Dream Machines Hosts 50^th Reunion
of Half Moon Bay Drag Strip

Jim McLennan vs Don Garlits circa 1960 at Half Moon Bay Drag Strip

Harrison Ford may have made an unforgettable debut in “American Graffiti,” but one of the other major stars of that film was the hot rod he raced against. Voted #7 in Cars.com’s list of Top 10 Movie Cars, the souped-up, yellow 1932 Ford coupe epitomizes America’s ardor for automobiles.

For the late Jim McLennan, it wasn’t just a love affair. It was a way of life. He made it a way of life for 1959 Coastsiders, as well, when he brought drag racing to the Half Moon Bay Airport.

According to his son, Bob, McLennan “was already a complete ‘gearhead’ while attending San Francisco’s Balboa High School. He worked at a gas station all through school and was constantly fixing people’s cars and making them go faster.”

Being the son of a police officer did little to curb young McLennan’s devotion to drag racing on the mean streets. Marriage, however, was apparently a different matter.

Soon after tying the knot with his high school sweetheart, McLennan — who was passionate about racing the 1950 Chevrolet he had hopped up with an Oldsmobile engine — decided it was time to take dragging to a more legitimate (and safer) venue.

Champion Speed Shop

McLennan’s Champion Speed Shop slingshot Fuller car

McLennan’s C-Gas Class Pick-Up drag racer

Thus was born the Half Moon Bay Drag Strip. Bob McLennan remembers how, as a young boy, he tagged along with his father on race day.

“It drew an enormous number of spectators, as well as racing entries, often 500 or more,” he says. “The drivers loved Half Moon Bay because the closer you get to the ocean, the faster the cars race. So you could get amazing times.”

Bob says that the strip was known by two key phrases. “It was called ‘the Pebble Beach of racing’ because of its proximity to the ocean. And its motto was ‘Half Moon Bay Drag Strip — Where World Records Are Broken.’”

Held at the Half Moon Bay Airport on alternating Sundays, the drag strip was basically a marvel of mobility.

“I remember leaving the house with my dad, always early in the morning, in this old bread truck he had,” recalls Bob. “It was jammed with speakers, towers, a generator, timing equipment, fences to hold back the crowds, you name it. Everything was portable.”

Another key player was Andy Brizio. A fellow gearhead from Balboa High School, Brizio was the drag strip’s official starter. The drag strip closed down in the early 70s, but Brizio went on to fame as a master builder of super-fast cars. Known as “The Rodfather,” Bob McLennan says that Brizio “has earned huge respect for innovation in building cars. He has won every award out there.”

Brizio, Jim McLennan and others will be championed as part of a special display celebrating Half Moon Bay Drag Strip’s 50^th Reunion at this year’s Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show, April 25 at Half Moon Bay Airport.

Although McLennan passed away in 2005, his son, Bob, will be at the show with a replica of his father’s Champion Speed Shop slingshot Fuller car, built by the dragster guru Kent Fuller.

McLennan also plans to show an authentic racing “fire suit” and many rare photos from the great old days when Half Moon Bay Drag Strip was the place to race. “We look forward to sharing stories and fond memories from back in the day,” McLennan said.

Brizio, hale and hearty in retirement, will be there with his famous, one-of-a-kind 1932 Ford Roadster. Accompanying him will be his son. Roy Brizio has inherited the “go fast” gene and has taken over his father’s hot rod building business.

Bob McLennan inherited a similar gene from his father, Jim, and races in the NHRA Heritage Series.

McLennan is looking forward to seeing Andy Brizio at Dream Machines. “It’s going to be great to see my dad’s good friend back at the place where the two of them made history.”