At the Track
Paul Williams
Paul primarily worked on dialing in timing and traction for his six passes. The second pass provided the lowest 60-ft, 1.66, and e.t. at 7.70 at 89.25. The 60-ft times would increase later on. Paul said of the track, "I loved the track and the staff. They did a great job of preparing the surface after the morning rain. It was the stickiest track I ever raced at! I thought the shootout was well organized and had a nice, relaxed pace, no pressure. I just wish it was at a quarter-mile track since my car is set up for the big end, and that's where I need to do most of my tuning to get it perfect."
Danny Estep
Danny dialed in launch rpm and tire pressure for his five passes and, just like Paul, Danny's best pass of the day was his second, posting a 6.07 at 111.98 on a 1.31 60-ft. "My car hooked great," Danny said. "This was the first time I've had the opportunity to make changes at the track in a while. It was nice to be able to see what those changes did. The only problem I had was there wasn't enough time between rounds due to the weather earlier in the day. Though Danny had a trans problem at the event, he didn't realize the extent of it until he got home. "The planetaries broke, and a tooth off the sun gear went into the pump, causing it to lose pressure so the transbrake wouldn't work," he lamented. "Regardless, I love the shootouts and wouldn't change anything about them-they're very informative."
Pete Pulizze
"Track conditions were very good once we got started, especially since it was raining in the morning," Pete explained. He tuned timing, airbag pressure, tire pressure, and increased launch rpm. Pete got quicker with each run, culminating in a final pass of 8.06 at 84.75 on a 1.76 60-ft for the best pass of the day. "My GTO seemed to run well," Pete said. "It hooked up and launched and went straight down the track. Overall, I had a great time at the shootout; everyone was very friendly."
G.Tom Oxler
Tom told HPP that his '66 GTO put 407 hp and 475 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels on a chassis dyno. Once he perfects his driving style, his '66 GTO should be running even more impressive numbers. As it was at this shootout, you could see Tom's driving improve with each pass. The 60-fts came down, as did e.t. Trap speed, more a function of engine power than driving technique, stayed steady at approximately 88 mph. Putting some more heat in the rear tires via longer burnouts and bumping the shift points helped, and the net result of Tom's quick learning curve resulted in the best pass of the day-8.13 at 88.37 on a 2.04 60-ft. This was his final run. Of the track conditions Tom confided, "I'm no expert, but they seemed fine." He also shared that though he would have preferred a quarter-mile track he still felt "the event was great! I look forward to the shootouts in every issue."
Conclusion
As we have learned in this shootout, each of our participants' Goats have different personalities.
Paul Williams showed what a hobbyist can accomplish in his own garage with his '04 GTO by employing drivetrain upgrades to transform it into a terror of the tarmac. Danny Estep's '70 grew from a daily driver to a competitive 9-second racer to meet his changing needs as a hobbyist, and it even ran well with a grenaded trans. Pete Pulizze is reliving his youth in his '69 GTO, running an efficient drivetrain combo that offers low e.t.'s on the strip, yet smooth performance on the street. Finally, Tom Oxler has taken to drag racing with enthusiasm befitting a dedicated Pontiac guy. Though his '66 GTO put up some strong numbers, it has some even lower e.t.'s to achieve in its current tune, and Tom is well on his way to realizing them.
So there you have it-our GTOAA shootout, which was made possible by help from GTOAA members, our participants, and the Ohio Valley Dragway staff. Despite a weather scare early on, everyone stepped up to make a great shootout.