Windsor Dragway

Status unknownStatus unknown Closed, but nobody has checked how much of the site survives, or the exact spot was never found.

Raced
1968-71
Province
Ontario
What's left
How much of the site survives hasn't been checked yet.
Raced on
Built as a drag strip
First race
August 25, 1968
Last race
October 3, 1971
Location
Off Highway 401 on the Sandwich South Township-Maidstone line
People
  • Mike Wheatley, president of Windsor Dragway, Ltd. (1968)
  • Bob Wheatley, manager (1971)
Sanction
NHRA
Elevation
604 ft (184 m)
Coordinates
42.25623, -82.87711

In April 1968, Mike Wheatley, president of Windsor Dragway, Ltd., announced a $400,000 drag strip for the Windsor area, good news for local racers after years of rumors and failed attempts. It sat on a 300-acre site just off Highway 401 on the Sandwich South Township-Maidstone line. Because the Sandwich South council was worried about noise, more than 400 three-year-old poplars were planted around it as a buffer. The NHRA-sanctioned track opened on August 25, 1968. At a two-day NHRA regional on September 14-15, 1968, eight national records were set on Sunday in front of 6,000 people. Ron Hewitt was killed there on October 20, 1968. Spring weather was unreliable, and in 1969 the track was three weeks into its schedule before it could hold a race. Bob Wheatley took over management in mid-1971. The last race was October 3, 1971.

Video

Video footage of racing at Windsor Dragway, 7:40 minutes Watch on YouTube
Video footage of racing at Windsor Dragway in 1968, 6:54 minutes Watch on YouTube
Video footage of UDRA funy car meet at Windsor Dragway, 11:03 minutes Watch on YouTube
Slide show of Windsor Dragway, 7:40 minutes Watch on YouTube

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