All of us at one time or another has driven to work. In the world of drag racing there’s some historical significance to Red Hill Avenue and the first drag races. But let me give you some background. If you are like me there doesn’t appear to be a time in the future when we will not be driving to work! During these to and from drives I would find myself at my prearranged destination not realizing exactly how I got there. And, that got me to thinking.
For starters, what have I taken for granted, where have I failed to pay attention or notice on my 6-mile drive to and from work? Basically I live on the beach side of John Wayne Airport.
Driving around the airport I am reminded of a significant piece of modern U.S. history that had its roots on the east side of MacArthur Boulevard and the airport. You’ve probably heard of the Watergate Hotel break in? (How old are you?) This event leads to the downfall of then-President Richard M. Nixon back in June of 1972. Well, there’s a hotel directly across from the airport, which I drive by every day, and can’t remember its name, although it has changed several times, which served as the “hush money” exchange point between the “bad guys” during the Watergate coverup phase.
On the other side of the airport is Red Hill Avenue and it too runs adjacent to the airport and it too gets me to work. It’s a less-traveled road, having more stoplights, hence slower, but it’s tree-lined and much more peaceful. My mood, normally effervescent, dictates which street I take. However, Red Hill has history that’s intertwined with my life that makes this road special to me.
At one time Briggs Cunningham Automotive Museum (250 E. Baker St., Costa Mesa, California … corner of Red Hill and Baker) was located here. I had spent a great deal of my early automotive college journalistic years as one of the 450 members of the museum and spent many hours wandering the aisles looking at the represented automotive history; history that often revolved around the man himself … Briggs Cunningham. To me he will always be one of the “coolest” hot rodders of all time. He built and raced his own cars and he was successful both on the track and in personal life. For all the time I spent there while attending Orange Coast College it was John Burgess, the museum’s only curator from 1966 until its closing, who took me “in” and taught me about “cars that made breakthroughs or set trends aesthetically or technically.” (I still have an original piece of his artwork.) It was here that I saw the Le Monstre (driven by Cunningham), based on a 1950 Cadillac that raced at Le Mans and let the automotive racing world know that the Americans were coming and they were serious. (It was also in this museum that a rubber and vinyl protectorant was invented and would later become Armor All owned and marketed by Alan Rypinski. But that’s fuel for another editorial).
The collection was sold to longtime Cunningham friend and fellow racer Miles C. Collier of Palm Beach, Florida, back in late 1986 with the story of the museum closing and the 71-car collection being sold hitting the papers on January 1, 1987. I was fortunate enough to work with Cunningham on one photo shoot but unfortunate in that I never did get to spend more time with him as he was such an interesting and accomplished individual.
Now to the really good stuff: In the old days there was an airport in Orange County named Eddie Martin’s Airport. (I worked with Martin’s son, Jon, and the two of us worked for Rypinski … as they say, “can’t make this stuff up.”) The airport perimeter was Main Street to the east, Red Hill to the south, what’s now the 55 freeway to the north, and Paularino to the west. One block west of Paularino is Baker and Red Hill, yep the very corner where the Briggs Cunningham Museum was located. Red Hill has for decades been an integral part of my life as it has provided direction to work, one of my favorite car hideaways, led to school and to the beach, and I even lived off of Red Hill for a time.
One day I find myself bouncing emails back and forth with another hot rodder (Dan MacPherson of Altadena, California), he really opened my eyes to the significance of Red Hill and my drive to work. He dug up an old Thomas Brothers Guide (remember them?) and drew in where the old airport was in relationship to the current John Wayne Airport, which was moved about 300 yards to the east. Turns out the new airport was being built while the old airport wound down. It also explains why MacArthur Boulevard has this “big bend” in it. MacPherson also pointed out that the old Santa Ana Army Air Base was literally the grounds where I attended OCC and the OC Fairgrounds where the Labor Day Cruise is held to this day.
OK, I have taken you the long way around the barn … what about the original dragstrip. All of you have heard about the first Santa Ana drag races? They were reportedly held at the old Santa Ana Airport runways. Well, there’s a good deal of truth in the statement.
Turns out, and a big thank you to MacPherson for doing the research, the dragstrip was located on the taxiway adjacent to runway 21 at Eddie Martin’s Airfield. That runway and most of the airport have been covered up by the re-alignment of the airport and the re-routing of MacArthur Boulevard. There’s no longer a runway 21 (Heading 210 degrees).
Basically the old airport and its runways and taxiways became Red Hill Avenue that I drive every day. How cool is that? I think it’s very cool as it reminds me that I come by my hot rod roots the old fashion way … I literally drove on and to this day drive on the very asphalt (OK it’s new pavement but you get the idea) where our industry was born.
And that leads to one more name that I have a great deal of respect for and admired the man. C.J. “Pappy” Hart and his wife, Peggy, are credited with opening the first commercial dragstrip on June 19, 1950. Yep, it was on the site of what’s now John Wayne Airport but to be technically correct the old Eddie Martin’s Airfield. It was Hart who selected the distance at a quarter-mile, 1,320-feet, and created drag racing’s first classification system. As life has a way of changing regardless of what we want, the track shut down in 1959 when the lease ran out. Something about they needed the land for a bigger airport! Pappy in 1963 took over for Mickey Thompson as the manager-promoter of Lions Drag Strip in Wilmington, California, and present until 1971. (Pappy handed me my first drag racing trophy but that’s another story.)
So here I am driving to and from work every day and once in a while I decide to take the road less traveled and remind myself of just how important this stretch of road is in my life, both professional and personal, and the great names that I so admire and what they must have been doing here decades past. So, how was your drive to work today?
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