I hate to sound "high-handed", but despite Detroit being THE "motor city", and SoCal the birthplace of hotrodding, NYC was THE place to be back then. If the cars didn't draw you in, the sheer number of cars & frequency of streetracing would & the personalities involved could get strange.
Somehow though, I suspect the guys down South have some stories they don't wanna own up to. Seeing how it was the birthplace of matchracing, some their rides & races have to be interesting. BUT in true streetracer fashion they don't want to "give up" anything---which is our loss..