Facility improvements are under way at two of NHRA's most historic East Coast facilities, Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown and Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, both of which host NHRA POWERade Series events.

Maple Grove Raceway, home of the annual Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals, set for Aug. 14-17 this year, is undergoing a facelift for the 2008 racing season. Prior to the season-opening test-and-tune event March 22, several improvements will be in place. New LED Daktronics scoreboards are first on the list of new items. The 20-foot-long boards will feature red LED digits that will be much easier to see in daylight and can be viewed from a wider range of angles so that spectators close to the finish line will no longer find themselves straining to decipher them. No longer having to frequently replace burnt-out incandescent bulbs is another plus with the new LED scoreboards.

Fiber-optic wiring is second on the to-be-accomplished list. Bob Brockmeyer from Compulink will soon install this latest technology in track wiring. Maple Grove will be the seventh national event facility to feature fiber-optic cables the entire length of track. Utilizing fiber optics rather than traditional copper wiring safeguards the entire track and all connected components, such as the timing computer and Tree, against the devastating damage that lightning strikes can cause. The electronic damage that used to plague Maple Grove's computer after lightning storms will be one less thing to stand in the way of getting the show back on the road.

Facility improvements are under way at two of NHRA's most historic East Coast facilities, Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown and Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, both of which host NHRA POWERade Series events.

Maple Grove Raceway, home of the annual Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals, set for Aug. 14-17 this year, is undergoing a facelift for the 2008 racing season. Prior to the season-opening test-and-tune event March 22, several improvements will be in place. New LED Daktronics scoreboards are first on the list of new items. The 20-foot-long boards will feature red LED digits that will be much easier to see in daylight and can be viewed from a wider range of angles so that spectators close to the finish line will no longer find themselves straining to decipher them. No longer having to frequently replace burnt-out incandescent bulbs is another plus with the new LED scoreboards.

Fiber-optic wiring is second on the to-be-accomplished list. Bob Brockmeyer from Compulink will soon install this latest technology in track wiring. Maple Grove will be the seventh national event facility to feature fiber-optic cables the entire length of track. Utilizing fiber optics rather than traditional copper wiring safeguards the entire track and all connected components, such as the timing computer and Tree, against the devastating damage that lightning strikes can cause. The electronic damage that used to plague Maple Grove's computer after lightning storms will be one less thing to stand in the way of getting the show back on the road. 

Maple Grove is also in the process of replacing the burnout boxes with new concrete. 

These updates will improve the overall appearance and functionality of Maple Grove Raceway. With 90 days of racing planned for the 2008 season, Maple Grove strives to always remain in the top echelon of drag racing facilities in the country for racers and spectators.

Old Bridge Township Raceway Park also has been undergoing a facelift in anticipation of the 2008 drag racing season. The main improvement is an additional 278 feet of concrete to each lane of the dragstrip, extending the concrete surface to 700 feet.

The scale booth has been completely redone with a new sliding glass door and exterior. The parking lot near the lake has been extended with an expansive parking addition, aiming to relieve congestion during larger events such as the 39th annual NHRA SuperNationals, which take place June 19-22.