Photo courtesy of Byron Dragway, Facebook

Byron Dragway—the 1/4-mile dragstrip in Byron, Illinois home to Glory Days Vintage Drag Racing and Fall Diesel Drags—has been sold from BJ and Rhonda Vangsness to the Robertson family. 

“After more than 30 years of owning and operating the dragway, BJ and Rhonda entered into a purchase agreement to sell [the track]... A heartfelt thank you and congratulations go out to BJ, Rhonda and the entire Vangsness family. The dragway would not enjoy the success it does today if it were not for their passion, hard work and commitment to providing the best experience to customers,” the track said in a release attributed to the Robertson family. “One of the primary reasons for our acquisition... is to ensure that the facility remains a race track. In an era when dragstrips are closing at a record pace, we are proud to say Byron Dragway will not be one.” 

As part of the announcement, Jacob Steder will now oversee the facility’s day-to-day operations as the general manager.

Plans for “The Playground of Power” include increased days and hours of operation, including more evening and nighttime events, along with improvements with new scoreboards, updated and expanded bathrooms, and more. 

A Test & Tune event has been added to the schedule on Sunday, August 21. 

For more information, visit byrondragway.com.