagina.
1st woman I've seen named Todd.. 🤔
Amazing stuff, love those slingshots, what a spectacle!
I love the sound of those early Chrysler Hemi's
My dad was asst director of Lions under CJ Hart.....We had a bracket car that we took to Fontana when they reopened in early 70s on Sundays......So fun!!!!
Can't believe that is 55years past.........ridiculous! !!! Am l right that even today's super cars can not match those times? And only a very few that speed! Wonderful footage. Thankyou!
"Keep it Lit"!
I remember those smoggy days of the '60s, when it literally hurt to take a breath!
WOW ! The Fontucky Strip. Brings back memories from long ago. I remember when it closed. People still raced there . I remember an Anglia called "Scratchy" it was fun to watch.
Thomas Brown wow I forgot it was called Fontucky
Is the new speedway built over it or was the strip located in a different place?
The new track is on Cherry ave. This was located on Foothill Blvd or Route 66. It's all houses now.
..."Making it a cold day for Winters"....we can't let that slip by without note...this was a great commentator
Hate to date myself but I didn't miss many events at drag city. Was probably there for this one I was 15 at the time. Doubt I could even find it now. Not many grapes there either. Wonderfull memories thank you.
Where was it located in Fontana. I dont see valley Avenue or cherry..lol
I was 6, my dad used to take me there every week I'm sure we were there somewhere.
I was there too! or at Morro Field drag strip in Colton or at Riverside when they ran there. I loved to watch the Gene Brake Shop special. Blown Cackling flat head that put many a chevy on the trailer, they would run Colton a lot
@@stanthrasher4815 I think it was north of Foothill accessed from Foothill 55+ yr old memory though
You can actually still see a part of the asphalt today. It's in a wash between housing complexes. I'm doing a little historical video where I talk about the "speedway monster." Did you ever hear any stories about that during your time attending??
What a flashback to my youth! I only ever saw photos of these guys in Drag Mags! Thanks for posting!!!
This is the coolest thing I've seen EVER! 😃!! My Father bracket raced his 59 Pontiac Star-Chief here back when I was born, he took me ( well mom too 😂 ) to my first meet when I was just 8 days old!!
Of course I don't have any memory of it, so this is the only time I've seen race's there!!! I'm 61 now & as excited as going to the first race I do remember, Snake, Roland & Keith Black winning The Winternationals at Pomona in 65, I was 4 🤗 Thank you for this 👍
Reading the team/driver list at the end was amazing too, the legendary name's of drag racing, Garlits, Ace, Big Jim Dunn, Jim Warner, The Flyin Hawaiian Danny Ongais ect...and the last name on the list of what must have been a very young Gary Orsmby 😎
It's amazing to think that the legend's of Don "Big Daddy" Garlits, Big Jim Dunn, Ed "The Ace" McCullough started 60+yrs ago, especially since both Big's & Ace are still with us today, hell, Big Jim Dunn is still at it with his Funny car team! 💪 Sorry to babble on, but the last time I was this excited, I got my first senior's discount at Denny's!! 😂👍
Btw, sub button smashed & like button pounded!!
Skinner, Jobe & Sorokin...SURF'S UP! Kenny "Road King" Safford...
So Many Great Cars, Racers & Memories...Thanks for Posting, Nick!
Mickey Thompson at the end, handing out the cash!
My Dad worked with Mickey Thompson at the Los Angeles Times...Times Mirror...
I was there 12 years old with my Brother
It's too bad that this only has Dragsters . It would of been great to see Super Stocks and Gassers at Fontana
Nick Pettitt so glad I found your channel So much Unique Footage. Subbed w/ Notifications! Peace.
The last part of the footage is priceless, Mike Sorokin AND Mickey Thompson on the same film. Guess it didn't cost the Surfers $250 that day
I was there with my soon to be brother in law when they ran four jet dragsters at the same time. Vibrated the tower so badly I blew all the monitoring gauges. Took em almost an hour to get the races going again. "Beautiful Fontana Drag Raceway". Can still hear the radio advertisement.
"This Sunday-Sunday-Sunday!!!"
😂👍
@@Slinger43 Lol they played those same ad's all around the country back then, they were very exciting to hear as a young kid..
@@onazram1 oh yeah, it was very exciting, especially if your Dad was a total gearhead & you knew he would be taking you to the drag meet on Sunday-Sunday-Sunday!
😁👍
This is awesome!!!! Mike Sorokin & The Surfers Mickey Thompson Live in effect :)
Another fantastic video I have never seen before! Thanks Nick
My Uncle Gordon Williams and aunt Geraldine Williams (Gerry) were racing at Fontana back in the sixties...Studebakers I think. Would it have been this track? I was quite young then and lived back east, so memories are foggy! As an adult I remember her talking about Don Garlitz.
So many legends of the sport in this time capsule! Thank you for posting this…
nothing like a quarter mile burnout
Awesome footage.. thanks for the Post..
