James Alford built the Riverside Dragstrip in Pearl, MS (first 9 photos below) opening it to racing in 1972. The track was on the east side of Jackson right on the north side of Interstate 20." Cary Busby sold the track to Bob Heard in about 1976. In June 1980, the State suspended operation of the track for failure to pay franchise taxes. That continued at least through 1981, reopening in 1982 under the name Jackson Dragway when it had been bought by Charles Rogers. The track staged the Winston Rebel Funny Car Nationals on October 23-24, 1982. One old timer raced at Riverside during the entire course of its history. He said, "It opened in 1972 and ran up into the 90's before the lease was terminated and the track was leveled and the new high school built. It was a NHRA Division 2 or 4 track for most of its years and ran a points meet every year until Norman 'Moose' Pearah took it over and then let the track get closed . . . It was a common sight for Mississippi Highway Patrol cars to be parked along I-20 when racing was going on as seen in some of the pics below. The track staging lanes ran right along the I-20 right of way and the track ran north. Pits and return road were on the right side of the track and very hilly." The Pearl Public School District owned the land on which the drag strip operated. The drag strip paid an annual lease to the school district. In 1987, the school district filed suit to force the drag strip to vacate the lease so that they could build the high school there. With that, the building of Pearl High School obliterated much of the old drag strip, but some remnants of it remain on the western end.
Below are pics from one of many trips to visit the Battleship Texas (BB-35).
Here are some pics from one of my many trips to Barksdale AFB in Bossier City, LA which is home of the 2nd Bomber Wing & the 8th Air Force. http://www.barksdale.af.mil/
** SOLD **
Here is my latest project. I picked up this 1913 National Cash Register recently with hopes of restoring it in the near future. It is great condition and everything works.
Here is my latest project. I picked up this 1913 National Cash Register recently with hopes of restoring it in the near future. It is great condition and everything works.