On The Street And At The Track
All the participants easily completed the 25-mile, on-the-road test loop without incident. Density altitude of 2,700 feett was used to calculate the Best Pass Corrected in the Strip Tuning Log. The temperature reached 77 degrees, the barometer was at 29.88 hg, humidity was 87 percent, and the wind gusted to 25 mph.
Conclusion
At the end of a long and challenging (bad pun intended) day, it was Mike Meeks and his '00 T/A who took home the gift certificate for the quickest Pontiac. Despite some of our participants having mechanical issues that cost them e.t. and trap speed, they worked through their woes and finished the day with a positive attitude. These Pontiacs proved they can be raced on the strip, driven 25 miles on public roads in moderate comfort, and live to tell the tale.
The May date for the '09 HPP/YearOne Street/Strip Challenge has yet to be determined. For more information, go to www.highperformancepontiac.com or www.yearone.com.
We hope to see more head-to-head competition this year between the four groups of magazines cars, so be ready to do your hobby proud, and come out and take on Vettes and Mopars for bragging rights and prizes.
HPP would like to thank YearOne and the management and crew of Atlanta Dragway for their assistance in making this event possible.
Mike Meeks Mike's '00 T/A...
Mike Meeks
Mike's '00 T/A was consistently quick throughout the day. He said the track conditions were "a little windy but good, and my car hooked up well." Ironically, his first pass of the day contained his worst 60-foot at 1.81, which resulted in his quickest e.t. of 10.00 at 133.87 mph. It was his only footbrake pass. "The event was great," he says. "I loved it." He hopes to see more EFI cars at future Street/Strip Challenges.
Don Dixon Don's '05 GTO improved...
Don Dixon
Don's '05 GTO improved its 60-foot times substantially with each pass. "It spun a little on the first run but hooked up better on the second and third," he says. Despite the fact that "on the top end it was windy and pretty rough," the net result was an e.t. reduction of 0.41 second over the three passes. The 1.64 60-foot and 10.84 e.t. at 128.90 mph was the GTO's best pass to date. Don says the event was well-organized. "There was camaraderie between the racers, and it was a lot of fun."
Michael Wade "Dislikes: My...
Michael Wade
"Dislikes: My car's performance," Michael wrote on his survey. "The track was sticky," he says, "but my burnout process wasn't consistent. When I heated the tires well enough, my Bird hooked up." Michael worked though a fuel-starvation issue, and then had to deal with excessive converter slippage to post a best pass of 12.42 at 106.61 on a 1.68 60-foot his fourth time out. Despite his Firebird's hardships, Mike enjoyed "the freedom to make unlimited passes and the 'racer bond' that was present-even between the Corvette, Mopar, and Pontiac participants."
Greg Schwindler Greg's '79...
Greg Schwindler
Greg's '79 T/A, like Don's GTO, showed steady improvement throughout the day. Early passes on motor only established his 12.40 baseline. Then came the nitrous in 125 and 150 shots. The juice added nearly 11 mph to the trap speed and dropped e.t. to a best of 11.51 on the fourth and sixth passes with a terminal speed of over 120 mph. "The right lane was good, but the left lane was poor," Greg says regarding the track conditions. He adds, "I had a good time. The event was fun and well-organized."
The Best Of The Competition...
The Best Of The Competition
Quickest Vette
The quickest Corvette and the overall event winner was the '73 entry of Steve Haynes. Its 614ci Merlin block runs Dart heads, a custom Comp cam, 10:1 compression, a nitrous system, and a 5-inch exhaust. A Dynamic converter, a Powerglide trans, a 12-bolt with a Strange spool, and 4.10s put the twist to M/T ET Streets measuring 32x17.5x15. The best pass was 8.74 at 157.83 mph. Yes, it completed the 25-mile test loop without issue.
Scott and Wendy Dickinson's...
Scott and Wendy Dickinson's ATI-supercharged 383 '73 Challenger (with a '71 nose) was the quickest Mopar. Packing unknown boost and running an ACCEL Gen 7 DFI; a 0.600-inch-lift cam; Indy cylinder heads; step headers and 5-inch, oval exhaust; a 4L80E trans; and a custom four-link rear with a Ford 9-inch and 4.30 gears, the E-body ran 9.00 at 151.6 mph.
Dale E. Wade Dale knew he...
Dale E. Wade
Dale knew he wouldn't be in the money running a 13-second car, but he loves to race and desired the experience of it over everything else. A carb linkage adjustment and slightly higher launch rpm netted him a best-of-the-day 1.95 60-foot and a 13.82 at 95.90 mph on his second pass. "The track was very good, probably the best I've been on," Dale says. "My GTO hooked up well and went straight on three of the five runs. The other two I spun because I didn't heat the tires enough." What Dale didn't realize at the time was that for the duration of the event, his GTO was running only 24 degrees total timing. What would it have run with 32 degrees? "I enjoyed comparing notes with the other guys," Dale says. "And it was the first time I ever cruised with a police escort."