Woodburn Drag Strip

History

In late 1958 the Multnomah Hot Rod Council bought the old West Woodburn Airport strip, twelve miles north of Salem, from the Northwest Timing Association for about $4,000, though the two groups built the drag strip together. After a lot of early work, they sold $1 stock certificates in early 1959 to pay for paving, each good for two free admissions. Plans called for an eighth-mile strip, paved 60 feet wide and 2,000 feet long. The first NHRA-sanctioned race, gas only, ran June 4, 1961, with about 2,000 spectators and 75 cars, and Anthony Aicher was fastest at a computed 102 mph in his flathead D dragster. In 1962-63 it raced two or three days a month. It stayed an eighth-mile until 1963, when it was lengthened, and the first quarter-mile race on July 21, 1963, saw Mike Grimm set the strip record at 191.4 mph in the Floyd-Aldrich-Grimm fueler. Three hundred racers, Tommy Ivo among them, ran the Oregon Fuel and Gas Championships on September 14-15, 1963.

In 1964 Spencer Etzel and Don Norris of Salem and Al Beachell of Portland contracted to run the strip. That first year they paved the staging area, piped water to the pits and built a new concession stand. An NHRA regional ran August 9, 1964, and after lights were installed the first night race was August 29. On June 13, 1965, 10,000 people saw Ed McCulloch beat Pete Robinson for the nation’s number one top fuel ranking. At an AA fuel invitational on June 30, 1968, Ron Rolstad of Seattle set a speed record of 222.76 mph, and Jim Crooke of Seattle and Ron Gorans of Longview tied for the ET mark at 7.27.

In 1969 the Northwest Timing Association sued the Multnomah Hot Rod Council for breach of lease, charging mismanagement and negligence with joint funds, and the track sat closed for three years until the dispute was settled in 1972. The NWTA bought it outright to run as a non-profit, with bigger purses and gate money going to improvements. It reopened under NHRA with four eliminator classes, modified, super stock, stock and competition, and Clarence Everett as manager. Over 4,000 fans and 175 racers came on May 28, 1972, and a grand opening followed on June 10-11. Later in 1972 Jim Livingston, who had helped run Madras since the late 1950s, bought the strip and brought back the big-name fuel dragster and funny car shows the fans wanted. His first race was August 20, 1972, and he kept improving the place. It’s still NHRA sanctioned and co-owned by his son Jay and daughter Cherie.