By Thomas A. DeMauro
"Naked Beer Chicks"
'99 Trans Am
That's what participant Mark Caughey said when asked, "What would you recommend that HPP do to make this shootout better?" It's a great tongue-in-cheek-answer and a perfect way to start off the all-Firebird shootout--which is the third and final installment in our annual trilogy from the Texas Motorplex in Ennis.
'77 SE T/A
As you can tell by the opening statement, Pontiac guys, their Pontiacs, and HPP's shootouts are a lot of things, but boring isn't one of them. Due to a few breakages, this final Lone Star installment contains four instead of the usual five contestants. Not to worry, though, we still have three of four generations of Firebirds represented, and they did their respective body styles proud.
First up is, you guessed it, Mark Caughey and his '99 Navy Blue Metallic Trans Am that traveled from Double Oak, Texas, to compete. If you read the first two installments, you met a LS1 with a stock long-block according to its owner, that ran high 10.20s; a bored and sleeved big-inch LS1 with modified heads and cam that ran 10.10; and now Mark's LS1 that has essentially a head and cam package and a stock short-block. All of these LS1s were modified differently yet they all have one thing in common--nitrous, lots of nitrous. Will Mark be able to run quicker than those who came before him? Read on.
'76 Trans Am
Dewayne Ford arrived at the Motorplex from Crossett, Arkansas, with a '77 SE T/A that looked more at home on the show field than the race track with flawless black paint and gold graphics. But a peak under the hood revealed an Edelbrock-headed .030-over 455 and 950 Holley, which dispelled any thoughts of this machine being a 14-second show car. Running 11s was the goal, but traction would be a problem. See if the T/A got there.
Travis Lochhead rolled in from Moore, Oklahoma, to try his luck on the Motorplex 1320 with his silver '76 T/A packed with a .030 over 455 and was also in the hunt for mid-11-second e.t.'s. But the recently transplanted Canadian had a trick up his sleeve for quick power infusion. Did this Bird actually dip into the 10s?
'68 Firebird Convertible
Shawn Patterson made the trip from Richardson, Texas, to run his wife's '68 Firebird convertible. Owner of Patterson's Garage, Shawn knows how to make Pontiacs quick, and this street car is no exception. With a 428 poked and stroked to 462 cubes, can 12s be far away? Well, there is the 4,040-pound race weight.
Enough talk, let's get to it.