PARKS NHRA MOTORSPORTS MUSEUM OPEN DURING L.A. COUNTY FAIR

Tony Thacker, Parks Museum executive director, said many fairgoers might be unaware that the Museum, located on the Fairplex property, is open during the event. “Visiting the Museum is a great companion activity for those attending the Fair,” Thacker said. “Our hot rods and vintage dragsters are pieces of Southern California history, and we encourage families, school groups and casual fairgoers alike to come for an educational, fun experience at a discounted price.”

“The Museum is one of the finest institutions of its kind in the country,” said Dale Coleman, vice president of sales and marketing for the Pomona Fairplex. “It provides Fair guests with the unique opportunity to experience the history of racing. Many of the earliest and most exciting pages of that history have been written here at our own Auto Club Pomona Raceway.”

Since 1922 the L.A. County Fair has proven itself to be a summer mainstay for the residents of Los Angeles County. The Fair’s extended run is expected to attract more than more than 1.3 million visitors, and attendance is expected to rise accordingly at the Museum. “Last year a record number of fair patrons stopped by to check out the Museum,” said Thacker. “With more people expected at the Fair this year, we expect to smash our own record!”

Currently on display at the Parks Museum:

- Trophy Queens, special photo exhibit on the glamour girls or racing: through Aug. 2009

- Honoring 60 years of NASCAR: through Mar. 1, 2009.

- Celebrating 60 Years of Hot Rod Magazine: through October 2008

- Coker Tire/Honest Charley Anniversary: “A Tribute to American Ingenuity.” The exhibition celebrates Coker Tire’s 50th anniversary and Honest Charley’s 60th. The exhibit runs through Nov. 16th.

Next exhibit coming to the Parks Museum in ’08:

- The 50th Anniversary of the Gale Banks Engineering goes from Dec. 3 to fall 2009. Exhibit.

Celebrating its 10th anniversary and named for the founder of the National Hot Rod Association, the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum presented by the Automobile Club of Southern California houses the very roots of hot rodding. Scores of famous vehicles spanning American motorsports history are on display, including winning cars representing 50 years of drag racing, dry lakes and salt-flat racers, oval track challengers and exhibits describing their colorful backgrounds.

The Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., PST. Current NHRA members are admitted free and Auto Club members enjoy a $2 discount. Admission for non-members is $7 for adults, $5 for seniors 60 and older, $5 for juniors six through 15, and free for children under the age of five. The Museum is also available for special group tours. The Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum is located at Fairplex Gate 1, 1101 W. McKinley Ave. in Pomona. For further information on special exhibits, museum events or directions, call 909/622-2133 or visit http://museum.nhra.com.