A Tale of Two New Florida Tracks: Construction Begins on One, While Another Nears the Starting Line for Ground Breaking
It seems almost expected to read about race track closures versus new tracks being constructed versus new tracks being constructed, and 2023 followed that narrative.
Despite a few tracks being shuttered and will never see another pass again, a few tracks went up for sale in hopes of someone keeping these venues alive.
We even reported on a track that had been closed for several years in West Virginia getting a new lease on life, as well as the brand-new Flying H Drag Strip, both scheduled to see action this year.
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Florida has seen four different tracks closed in the last decade, and although talks have gotten underway in an attempt to get a new one constructed on the southeast coast of Florida to replace Palm Beach International Raceway, no plans are finalized as of this writing.
However, plans for a pair of drag strips are either underway or close to starting in the sunshine state, and could see action before the 2024 calendar year is complete.
In the northeast area of Florida, Callahan Drag Strip is waiting on the green light to begin construction adjacent to the current Callahan Speedway, a fifth-mile go-kart track that has been in use for the last dozen years.
Though the idea has taken more than four years with engineers and the county to get plans approved, the track is closer to breaking ground as of our deadline.
At one point, the planned expansion went about 3 acres into a wetlands area, so the entire project needed to be redone.
The addition currently calls for an eighth-mile of asphalt that will promote and host street legal racing, and would mark the first-time northeast Florida has had a drag strip since Green Cove Springs Dragway closed in 2017.
The other time Northeast Florida had a drag strip was Jax Raceways, which was closed and sold to a developer in 2004. The latest update on the Callahan 904 Drag Strip Facebook page in late January stated that groundbreaking on the track could happen as early as this month.
On the opposite coast, Leadfoot City is already underway on their expansion, and this expansion is also based on an automotive enthusiast idea that was already proven and popular.
Leadfoot City had been hosting several meets a year, with mostly drifting as the main attraction. But after a four-year wait, the features of Leadfoot City will expand, and a drag strip is not the only attraction planned for the property in Brooksville.
Located on the west coast, about a two-hour ride from Orlando Speed World Dragway, Bradenton Motorsports Park, or Gainesville Raceway, Leadfoot City has already started clearing the land and plotting key construction areas.
“We’ve been asked and given a million different ideas,” “Obviously, the drag strip / drag racing is the top of the list,” but then went on to name several other ideas, including drifting, autocross, even stunt shows. “I guess the real answer to that question is going to be based upon demand, what people want the most, and what the facility is able to handle.”
Achilles and Bobby Thomas answered some of the pressing questions in their latest video below, and said updates will be coming to both their YouTube as well as the leadfootcity.com website:
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Leadfoot City and Callahan Drag Strip.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com