St Thomas Dragway is continuing with more renovations to the long in history rich Ontario facility……
Continuing forward with what commenced last year — a Phase 2 is underway and will continue thru the 2021 season.
Those projects are as follows.
- Shutdown repaving – In 2020 the track was repaved from the end of the concrete pads to approx. 400ft past the ¼ mile finish line. The shutdown was also ground smooth from this point to the first turnoff (approx. 650ft down track), the remaining portion of the track was ground flat but still has a corduroy texture. While this setup was safe/useable it wasn’t optimal so prior to the 2021 season we will be paving the shutdown from where we stopped last season to approx. 200ft from the end of the track. Like the paving done from the concrete pads to the finish line this will consist of the groove area being done in each lane giving everyone a nice smooth ride the entire length of the track.
- Additional Lighting – We will be adding additional lighting beyond the finish line to the end of the track. There have been some great advances in solar powered commercial lighting systems and we are going to take advantage of this.
- Tower Refurbishment – We are currently revamping the tower to facilitate a new souvenir shop (including Fuel sales) on the main floor and it will be where racers will go for Re-entry. Payouts etc. (No more having to climb the tower stairs). We have replaced the broken windows, added washrooms, painted and revamped the tower suites for future use.
- Additional Pit Spots – Some of the small bleachers in the section past the main bleachers are being relocated and the fence is being adjusted to allow us the ability to add additional pit spots in this area. Since these spots will be approx. 50ft in depth they will be limited to pickup/trailer combinations (this will also maintain down track visibility for those in the grandstands.) We are cleaning up areas on the perimeter of the pits that aren’t currently useable to make more spots available.
- Signage – We will be updating the signage at the track and removing signs that are no longer relevant or part of our advertising program. If you would like to keep your signage up at St Thomas please contact us re the various signage programs we have available.
- General Repairs – We will continue to fix/replace aspects that we did not get to in 2020 – like repairing the wall along the left side of the staging lanes, replacing boards in the bleachers, repairing chain link fence sections, etc.
“My son Jarrett is also looking to put his mark on the operation by adding a new Element to the facility – an OFFROAD PARK and MUD BOG area – in the back left of the property.” added track owner/operator Paul Spriet. “It is a perfect use of this area as it can be run independent of the drag operation and there isn’t anything like it in SW Ontario. Construction will commence this summer for a fall introduction, and we look forward to seeing it come to fruition.”
Potential sponsors should note that the $300 barrier partnership signage program which launched in 2020 still has availability. Any and all support to help with the track’s vision to bring St Thomas Dragway back to its former glory are welcomed and appreciated.
Larger signage packages and some class sponsorship opportunities also exist – interested parties can contact: pspriet@sprietinvestments.com
Posted by St. Thomas Dragway — DragRaceCanada File Photos
