Delmar U.S. 13 Dragway going strong since 1963
Comparatively speaking, drag racing is one of the youngest forms of motorsports. After all, it has only been around for about 65 years — compared to some types of auto and motorcycle racing that began well over a century ago.
And, though the sport of drag racing originated in southern California, it moved east quickly. Take the drag strip in Delmar, Delaware as an example. The 1/4 mile U.S. 13 Dragway opened for business in 1963 and has been going strong ever since.
"My parents built it," said Charles Cathell, one of the current owners.
Drag racing is a contest of reflexes, acceleration and speed. Competitors, racing two at a time, attempt to be the fastest to the finish line, 1,320 feet away.
"It is real challenging but, at the same time, it sure is fun," said Keith Trammell, a Seaford resident who just started racing his 2006 Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle.
To even the drag racing playing field, a class structure is now used to group cars and motorcycles with comparable performance characteristics.
In the end, the current crop of competing cars and motorcycles may be modified from factory-built models while other race cars and bikes are constructed from the ground up.
Beginning races
When it began, car enthusiasts were looking for an alternative to racing their buddies on the street, a practice that was simultaneously dangerous and illegal.
In southern California, the first drag races took place on unused airport runways with one quarter of a mile arbitrarily selected as the optimum length of the contest.
Many of the earliest participants had built their own "hot rods" commonly using a pre-war Ford as a starting point. Often, fenders and other unnecessary parts were removed to save weight and the original engines replaced with something that produced more horsepower.
By the 1960s, production vehicles started to appear at drag races. The most popular: Ford, Chevrolet and Dodge although Pontiac and Plymouth also had a presence at local tracks and at national events that were sponsored primarily by the National Hot Rod Association.
The 1960s also marked a transition from hobby to serious business when General Motors, Ford and Chrysler all started to build performance cars that were competitive right off the showroom floor.
Realizing the huge crowds that weekend events were attracting, all three manufacturers also invested heavily by supporting drag racing teams across the country, a testimony to the adage that "what wins on Sunday sells on Monday."
But, as cars got more exotic and expensive, the sport quickly became too costly for an average amateur weekend racer.
Eventually, promoters, noting fewer competitors at their events, figured out how to change rules to make drag racing more appealing to enthusiasts with limited resources.
And they did it by creating a complex system that handicapped faster cars so a slower entrant would still be competitive.
The system helped bring amateur racers back to the drag strip.
"Now, we are mostly dealing with people who work 40-hour weeks," said Cathell.
Modern technology boosts many areas
When drag racing first began, a starter waved a flag to begin the race and observers were needed at the finish line to determine the winner.
Now, an electric device called a "Christmas tree" is used to start the race and a computerized system not only signals the winner but also records the elapsed time and speed for each competitor.
Track owners also have installed stronger barriers to keep the race cars away from the spectators in case of a crash, which occasionally happens during a race, mostly because of a mechanical failure.
Needless to say, with speeds reaching as high as 200 miles per hour at Delmar, a crash could be catastrophic if the car left the track.
And the cars themselves must be equipped with an array of safety features, including a roll bar, while the drivers must wear helmets and fireproof racing suits. Motorcycle racers are required to wear full helmets, leather racing suits and special footwear.
"The cars are much safer now and so are the tracks," said Cathell.
Though the track at Delmar caters mostly to weekend racers, it does not mean the racing is second-rate.
"It is pretty competitive," said Robert Hicks of Mardela Springs.
And, even though it is a weekend hobby, Hicks estimated that he has invested $35,000 in his race car, which is a 1987 Pontiac T-1000 with a highly modified Ford V-8 engine.
Hicks said the car is capable of completing the quarter mile in about 11.5 seconds.
Amazingly, despite all the modifications, Hicks' Pontiac sports Maryland tags and can be legally driven on the street — a rarity among Delmar race cars.
"I don't drive it on the street very much but it is legal," he said.
At a recent race weekend at Delmar, Frank Lecates of Salisbury brought his new, purpose-built Chevrolet-powered race car called a "dragster."
READ MORE: Learn more about Delaware History
Essentially, a dragster is a single seat, open cockpit race car with skinny front tires and huge, no-tread "slicks" on the rear for maximum traction. In a dragster, the driver usually sits ahead of the motor although earlier versions did have the cockpit in the rear.
"I have been racing since I was 16 but this my first time here with this car," said Lecates, who was expecting the dragster to complete the quarter mile in under eight seconds. The car can also reach a top speed of 175 mph.
Though it was the first time out with his new car, Lecates is not a newcomer to the sport: He won a track championship at U.S. 13 Dragway several years ago.
Billy Jackson of Seaford is another veteran racer who campaigns in a stunningly beautiful 1990 Mustang with a 552 cubic inch Ford motor, producing gobs of horsepower. In fact, it is not unusual to see the front wheels lift from the pavement on takeoff.
The Mustang, a proven winner at Delmar, is painted a silver grey with blue flames accenting the front. Jackson said the Mustang is capable of completing the quarter mile in a little over nine seconds at speeds approaching 145 mph. Thus the need for a parachute on the rear bumper to assist in stopping at the end of the track.
On a recent race weekend, Jackson said it was his first event of the year after spending his off-season installing a new race motor and other improvements, including better rear tires -slicks - that help traction at the starting line.
"It should be faster, at least I hope it is," he said.
The Delmar track usually holds its drag races on Sunday though, occasionally, events are held on other days. The same facility also is home to Delaware International Speedway, a 1/2-mile dirt stock car track, which normally has races on Saturdays.
Information on either the drag strip or stock car track can be found at www.delawareracing.com.
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