Skip to the column
topfueldragbikeNZ drag racing history & culture

Section T

Tracks

New Zealand's drag strips have moved around more than most people realise. The sport started on a mine floor, spent years borrowing aerodromes and closed roads, and only settled on purpose-built tracks from 1973.

The timeline below follows the NZDRA's published history. Venues and calendars change; for the current list, go to the association or the track itself.

  1. 1966 to 1969Kōpuku, south of Auckland: meetings on the clay floor of an opencast coal mine, according to the NZDRA's history.
  2. Late 1960s to early 1970sTemporary venues: aerodromes, a military airstrip, a speedway and closed roads, some a quarter mile long and some three-sixteenths.
  3. 1973Champion Dragway at Meremere opens, recorded as the country's first purpose-built strip. It now trades as NAPA Auto Parts Dragway.
  4. 1976 to 1997Thunderpark near Hastings, the second purpose-built strip, recorded as closing in 1997.
  5. South IslandMuch of the early southern racing used the front straight at Ruapuna Park in Christchurch, with some meetings at Teretonga.
  6. TodayPurpose-built strips and circuits plus airstrip meetings. Check the sanctioning body's calendar for what is running this season.
  1. 04Where the strips are: Meremere, Ruapuna, Taupō and the airfieldsTracks
  2. 03How to read a timing slip (and why the 60-foot matters most)Tracks