Track operators A.J. Fox and his father, Norm, have invested heavily over the years to keep the 1/4-mile drag strip and the 188-acre property up to date. In fact, the Salem, Ohio track has hosted as many as 600 vehicles for major events and has 300 pit spots with 110V electric.
It is in many ways, a racer’s paradise with water and air available near 14 staging lanes, over 2,000 feet of shutdown area and win lights on the concrete guard wall. It’s definitely a family-friendly facility with a pavilion with picnic tables, a newly renovated concession stand and a fenced-in playground.
Keeping the tradition alive, the Foxes signed a new sanctioning agreement with the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) at the PRI trade show in Indianapolis. There’s plenty of history with Quaker City the home track of 2017 IHRA Summit SuperSeries Mod (No Box) World Champion Chris Black and 2020 World Champion Joe Tharp Jr.
“We’re happy to be back with IHRA,” A.J. Fox said. “Our racers enjoy the IHRA Summit SuperSeries and we’ve always been treated well. Our bracket racing is always our bread-and-butter. We’re happy to be a grassroots, Sportsman track focused on our racers.”
The racers love representing Quaker City as well. Their contingent won the IHRA Division 3 (North Stars) Summit Team Finals in both 2020 and 2022.
One of the major events is the QCMP Summer Nationals in late June. It’s music to a racer’s ears featuring Box and No Box bracket races with low entry fees and larger payouts. Other big events at Quaker City includes the Nostalgia Classic event and the Night of Fire. As the name Night of Fire indicates there are Jet Funny Cars, Jet Dragsters and even a Jet Semi.
It takes place at a facility where folks can truly enjoy themselves with a grandstands to seat 5,000 and other amenities like nice showers and restrooms.
“We have the quarter-mile track with over 2,200 feet of shutdown if you need it,” A.J. Fox said. “We have Accutime and are always keeping up with updates with TruStart and Stage Lock. We have the tower set up nice if someone wants to host a party. I live at the facility, so that makes it nice to keep up with things like brand new wires, cable and conduit.”
That constant focus on making things better comes from the passion that A.J. and Norm have for giving the racers a great place to compete. It why they’re always working to keep the historic facility up to the modern standards.
