This beautiful reproduction poster has been re-mastered from an original advertisement for a drag racing event at the Cotati Drag Strip, featuring the famed jet dragster “The Untouchable.” This event was scheduled for December 16, 1962. The Cotati Drag Strip was located in Cotati, California, about 40 miles north of San Francisco.
The vibrant colors and detail of this classic image have been painstakingly brought back to life to preserve a great piece of history.
The high-resolution image is printed on heavy archival photo paper, on a large-format, professional giclée process printer. The poster is shipped in a rigid cardboard tube, and is ready for framing.
The 13"x19" format is an excellent image size that looks great as a stand-alone piece of art, or as a grouped visual statement. These posters require no cutting, trimming, or custom framing, and a wide variety of these frames are readily available at your local craft or hobby retailer, and online.
A great vintage print for your home, shop, or business!
HISTORY OF COTATI RACEWAY
The Cotati Raceway and drag strip was located in Cotati, California, about 40 miles north of San Francisco, near the present-day intersection of Rohnert Park Expressway and Labath Avenue. The facility operated from 1957 to 1972, and was used primarily by local car clubs.
The X-shaped raceway utilized a former WWII Naval airfield, and featured several different racecourses, including a drag strip.
Local lore says that Carroll Shelby won the first race at the track in a Ferrari in May, 1957. It’s also noted that the track was rented by Steve McQueen in 1968 to practice for the famous chase scene in the movie Bullitt.
On December 16, 1962, the famed jet dragster “The Untouchable” was schedule to make three exhibition runs at the Cotati Drag Strip. The 30-foot, 5,000 lb. dragster was owned and built by Romeo Palamides of Oakland, and it was driven by 25-year-old Bob Smith, of Santa Clara.
The Untouchable was powered by an F-86 Sabre jet engine, with 10,000 pounds of thrust. The car was advertised to go 250 miles-per-hour, and it had just clocked a ¼ mile speed of 208.87 mph, in 7.38 seconds at the Half Moon Bay drag strip on December 9, 1962.
According to news reports, it rained on December 16, so it's uncertain whether this event was actually held. However, track promoter Don Smith was quoted in local papers stating the race would go on, unless “it is a total washout.” Smith said; “We can’t call this thing off. I’ve got too much money sunk into it.”
The Cotati track saw a significant decline in use after the nearby Sears Point Raceway opened in 1969. The track was closed, and the property was sold to a developer in 1972.
Nothing remains of the Cotati raceway today. The entire track area was demolished and replaced by a mobile home park, industrial buildings, and a shopping center.
Half Moon Bay Drag Strip was opened in 1957 on the site of a former Navy airport, and it became one of the west’s most popular quarter-mile strips during drag racing’s golden era in the 1950’s – 1970’s. The track was located about 20 miles south of San Francisco, just inland from the coast.
The strip was originally operated by two area car clubs, the Lightning Rods from San Bruno, and the Piston Pushers from San Francisco. As the site became more popular, numerous improvements were installed, including bleachers, fencing, a safety net, a timing tower built on a bread van, concessions, and the latest timing and starting line equipment. Half Moon Bay was also one of the first drag strips in the country to use radio and television to advertise their racing events.
The Half Moon Bay Drag Strip quickly became one of the nation’s best-known tracks. On January 23, 1966, a match race for a $5,000 winner’s purse was held there between “Big Daddy” Don Garlits and Don “The Snake” Prudhomme. Rumor has it that Prudhomme’s name had already been scribed into the trophy before the race started, but Big Daddy managed to pull off an upset win over California’s native son.
Half Moon Bay hosted some of drag racing’s biggest names in the 1950’s and 60’s but sadly, the strip was sold in 1968, and closed shortly after. Since the closure, some efforts have been made to reopen the track, but none have been successful.