That street in the back ground is Foothill Blvd(Route66). The track is now nothing but houses...
Bobby Langley- Good grief! He was legend at Green Valley Raceway when we were teens with his "Scorpion" red dragster in 1962... we just shook our heads watching him take off the line whilst still putting on his gloves...miss those days like crazy. One never quite gets the smell of Nitro out of their consciousness.
Wow, I barely had time to catch my breath! That's an outstanding "Greatest Hits" version of the T/F race! I wqs pulling for Pal "The Kid" Sutherland or Ronnie Hampshire, but am totally OK with the Surfers getting the win. ANd anyway, whenever you beat Garlits it's a good day.
I would have loved to have been at a Chrysler exec. meeting in the early 60's. " Yes sir , remember that old POS dual rockershaft engine that we stopped making in 58 ... "
wow, my favorite, the surfers ! They used to cover fuel pump on crankshaft with a blanket,
that was their secret a high pressure fuel delivery system (200 psi) others had 60. They quit
in 1966 and I went into army 7/28/1966
That tree with the 1 second delay from yellow to green would be a killer!!!
Right! They have one at the museum at Pomona ( LA Fairgrounds ) It's pretty cool, but then again, everything in the Pomona museum is fricken cool!
Nice video. One of the few SoCal tracks I didn’t get to race on. Closed too soon
David Lee Roth once claimed while visiting here as a teenager he seen a car named the Panama express and years later wrote Panama..then changed his story saying it was in Las Vegas..guess only Dave knows the truth
Just found your channel today Nick and love it ! Thanks so much for sharing these old videos. You offer a step back in time to drag racing roots. Just wish I had found you sooner Nick, but I’m subbed and the binge watching can start now ! Love the 60’s era racing, great channel !
Great job Nick
I couldn't imagine keeping one of those things on the road at 200 miles an hour.... I'd be shitting all over myself!
It's incredible how exposed the drivers were in those Slingshots.
And wrapped in asbestos.
@@kraig7777 in the early days it was better than nothing. Guys wore whatever they had that might protect them. I have heard of guys wearing old asbestos firefighter pants and jackets they had altered to fit even cotton coveralls or a leather jacket were better than nothing. We have Tony Nancy, Diest, and Simpson these are just a few to to thank for modern protection. Sadly the macho people of the time didn't wear a suit it was T shirt, sunglasses, Levi's, boots, baseball cap in some classes, and a helmet in the rail jobs and altered classes for many years. Back when you used your own common sense and didn't replace your common sense with lawyer's. It was dangerous guys knew it some were lucky others not lucky. Good old 1% Hydrazine in the fuel sure made things interesting and scary for everyone. We have came a long way.
at 4:57, watch the spark jump to the valve cover on #2 cylinder...
Jeez. That's crazy. I'd have never noticed.
It got me once fking hurts!!
Hawkeye!.
Saw it. High energy ignition. Looks like the wires couldn't handle it or they just ran the wires too long before replacing them.
Damn!! Good eye's! 👀
Great video! Remember going there as a kid!
Nick, thanks!
I love the wheel spin all the way down the straight!
I used to sneak into the pits through the old vineyard on Sat. nights. Never saw them break 8 seconds or 200 mph. But I did see Arron’s
And there is nothing like slingshots going down the track burning rubber
I. Remember back in the day day. AT THE RACE TRACK C
D.R THAT ,S CONTINENTAL DIVIDE TACEWAY INCASTLE ROCK COLO. BIG Daddy with The 1st swamp Rat came to the MilHigh And Raced Hometown Favorite.Mr. Alan Boclkla. Whata u . Know Alan Took on the light. HA,Ha,Ha.One of the fondest Memories grown up!
Slingshot days. I remember reading in a mag how the top fuels had cracked the 1000 hp barrier.
These guys and woman are the true hero's of drag racing, work thermselves to a standstill just to compete never mind the money's and time it took. Running workshops to feed these unicorns
Those rails have really come a long ways... Get a load of the Christmas tree...
Not much of a "tree". It's more of a traffic light, huh?
T H , the engines and tires got moved to the rear of the driver , Horse power went from 3000hp to 11,000hp
Look out over the end of the strip and you can see why California emissions standards were implemented just a year after this. So Cal air visibility was about 5 miles on a good day. On a normal day like this it was closer to a mile and a half.
The valley was known by the local Indians as the valley of smoke - back in their day. When the Mormons came into the valley in the 1850's, Coronal Washington built his fires east of San Bernardino in the mountains so they could survey the valley at night; because during the day it was impossible to discern land references in the mountains because of the daytime haze in the valley floor. Moved to San Bernardino at age 4 in 1964 and grow up there on Arden Ave north of Highland Ave. The day was quite normal in the valley of smoke.
Well I. GUESS. NO MRE. LOCOMOTION?!
