Anyone ever been to the maxton mile in nc for any events there. I see the hot rod magazines having something there in april.
I went last year and love it. No grand stands, no hype. Abandoned air strip between cotton and peanut fields. Lots of diversity. Maybe 50% bikes. Pass inspection, get in line, and run what ya brung.
Wish it was closer - I'd LOVE to run at Maxton some day. I've run my car on salt and have been wondering ever since how much faster it'd go with some traction... Enjoy it, you lucky dogs...
I haven't been either but I'm thinking about going down on friday and camping if the weather is good.
Jay (BIG PORT JIMMY 6) has been several time and is a record holder. ECTA National record holder XO/PP ,,,HRP
Events Here is some useful information and links for more about our events: – The 2009 event schedule is as follows: April 4 - 5 May 16 - 17 June 27 - 28 September 19 - 20 October 24 - 25 For detail on the daily schedule, look here. – The Hot Rod Magazine Top Speed Challenge will be held at the April meet. For detail on past years’ rules, look here. Note that the rules for the 2009 HRM Challenge have not been announced, so check Hot Rod Magazine’s upcoming issues or check back here for more detail when the rules are announced. – The Super Streetbike Top Speed Shootout will be held at the September meet. For details on the 2006 meet, look here. Rules for the 2009 Super Streetbike Shootout will be announced as we get closer to the meet. To see past year’s rules, go here.
About the ECTA Before Bonneville became the preeminent land speed racing venue it is today, Daytona Beach was the Land Speed Mecca. Sir Malcolm Campbell ran there, and many of the high speed records of the twenties and thirties were set on that eastern beach. Forty years ago you could still run cars and bikes on the hard sand around Daytona and Ormand Beach. In fact, Hot Rod Magazine ran a project Plymouth there back in the early 60s. Bonneville had several advantages to the beach. There were no tides to contend with, and it had a longer running surface. With all the California hot rodders looking for a place to race after World War II, and after the loss of Muroc to the Army, Bonneville was a wonderful alternative and became, with increased competition, the new Land Speed Mecca. In the years hence, eastern racers couldn’t easily participate in speed trials without a 2,300 mile trip to Utah, and had to settle for circle track and drag racing. Daytona had grown up and had too many tourists to allow for free use of the beach, and there aren’t any dry lakes in the East to use as a substitute. The East Coast Timing Association was formed by two Bonneville racers, with the idea of providing its members with a place to run speed trials in the eastern half of the United States. We wanted to model it after the El Mirage dry lakes events, as this was closer to what might be possible back East. With dry lakes being non-existent east of the Mississippi, we began to look for an alternative. After an exhaustive search, a seldom-used World War II air base runway was located in Maxton, North Carolina. It now provides the race course for our events. The race course length, at one mile, is only slightly less than El Mirage. It has a hard concrete surface with considerably greater traction than the slippery salt of Bonneville, and with the elevation of 210 feet above sea level it produces similar speeds to El Mirage. With that, speed trials were reintroduced to the East. Land speed racing is not just a long drag race. The rules for land speed racing are quite different and very liberal in comparison to other forms of motor sports. Safety is of primary concern, and the ECTA hosts some of the safest racing around. If you are a racer, hot rodder, or maybe you have had a fondness for Bonneville ever since you were a kid, and the idea of going flat out for a whole mile gets your blood pumping, then land speed racing at Maxton is the place for you. Come join the fun. MAXTON, NC Laurinburg/Maxton Army Airbase was built in 1942 as a training base for gliders. The plan then was to silently send troops past enemy lines during the invasion at Normandy. Tucked away in the Carolina pines was an isolated location perfect for such training during World War II. There are three original runways at Maxton (short for Laurinburg/Maxton). Two are still in use by the airport. The third, however, was abandoned in the 1960s, as three runways were more than the community needed. While unused for 35 years, it fell into a state of disrepair with grass, bushes and even trees growing up around and through the concrete. When we first looked at this unused and forgotten runway, we could see immediately the potential for speed trials. With the use of the taxiways on either end of the main runway, we had almost 1.9 miles of total length. Hard and flat, we could run a full mile and still have 0.8 to 0.9 tenths of a mile of shut down area, perfect for speeds that would be over 200 MPH, with some eventually reaching 260 MPH. In spite of the promise, this place needed a tremendous amount of work to make it usable. After removal of approximately 200 tons of dirt and debris from the 150 foot wide runway, we were able to pick a 30 to 50 foot section that would be the new course. After many weeks of jack hammering and concrete pouring, we had a surface we could run on. It’s not as perfect as the dry lakes or salt flats prepared by Mother Nature, but we are constantly improving it. The pit area at Maxton is located across from the finish line. This affords a great view of all the high speed action. The pits are old airplane tie downs that give us a concrete surface to park our vehicles on. There is also a taxiway that runs the length of the race course, which provides easy access from the pits to the start line and from the shut down back to the pits. Maxton has given Land Speed Racing another chance to grow into its own on the East coast. We may not be the quickest, but we can boast some of the fastest vehicles on the eastern side of the Rockies.
