Event Coverage Rock'N'Race Reunion Dragway 42 West Salem Ohio

Ok, here is my frist ever Web Site! Please check it out.

http://moyergraffiti.wix.com/rocknrace-reunion

 

Site looks good Don. Can't wait for more info to roll out about this show. See you at the Hot rod asylum next weekend.

 

Site looks good but it is really back from the future.............

look to the very bottom

copyrite 2023 by vintage cars.

 

Hey Don

The Canadian Boys from the ONDR are discussing putting a group of 8 Gassers together for your race. Stay tuned
BTW...how will this be run??

Thanks
Derrick
Hyper Henry

 

Derrick, that is great news! Once we have the list of all the gasser organizations that are going to compete, we will figure out a program for the saturday night event that is agreeable among the groups.

I hope your organization plans to come to participate in the whole event too.

 

Bring that Silver Bullet guy with you.

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Good to see this event getting turned around as it was getting pretty lame. It should be copious amounts of awesome now!


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Artist rendering of the new Dragway 42 that was unveilded at the Piston Powered Auto-Rama this past weekend.

 

From the Dragway 42 website:

The track will be 4000 foot long from start to finish, ALL concrete with a 200 foot sand trap at the end. In order to make the track longer, we have acquired additional property behind the starting line and to the west of the track to do so. The track has been angled 10 degrees from the finish line and the new track will basically run through where the old pits were at which you can better see by taking a look at the engineers drawing. The track will be water cooled from the starting line, all the way to the 330 foot mark just like at other state of the art tracks throughout the country. The track will be going 16 feet down into the ground which will create amphitheater style seating on both sides of the track. The legendary “crossover” will be recreated and a three story tower that will include both a media center with suites and the timing system facilities will sit atop the crossover which will be located right behind and above the starting line. Hope this and the pictures answer some of the questions that you have had or have heard. Be sure to check out all of the pictures to get a better idea of what the new track will look like. Our “soft launch” target date for the grand opening is the weekend of July 12th 2014

 

The Nostalgic Notions are participating in the Gasser Group Race! I have not heard from a couple of the groups..are there any groups out there I am missing?

 

Don, quite a few of us from The Gasser Racing Series will be there! Brian

 

Brian, you are correct! I just talked with the powers that be and the Gasser Racing Series guys will be participating in the Gasser Group Race and bringing more gassers to the Rock'N'Race Reunion! That is 32 Gassers from 4 different organizations now confirmed for the saturday evening Gasser Group World Finals!

 

Don, what are the qualifications for running in Saturdays world finals. can any type gasser run. thank you

 

Don another question on race day sunday do all high nose gassers have to run in the trophy class, and is there just a trophy or is there a payout in this class?

 

Oldschoolracer, the answer to your first question is no, the Gasser Group Race is just a race to see which Gasser Organization has the fastest and the most consisntant car. So it will be a race between the groups. 8 cars from each group will compete. We have 4 groups confirmed so far! The lanes will be open for time trials in between rounds so you will still get to run/match race at prime time. The second question has a 2 part answer. If you don't want to run index, you can run in Competition Gas if you choose. The winner of Nostalgia Gas will race the winner of Competition Gas for the purse. Hope this helps, thanks!

 

The Highway Hellions CC have stepped up and will sponsor and run the show portion of the Rock'N'Race Reunion! Show em what your bringing!

 

Really looking forward to the Rock'N'Race this year.

 

A bunch of great old pictures posted over the weekend on the facebook Rock'N'Race Reunion group page!

 

Here is a sketch for the event t-shirt front and the back will have the event logo and sponsorship icons.

 

We are having a wheel stand contest! Thanks to our sponsors the Choppers Hot Rod Association and Jason's Custom Metal Polishing and Chrome Plating we are giving away $1000 in this contest alone!

 

Sorry guys, this one is a rain out this year....From the 42 website:

Regarding the 2014 Season
BY ADMIN · JULY 6, 2014


After many meetings and much deliberation, Dragway 42’s owner Ron Matcham has decided to postpone the re-opening of the facility until the 2015 season. Undeniably this was a difficult decision that was ultimately forced to be made by Mother Nature’s lack of cooperation. The opening of the facility was planned for early July based upon what most would consider a “perfect storm” timeline. If Northeast Ohio had typical or mild winter weather that ended in mid or late March, the project would have not fallen behind from the start. Add on the torrential rains that we have been receiving since the snow has stopped (all which seem to be centralized in West Salem) and we come to this point in July.

As it stands today, we still have multiple inches and feet of standing water on the property. Along with this water comes mud, in massive quantities. The surface mud is one issue, and every dry day helps cure that issue. Another issue stems back 50+ years to when the raceway was built. There has been NO drainage on the property since the very beginning, and core sampling determined that none of the ground directly under or around the existing drag strip was usable. At that time, it was determined by Ron and the engineers that the only option to building a stable, smooth race track was to move it to the West side of the property. The core sampling in that area shows a much more stable area to build on; however it also is extremely wet.

After a very successful 2014 “Hangover Nationals”, the project began. Demolition was able to take place while the ground was still hard packed and frozen. The heavy machinery that is staged at the race track was able to remove all of the old buildings and removed the majority of the old racing surface to clear the way for all of the new improvements. These same construction crews are ready to go and will resume work once the weather will allow them to begin the building process.

Throughout the entire process from the time the track was purchased until present, there have been multiple rumors of issues that have kept the track from progressing. While we have had to deal with obvious items pertaining to permits, annexations, city water, gas lines, etc; we would not call them issues, and they have not lead to any additional delays.

Mr. Matcham is committed to providing a state of the art facility that will last for years to come. Attempting to build a drag strip with the conditions as they currently exist would only lead to the same issues that the old facility had. To provide a premier racing surface, you must start with a solid base. To conform to IHRA standards, the surface may only vary .001 +/- over the entire length of the track. Should a track be poured on the grounds the way they are, this would be almost impossible to achieve and would only become worse over time. The goal is not simply to have two lanes to race on; it is to provide a racing surface worthy of running IHRA National Events with Nitro Cars and being on the level of the top tracks in the country.

Everyone at Dragway 42 apologizes in advance to the racing community for any inconvenience or hardship that this decision may cause. We will continue the process of returning Dragway 42 to the great facility it once was, and look forward to showing it off to all the racers, fans and friends in 2015.

 

Darn shame it couldn't be completed this season! You just can't plan for Mother Nature! I hope that the set back doesn't deter Mr. Matcham from completing his dream project! I'm sure it will be worth the wait for spectators and racers alike!

 

And again rain today - oh damn

 

A real bummer. Will plan for next year.

 

I read about this earlier today, sorry to hear. I'll plan on next year as well

 

Glad I checked I was ready to jump in the car tomorrow

 

Hey Don, any news about 2015?

 

Yeah what he said.

 

Yes any news? ^^^^???^^^

 

This is an update on the track itself, directly from the Dragway 42 website...there are pics of the progress also. Not sure about the Rock and Race though.....

The excavating is mostly done. We just received the first of the bleachers and have the timing system, scoreboards, jet dryer, Zamboni, and other track equipment. We have a soft opening date of June 1, 2015 barring terrible weather and will pour the racing surface as soon as weather permits.

As a side note, I live about 30 min from the track and we are supposed to get 3"-5" of snow today. Great.