Marana Army Air Field

Drag racing was held at Marana Army Air Field, now Pinal Airpark, by 1951 at the latest, sanctioned and supervised by the Arizona Highway Patrol and run by the Southern Arizona Timing Association. Dave Smith attended what he remembers as the first race there, possibly in 1952. Bill Gundy set a track speed mark of 111.508 mph on August 10, 1952. Reports of a March 8, 1953 race said new rules were in use and trophies had expanded to ten classes for cars and motorcycles, which suggests earlier races, perhaps in 1952. Races certainly ran monthly in 1953. On January 3, 1954, the Outcasts Car Club staged a cerebral palsy benefit race on the main landing runway, free to watch, with entry fees covering timing and trophies. Racing in 1958 began on October 11 with night racing under lights, and Carl Grimes was after top eliminator in his B dragster on December 14. Marana was the oldest drag venue in Arizona, and in 1959 it was the state’s only night drag strip, racing on the second and fourth Saturdays. In June 1959, though, strip operator Larry Naughton said the CAA had ordered him to shut down because Marana was an emergency landing field. He hoped to get clearance and have the decision reversed.