Most of that smog was from Kaiser steel. I think I remember six large smokestacks smoking up the valley. I also remember the vineyards were still green and being harvested.
Right there off of Foothill and Etiwanda Ave
Nice to see this. Thanks.
I remember those days. 200 mph was about it, and it took a while to get even there. Yes, I'm that old. Now we're at 300+ mph and tracks are starting to use 1,000 foot runs instead of 1,320 because they weren't designed with adequate deceleration areas never thinking that we would ever reach these speeds. How things can change!
Do you remember their 60ft times?
Yup,now there’s 4cylinder cars with over 2000 hp running 6s in the quarter,still limited to traction issues
Looks like the weak link was the tires. The cars never did hook up the entire 1/4 mi
Aerodynamics
The clutch was the weakest link. The slider clutch ended the smoking of the tires for the entire quarter mile.
No noise complaints around there! It looks like it's in the middle of nowhere
So cooooool!
Well captured.
Jan & Dean did a song about Drag City!!
Very cool 😎
been there twice while i was in the Air Force. Mick owned it. he only managed long beach
200 miles an hour without guard rails.
Or. PROBABLY NO SCATTER SHIELD
Today most folks think that Micky Thompson is the guy who makes off road tires without understanding that he was a brilliant engineer and died far too early.
I like your words. The Thompson's were nice people. A sad day in Bradbury. RIP
Well said, the bullet hole's in MT's logo at the end brought some sadness to me 🙏 RIP MT & TT ✝️ 😞
Fontana track is all gone now. Timing tower i here was torn down
Brilliant cheers👍🇬🇧
The truth is, drag racing is faaar out!!!
Peter Royce Bentley (better known as The Potato Bug) from Sussexx sent me here
Surfers FTW
RIP Mike
We miss you
A modern top fuel would blow the tires off soon as they let out the clutch back then. They didn't really get a good grip on track prep til what the early 70s?
The tires were the issue more so than the track
Nice islander. Inland! Fontana. I'm foolertn surf dood. .ocir. wow more strips. Drag city the song
Nice
Dramatic film
so simple in those days. check out the smog in the back round.
Yeah that was my hometown and I was 6 in 1965. That kind of smog was what I grew up with. It's hard to believe now when I tell people air is a lot cleaner than it used to be.
35 minutes between rounds, singles because someone couldn't make call, shut off runs to save parts because the other guy red lights. The more things change the more they stay the same.
Before there were things called the burn out box?
Do you have any videos that have The Dead End Kids, Red Lang or Joey Anahory?
Look at how smoggy it was. This is not June gloom (marine layer that burns off by noon). With only half of the current California population. This must be summertime. I live 7 miles from Fontana. Most of our smog was due to dirty cars and some heavy industry. Now, it’s nearly smog free.
Notice there are no guard rails or walls.
You can tell music is from the Marionette TV series age.
Was this filmed by kyle from 1320 video ?
6sixtystreet...lol
RIP Mike Sorokin
Where was the Snake?
He was just waiting to see who was running hard. Then he was planning his strike. The Snake 😎
@@PhilAVega Snake was The MAN! 🤔....Hell, come to think of it, He Still Is!! ☝️😎
#SNAKEisTheGOAT!!
#VenomousStrike!!
#ForgiveMeBigDaddy!! 😂👍
Right! Was wondering that as well, was surprised not to see both Snake & The Goose not there 🤷🏻♂️
No guard rails! Ah, the way we were....
Can’t tell if oil pan or tires lol
😎👍 🤗
Before the days of ear protection, I guess.
They had it but it was for sissies.
@@kraig7777
"What's that , Sonny? You say you want to give her four kisses. I don't blame ya".
@@RalphSampson... Haha
What ? Say it louder ?
@@kraig7777 Wait a second had my old flight deck ear protection headphones on let me try that again. What ?? Yep my ears ring it's a small price to pay for all of the good times at the track with my dad and his front engine car. Some great memories hopefully I grow up to be just as awesome as my dad is.
Where was the fontana dragstrip off of baseline next to the 210 fwy in what are now grapefields
Silvr Colctr it was on north side of Foothill just East of 15 freeway
The tower was still up until late 80’s
Look at the smog.
Yeah, it was beautiful! 🗣️🗣️ LOL
i have a jim davis car to this day #3
Just think what speeds, would have been reached today, if they had modern slicks back then, that could've hooked up all that horse power, instead of a quarter mile burn out! Give some of those guys, back then, some sticky, wide, modern slicks and let the innovations, in speed begin!
If they had modern tires they’d flip over right at the line haha
Xciting
We stood close 2 trak at vegas strip. B 4 the new track my dad couldn't b leave it
Yea the shokwaves
Fuel injection pioneers surfers
They r sure smokinn tires
Top fuel then was doing what pro stock is doing now.
Spinnin aint winnin!
It's so cool to see 🙌😁 these old videos of drag raceing.. thank you 😊
Thank you so much I will have to share this with my father.