Thomas Dragway/Farmington Dragway
ClosedClosed No longer racing, but some of the track is still there.
Also known as Thomas International Dragway
- Built by former Farmington mayor Oscar Thomas
- Steve Bovan's Camaro funny car ran 175.44 MPH at the 1967 finale
- Raced
- 1967-82
- State
- New Mexico
- What's left
- You can still spot it in aerial photos, or broken pieces of the track surface remain.
- Raced on
- Built as a drag strip
- First race
- about April 1967
- Last race
- 1982 (last documented)
- Location
- South Side River Road, Bloomfield, three miles east of Farmington
- People
- Oscar Thomas, builder and owner (1967)
- Steve Barron, track manager (1973)
- Four Corners Timing Association, race operator (1973)
- Sanction
- AHRA, NHRA
- Elevation
- 5,498 ft (1,676 m)
- Coordinates
- 36.74574, -108.15162
Oscar Thomas, mayor of Farmington from 1962 to 1964, built and owned this strip. In March 1967 he had AHRA officials inspect the site, three miles east of Farmington on South Side River Road in Bloomfield. It opened around April 1967 as Thomas International Dragway, though the international part was a stretch. Fred Rector of Durango won Top Stock Eliminator on Sunday, August 13, 1967, and Jack Strong was quickest in his dragster on October 1 at 11.45 and 149.98 MPH. The season finale on October 15 featured Bob Perry’s “Fugitive” wheelstanding pickup and Steve Bovan’s Camaro funny car, and Bovan had top speed at 175.44 MPH in his ‘67 Chevy.
1968 was much quieter, with possibly just one race in May plus an antique airplane show. In 1969, under new management and the name Farmington Dragway, it raced the first Sunday of each month from April through November under NHRA sanction. On Sunday, May 4, 1969, Bob Payne won competition eliminator with the day’s best, 11.03 at 127 MPH, in his ‘23 T A/A. The track went back to AHRA rules in 1972. Steve Barron became manager in 1973 and returned to NHRA sanction, with the Four Corners Timing Association running races. Nothing has been found after 1982.
