The checkered flag has a home in Gainesville at the Raceway.
Gainesville Raceway
By MATTHEW GONZALEZ
Drag Racing in Gainesville
By LIDIA DINKOVA
After the announcer said, Ready, set, go! Two drag racing cars accelerate on a track a quarter of a mile long. The drivers compete for a $5,000 award at the Drag Race held in Gainesville Raceway on Saturday.
Gainesville Raceway, located on 11211 N. County Road 225, is one mile long, a quarter of which is racing surface and three-quarters of which is used as stopping distance, said Donald Robertson, executive general manager of Gainesville Raceway. The track opened in 1969 and has been open ever since.
The raceway is mostly known for Gatornationals, a racing event that takes place every March.
"The Gatornationals is the largest single sporting event that we run in North Central Florida annually," Robertson said.
Kim Palmatier is a drag car racer from Deland, Fla. She has been coming back to the Gainesville Raceway track since her first run in 2000.
"It's fun, good atmosphere and good people. Even though we are competitive we still have fun and it's a good rush of adrenaline," Palmatier said.
