HPP One Man Shootout - Pontiac Pavement Pounders

HPP was invited by Summit Motor-sports Park to hold a Pavement Pounders Shootout during the '07 Ames Tri-Power Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. Five Pontiacs participated: Four Pure-Stockers that you will read about next month and this Pure Pontiac-powered and modified '75 Ventura.

This unique race car was originally intended to be a daily driver in the days of $.60 per gallon gasoline. Thanks to its ambitious owner, however, it now runs a traditional Pontiac drivetrain producing track times in the low 12s with the potential for the 11s. Let's meet our participant.

Darryl Sotera of Mantua, Ohio, brought his '75 Ventura that features a 0.030-over 455 powerplant with iron No. 96 heads, a Turbo 350 trans and 3.73 gears. His goal was to prove that you don't need a GTO or a Firebird to go fast.

Weather Report
The temperature at Summit Motorsports Park rose from 64 to 79 degrees throughout the day. The humidity ranged from 77 to 96 percent and barometric pressure was 29.86 hg. Density altitude was 1,675 feet, so we'll use a factor of 0.9809 for e.t. and 1.0199 for mph for 1,700 feet to chart the theoretical best performance at sea level. This will be done on the best pass only, based on e.t.

Owner Bio: Darryl Sotera
Darryl Sotera, age 59, a road maintenance worker, bought his Ventura for $500 in 1988. He liked the X-body Pontiac because it was unusual, and to this day he has not seen many '75 Venturas. He drag raced in the late '60s and early '70s and returned to the hobby in the mid '90s. He and his wife, Alaine, have owned five Pontiacs in the past: several late-model Grand Ams and his favorite, an '01 Grand Prix GT. He says the most fun he's had in his Ventura race car was his participation in the Ames Tri-Power Pontiac Nationals for the last six years, and he has been on the bracket teams at Thompson Raceway Park and Quaker City Raceway. He tells HPP, "Racing runs in the family. One of my sons and two of my nephews have drag cars, but I'm the lucky one. I have the only Pontiac."

At The Track
Darryl's '75 Ventura ran consistently within 2/10-second all day. He found that the hot and humid Ohio day worked against his engine temperature and didn't allow the big-cube Ventura to break into the 11s. Darryl tried adjusting the tire pressure in his slicks, but his best time of the day was his first of four passes, 12.20 at 109.72 mph. Of his Ventura's performance, Darryl said, "The conditions were good considering all the rain the day before. My car hooked up fairly well and went straight." Darryl described the Shootout as "great" and said he "hopes he will participate in more shootouts in the future."

Conclusion
Let's face it, '75-and-later Venturas are rarely seen on a dragstrip or on the street nowadays. This X-body may not be a mainstream Pontiac race car or collectible, but it has certainly earned respect from fellow Pontiac racers at the Summit Motorsports Park and other venues where it competes.

A potent 462 linked to a Turbo 350 and 3.73 rear has turned this grocery getter into a strip stormer for much less than the buy-in cost of a GTO or a Firebird. Darryl was proud to participate and he left our event with the assurance that his unique Ventura produced consistent timeslips and provided great feedback for future upgrades to further reduce e.t.s. Oh yeah, and X-bodies are quick too!

HPP would like to thank Super Duty Promotions and the management and crew of Summit Motorsports Park for their assistance in making this Shootout possible.