Mason Dixon Dragway – As the gates opened for business, a cool breeze was blowing across the facility, a stark contrast to the heat that was to accompany the first real day of Summer at the track. Rain had become common on weekends, so I’m sure no one was going to complain about this beautiful day. Haulers trickled in, and the pit areas were filling with a wide variety of hot rods. The day would feature some incredibly impressive Junior Dragsters, Motorcycles, Limited All Motor, Modern Muscle, and Street X cars. There was really something for everyone there. There was even a guy making some of his first passes on a snowmobile, trying to get familiar with it before making some serious passes.

As I talked to a number of people throughout the day, a common theme was racers exclaiming how great a guy track owner Elmer Wachter is and how much he’s appreciated, some speaking of how they liked his “no-nonsense” approach to handling the racers. His whole staff worked hard to make the day a great experience for everyone in attendance, something that’s very important to keep the sport going in these times. The staging lanes always seemed to be full of great cars, but the track crew did an excellent job of keeping the cars moving.

The future of the sport was well-represented by all the Junior Dragster teams in attendance. While not as loud, smoky, or as fast as the big cars, they still put on a good show of close racing, and it’s always good to see the how the families involved work together, something we can all agree the world needs more of. From my vantage point, there was a lot of sportsmanship, kindness, and respect shown by all classes on the premises towards their fellow racer.

Sure, it was hot out, but a great atmosphere for racing, nonetheless. So good, there was even a goat on a leash in attendance. (Something I’ve never seen at a track before, but there’s nothing wrong with that.) I had a family event that kept me from seeing the big car eliminations, but the day was plenty fulfilling seeing the whole Junior Dragster event play out along with everyone else’s time shots. This was a great day at Mason Dixon Dragway. Great racing, great people, and a great facility. Go check it out when you can, there’s still a lot of racing season left!