[Land-speed] your old drag strip

[Ed Purinton]

Orange MA airport is still active pretty much as it was in the day minus the
drags.  Heard that major hurdle for the drags was insurance powers deciding
that a temporary row of haybales and ropes would no longer be adequate for
crowd control/safety and the FAA regs wouldn't allow permanent barriers the
insurance would require.  Also heard that the local civic organization that
put the events on had a somewhat declining/aging membership and was getting
a bit burned out with all the work involved.

Feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone every time I go to Maxton, dirt entrance
road through the trees very similar to Orange and sometimes the Golden
Knights are practicing.  Differences are longer course, one rig at a time,
no ET's on timeslip or grudge racing after the TE run off, and 'chutists
usually coming down over staging end.  One of Orange starter's standard
routines was glancing back up over his shoulder in the direction of shutdown
for 'chutists prior to flagging off the run, usually they came down over the
finish/shutdown area on their way to the target across the runway/course and
would occasinally land short on the course.

                            Ed Purinton