Watching an inaugural event mature over the years can be an interesting exercise. It's an opportunity to compare and contrast the evolution of an organization and how successfully it caters to its target audience. For Jim Zeek of Chief Pontiac Productions, the process has been one of both frustration and exhilaration.
The 2004 edition, the first year for Pontiacs in the Park, held at Virginia Motorsports Park (VMP), proved to be a heartbreaker. Mother Nature intervened and dumped enough rain down to shorten both the Saturday and Sunday programs. Nevertheless, the event was credited for having a good organizational foundation and for bringing Pontiac drag racing to the Southeast, filling the voids left by the loss of the Maple Grove Pontiac event and the Jim Butler Pontiac Nationals. For a first time out, they made a brave showing.
For 2005, PY Pontiacs in the Park proved to be better, though rain did once again play a role, although not nearly as bad as before. Still, Zeek and company were applauded for their efforts, and everyone hoped for better weather so the event could have a chance to grow and flourish.
A total of 92 show cars were registered for competition at VMP. Here, the A-body area shows a wide variety of models and colors.
This time around, everyone's prayers were answered, and Mother Nature finally gave her blessing. Warm, sunny weather prevailed for the entire weekend, bringing a substantial jump in attendance with 92 show cars registered and another 171 racecars. "This one was special for us as the hard work and planning really paid off," said Zeek. "This was very much a family effort, and I couldn't have done it without them."
The racing action was very exciting for the entire weekend, starting with our HPP "Pavement Pounders Shootout" and continuing on to the final round on Sunday. Butler Performance's Fast 4 and Ken's Speed and Machine Shop's Quick 16 saw some truly groundbreaking runs from John Welter in his turbocharged '02 Trans Am, Keith Korpe driving Ed Dufrene's '96 Trans Am, Scott Rex in his '97 Firebird, John Gaydosh driving his '98 Trans Am, and the Kauffmans with their eardrum-shattering supercharged '97 Firebird. If you were looking for the baddest of the bad at VMP, most were piloting traditional Pontiac V-8s tucked into swoopy Fourth-Gen Firebird bodies.
Jerry Loan and his '68 Firebird are fixtures at most Pontiac events in the eastern U.S., and he's a very tough competitor. Here, he lifts the front wheels in the heat of bracket action.
Exhibition rounds were also crowd-pleasers, including runs by The Bag Boys with their Grocery Getter '63 Tempest wagon and Paul Spotts with his supercharged front-engine dragster. Additionally, Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick and Dave Anderson both made runs in the GeeTO Tiger. And let's not forget the winning ways of Dave Schiaretta and his '70 GTO that you read about in "Full Throttle" (Dec. '06 issue).
PY Pontiacs in the Park also benefited from a great deal of sponsorship, including Performance Years (PY), PY Pypes, AllPontiac.com, Butler Performance, Kauffman Racing Equipment (KRE), Ken's Speed & Machine Shop, Indian Adventures, DCI Motorsports, and Goodyear Racing Tires among several others.
The 2007 PY Pontiacs in the Park will be May 18-20. Check for updates at the official PYPITP website, www.pypontiacsinthepark.com.
A line of late-model GTOs on display shows that modifications and upgrading are very much in vogue. A number of supercharged examples were on hand at VMP. | 
Gene Chaplo's '66 GTO lifts the wheels at the VMP starting line. The Goat was running hard all weekend, knocking off low 10s at will. |
The Firebird contingent was well-represented with this group of Third- and Fourth-Gen and drop-tops. | 
"Bag Boy" Eric Larson heats the hides on the Grocery Getter on his way to another nitrous-urged exhibition run at VMP. Larson and partner Mike Garblik have campaigned this recreation of Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick's famous '63 SD Tempest wagon for over a decade, and it gets quicker every year. |
Haley Pontiac-GMC brought out a display of new Pontiacs for showgoers. | 
"Big Injun" Dave Anderson helps Arnie "The Farmer" Beswick put on his helmet prior to an exhibition run in the GeeTO Tiger. Both racers made runs in the Tiger at VMP that weekend. |