Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum facts for kids
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| Established | April 4, 1998 |
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| Location | 1101 West McKinley Avenue Building 3A Pomona, California United States |
| Type | Automotive museum |
The Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum is a special place in Pomona, California. It's located at the Fairplex in Los Angeles County, California. This museum is filled with cool cars, motorcycles, and other items. These items all tell the exciting story of hot rodding and motorsports! It's a great spot to learn about fast cars and their history.
How the Museum Started
A group of people who worked for the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) created this museum. Their leader was the founder of NHRA, Wally Parks. The museum was later named after him on his 90th birthday.
The museum opened to the public in 1998. It is housed in a large building that was once part of a government project. Steve Gibbs, who used to be a vice-president at NHRA, helped get the building ready. The Automobile Club of Southern California is a main sponsor of the museum.
What You Can See Inside
The museum has many exciting exhibits. You can see one of A. J. Foyt's Coyote Indy Cars. These are special race cars used in big competitions. There's also Kenny Bernstein's first dragster. A dragster is a very long, powerful car built for drag racing. This car was the first to go over 300 miles per hour!
You can also find a collection of helmets and photos from Bob McClung. There are items from early Indianapolis 500 races. The museum also shows the history of land speed records and hot rods. Hot rods are classic cars that have been changed to go faster or look cooler.
The museum often has special exhibits that change. These exhibits have honored famous people in hot rodding. Some of these include Vic Edelbrock and Don Prudhomme. They have also featured famous cars like the 1932 Ford. In 2008, a special exhibit opened about Gale Banks. It shows his important work in drag racing over 50 years.
Fun Events and How the Museum is Supported
The Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum is a non-profit organization. This means it uses all the money it earns to keep the museum running. It gets support from two big annual events called "Hot Rod Reunions."
One event is the Holley NHRA National Hot Rod Reunion. This happens every June at Beech Bend Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The other is the NHRA California Hot Rod Reunion. This event takes place in October at Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield, California. These reunions bring together hot rod fans and help raise money for the museum.
