When it comes to mountainous beauty that’ s relatively local to me, Elk Creek Dragway in Virginia takes my breath away every time I pull through the gate. Positioned on the North Carolina / Virginia border, this little slice of heaven lays in the valley within the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and Iron Mountains. I’ ve written about this track a number of times, and would encourage anyone to experience it firsthand. This month’ s track photo was one I snapped at Elk Creek last year, and it captures just a small portion of the lush pit parking and scenic views that surround the track from every direction.

Continuing north to Boonsboro, Maryland, there’ s some more mountainous views to be enjoyed at Mason-Dixon Dragway. In fact, with a decent pair of binoculars one can see hikers traversing the Appalachian Trail from the track!

Pressing on to the middle of Pennsylvania, you’ ll find another track I truly love: Beaver Springs Dragway. I first came here in 2012 on Memorial Day weekend, and believe me, if you ever get the chance to go there during a holiday event, you won’ t be disappointed! On this particular weekend, legendary showman Bob Motz was there making 200 mph blasts in his jet-powered Kenworth.

I’ ve seen Motz many times at various tracks over a 30-year span, but seeing him fire up the Kenworth at a rural track that has horse-andbuggy-owning Amish neighbors is really something to behold! During that 2012 visit, Motz told me he’ d been coming to Beaver Springs for many years, and the fans go wild when his“ King of Quake” Kenworth would rumble to life. Bob was on the cusp of turning 75 at the time.

“ I’ m past retirement,” he laughingly told me.

Another collection of drag racing memories that are intertwined with Drag Illustrated was when I worked for photographer Bryan Epps in the early 1990s. It was Bryan who took me to Maryland International Raceway for the first time and casually introduced me

to track owner Royce Miller. Approximately 35 years later, Royce is still there, and he’ s as hospitable as ever.

It was in those early years traveling with Epps that I first visited many of the tracks that I’ ve returned to decades later representing DI, including Empire Dragway in New York, Norwalk Raceway Park,

Thompson, and Quaker City in Ohio, along with Greer Dragway in South Carolina. In fact, many of the tracks here in the Carolinas such as Piedmont, Carolina Dragway, and a few others, I first visited while traveling with Bryan in the 1990s.

Sometimes the crazy, spur-ofmoment side-trips I’ ve embarked on produce unforgettable experiences. Take the time I was coming home from Colorado’ s Bandimere Speedway a few years back and I wound up in Cheyenne, Wyoming, at this place called Terry Bison Ranch. The highlight of that experience was boarding a train that would take passengers out to where the buffalo roam... then we fed‘ em snacks from the train!

Traveling through New Mexico was likewise unforgettable, especially the time I journeyed to Roswell for the express purpose of conducting my own exploration to determine exactly where the alien craft went down in 1947! OK, so I’ m exaggerating just slightly, but I did visit Alien City Dragway, which is among the most memorable tracks I’ ve ever stepped foot on.

Then there’ s my occasional visit with living legend Don Garlits( a fellow UFO enthusiast) at his museum in Florida. I’ ve sat with him for hours and listened to some of the wildest stories... and not all of them related to racing.

I’ ll never forget the time Garlits whipped out his iPhone and read to me a recent text from Shirley Muldowney, in which she signed the note“ Love, Shirley.” Those two were such bitter competitors on the track, and well-documented enemies on non-race days as well, but Garlits explained in detail how they eventually became the best of friends. He even crew-chiefed for her when she ran her first 4-second elapsed time at Maple Grove Raceway, which is another magnificent facility I highly recommend visiting.

Other racing travels have taken me to places so off-the-beaten-path that the track managers open-carried firearms on their hip just because they could! There seems to be an unforgettable adventure around every bend, and I’ m thankful for the journey thus far. DI