Drag Car Racing Pioneer. He found himself in Southern California after World War II, just as drag racing was becoming a somewhat organized sport on dry lake beds. His idea was to charge admission to watch or participate in races on a runway at the Orange County Airport (now John Wayne Airport) in Santa Ana, California. The National Hot Rod Association, as well as the Encyclopedia Britannica, say that the first race was there, on June 19, 1950. It is considered the first commercial competition in a sport in which billions of dollars are now spent as 35,000 licensed competitors race on at least 140 tracks. He was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1999. In 2001, National Dragster Magazine credited him to inventing drag racing because he was the first one to have a commercial strip. In April 2003, he was honored at the NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona, California as being, "the brightest guy in the world to start the first drag strip." Cause of death, stroke at age 93.
Drag Car Racing Pioneer. He found himself in Southern California after World War II, just as drag racing was becoming a somewhat organized sport on dry lake beds. His idea was to charge admission to watch or participate in races on a runway at the Orange County Airport (now John Wayne Airport) in Santa Ana, California. The National Hot Rod Association, as well as the Encyclopedia Britannica, say that the first race was there, on June 19, 1950. It is considered the first commercial competition in a sport in which billions of dollars are now spent as 35,000 licensed competitors race on at least 140 tracks. He was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1999. In 2001, National Dragster Magazine credited him to inventing drag racing because he was the first one to have a commercial strip. In April 2003, he was honored at the NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona, California as being, "the brightest guy in the world to start the first drag strip." Cause of death, stroke at age 93.
Bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith
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