Frank Gague won the SuperDuty...
Frank Gague won the SuperDuty class in his '70 LeMans.
Engines revved, guys-and girls-talked shop, and adrenaline rushed as racers and show participants arrived at the Pontiac Uprising on October 7, 2006 at Wichita International Raceway in Wichita, Kansas, hosted by the Wichita GTO Club. Like any Pontiac event, there are hundreds of hard-luck, nostalgic and inspirational stories. Deviating from HPP's normal coverage format, this article places the spotlight on a few specific participants of the event. However, we will still list all the winners on the show side and in the race. As we learned from speaking to racers in the pits, a number of them made their return to racing at this year's Uprising.
Clay Phillips
One of those drivers was Clay Phillips of Springfield, Missouri. Long-time readers may recall that prior to his leave of absence from racing, Clay won at the GTO Nationals when he debuted his '64 GTO racecar, "Classical Gas," in the early '90s. He also won in the car show and posted the quickest e.t. at the GTOAA Nationals races in 1992, 1993 and 1994, and was a mainstay at major Pontiac events.
What you may not know is that a tornado wiped out his shop five years ago. Then, three years to the day later, he was in a motorcycle accident and broke his leg. He was confined to a wheelchair for six months and had to endure seven surgeries. A year later-again to the day-he had to have heart surgery. Then came a divorce. While many would have crumbled under the pressure, Clay recovered and said, "I felt like racing again."
Scott Gimple's tastefully...
Scott Gimple's tastefully modified '79 Trans Am garnered the President's Award.
With the help of his 12-year-old son, Cole, he put his "Classical Gas" '64 GTO back together and, "we brought it back out," Clay said. "This Pontiac race is always a good one." He should know, having won at this race twice before. Sure enough, he won the AFX Electronic class this year.
Cole raced in the junior dragster division of the Pontiac Uprising. He has been racing since he was eight years old and in 2004, he won the Junior Nationals in Tulsa.
Scott Lorenzen
Scott Lorenzen of Omaha has been racing his dad Bill's '67 GTO, "Blue Gunslinger" (with a LeMans rear clip), for three years. It features a 455 Pontiac block that now displaces 472 cubes, is fuel injected, and runs on methanol. Bill bought the car 12 years ago. "We try to go a little faster each year," Bill said.
Father and son were enjoying the Pontiac Uprising experience. "It's a place where a lot of Pontiac racers get together," Scott said, "and we can trade Pontiac information. When I was younger, my dad would take me to the races all the time and at the end of each one, my reward was to go in the pits and meet all of the drivers. A little boy remembers that forever."
Bill has plans to pass off the whole operation of BKL Racing to his son in the future. "I hope he continues racing," he said. Scott has a son, Casey, who is also interested in racing. "He's going to be a gearhead," Bill quipped. Racing is all business to this family. "When we go up there, it's not play time," Bill explained. "We don't want to go home without a win."
In the AFX-No/E class, Jason...
In the AFX-No/E class, Jason Hennessey took the win in his '68 GTO with a 45.
Mike and Vickie Cooper
The fastest car at the Uprising was the '63 LeMans owned by Mike Cooper and his wife, Vickie (his crew chief), of El Dorado, Kansas. "We built this car in 2002," Cooper stated, "and we've raced it for four seasons. This car is what they call a Pro Mod style." The Coopers had a chromoly chassis built, and then mounted their body on it. "It runs on alcohol and it has mechanical fuel injection," Cooper related. It also has a three-speed Lenco transmission, with a TCI torque converter. "Today we ran a 7.30 at 188 miles per hour, on a relatively slippery track," he told HPP. They enjoy racing because of the competition and the fact that it's a family-oriented activity. "We just decided we wanted to go a little faster, and now it's completely out of hand," Mike stated.
Gene Rich
Gene Rich of Milton, Kansas, made his return to the track after about 20 years off. His '57 Pontiac, named "Cheater Charlie Blue Velvet," was purchased from his friend Charlie Cummins, who has since retired from racing.
Andy Brown of Alliance, p...
Andy Brown of Alliance, p Nebraska, was showing his '99 Grand Am GT, which he purchased five years ago for his sixteenth birthday. After he got it, he decided to make his stand out. "I just started and never quit," he said of the modifications, which include a throttle body, cold air intake and MSD sparkplug wires for the 3.4L V-6 engine, Khumo performance tires and a body kit. "I love old cars, but with the new cars, it's amazing what you can do," Brown said.
"He (Cummins) got it out of storage about a month ago and this is the first time it has been raced in 30-some years," Rich stated. "I always liked the old car." It still has the original engine and Cummins redid the suspension. "He made a lot of little modifications (while he was racing)," Rich said. "I want to modernize it, but still keep it nostalgic."
Conclusion
There was an even split between show cars and racecars, with 70 on either side at this year's Uprising. In the car show, Scott Gimple was presented the Presidential Award for his '79 Trans Am. Tracy Smith received best of show for the '70 Judge R/A-IV.
In addition to the race and car show, there was also a mixer Friday night at the Best Western, prior to the race. About 100 people attended for food, a tech session and door prizes. This gave the racers and owners of the show cars a chance to meet one another and catch up on old friendships.
The conclusion of the event Saturday brought awards to several of the racers, car owners and all of the show participants. "I think it went well," Tom Wilhite-who not only competed, but also served as race director-said. "I was real happy. The car count was excellent."
Mid America Dragway in Arkansas City, Kansas, will host the 2007 Pontiac Uprising on October 6. For information, call Tom Wilhite at (316) 788-0514.