John Ascuaga’s Nugget Speedway
Locals will tell you that street racing was a big part of growing up in the Reno area back in the ’60s and ’70s. They say teenagers would go out on the Pyramid Highway which is now in the heart of Sparks, Nevada. At night nobody was on the highway back then. It is so flat you could see a police car coming for miles. They would line up along both sides of the highway with their car lights on and race the night way.
Here at the John Ascuaga’s Nugget Casino and Hotel they have cleared the west parking lot and set up an 1/8-mile track with lanes, timers and a tree. It was a blast to watch. The party doesn’t get started here until 10 PM after the cruising is over in Sparks. Then from 10 PM until midnight they pack the place and registered car show participants run the track to see how they’ll do.
Both the C-Cab and the Chevy C-10 did great burnouts. But when the green light flashed the C-Cab was quicker on the 1/8th-mile track.
Most eyes were on the celebrity starter as one of the Miller Girls did the honors.
The T-Bucket was amazingly quick but the ’55 Chevy Custom wins this one every time.
Best burnout goes to this ’69 Camaro, he did this for about half the length of the track.