Quarter-Mile Corvettes: The History of Chevrolet’s Sports Car at the Drag Strip 1953-1975

Famously known as “America’s sports car,” the Chevrolet Corvette came to market in 1953. That same year, the newly established National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) hosted its first event. The Corvette was not intended for quarter-mile drag racing. However, the two have become forever entwined.

The Corvette brought an element of class and style to drag racing. It is truly American. Likewise, the uniqueness that sets it apart from everything else also meant that it had no natural competition on the drag strip. The NHRA and other governing bodies introduced Sports Car divisions in the late 1950s, catering to both stock and modified vehicles. Naturally, these classes were packed with Corvettes.

Racing historian Steve Holmes breaks new ground by unearthing the complete early history of the Corvette in drag racing. Quarter-Mile Corvettes focuses on the period from 1953 to 1975, which spans the first two decades of Corvette V-8 production. Fittingly, this was also the era considered by many to be the greatest in drag racing’s history, and Corvettes encapsulated the vibrancy of the period in a way that will never be repeated.

This is a brand new book, not used.