In addition to Wildfire's excellent info and links there is aso an ECTA section in the forums on http://www.landracing.com with a lot of good information. All goes according to plan, I will be there for the April meet. Got a feeling if the weather is good it will be a big one. What time for the meet and greet Wildfire? Ed Purinton
The Mrs. and I stopped there on the return trip from our "honeymoon" (seriously I still dont know how I pulled that off!) it was damn cool.. but you wouldn't want to go there without "provisions" little to no support for anything in the local area.. lots of bikes when i was there.. no stands.. the PERFECT place to race!
Charlie Burns took his '57 F100 and now holds the E/PP record there. Said the surface was a little scary. Here is a video of his record run. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-B0VgRE_8M&feature=channel_page
I got hooked on Maxton after breaking "alot" of parts on the dragstrip. I was able to make several passes(without breaking anything other than a sweat) which made it addictive. Lots of early cars.
Sawzall, Actually quite a lot available in nearby Laurinburg. Motels, eating places, Wal-Mart, Lowes, supermarkets, 3 auto parts stores, etc. Took me a couple-three meets to get orientated as to what was available and where and still learning [have made various meets in '02,4,5,6,&7], undoubtedly more that I haven't found yet. Campers, Might be advisible to check tent sites carfully before pitching, I've inadvertantly stepped in a fire ant hill or two.......
Sounds good I'd like to meet some of ya'll maybe grill a burger,me and my son will probabaly be there in my old rag thats in the avatar.
Just go. You will not regret it. It's a great time. My pics and videos from previous meets, if you're interested: October '08 May '08 April '08 October '07 September '07 March '07 October '06 September '06 October '05
i've been there a bunch! it's the closest you'll get to bonneville on the east coast. layed back, no big corporate sponsors,and you don't have to spend alot of money to have a real good time. lookin forward to the 09 season!
Maxton is a great place to race and meet alot of great people. It doesnt matter what you bring . Ive been going there since 1999. If your on the east coast it a great place to test if you are planning to go to Bonneville. and even if your not you get to take multible runs in a weekend. Lots of Vareity. The turbo bikes are running in the 240-260 mph. and fast cars are running 200-220 sum even faster. Its really cool to see flatty run then watch a fast bike go. You never know what will show up. The first Meet is sponsered by HOT ROD Magazine with the street car shootout. Lots of cars . Great family there. Todd B.
I'll be down at Maxton with the Gustafson team. This is my 5th year. It's the fastest social club you'll every join. Marcia
If all go as plan will be there. Not looking forward to the drive though. Will be crewing on a non hamb type truck.
I want to go and run my opel gt. But the first weekend is the same as the AutoFair. I will run at least one time this year.
So can everybody wear a HAMB shirt or something? Maybe we can get a banner to use as a rally point - strap it to a cooler and a grill? I'll make up some sort of banner or spray paint HAMB on the side of my big cooler if that's what it takes!
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