Part I: A 9-Second LeMans and an 11-Second
Ventura Stampede the Traps at Summit
Motorsports Park Every August, Pontiac racers from across the country come to show off their mechanical weaponry at the Summit Motorsports Park quarter-mile track in Norwalk, Ohio, as part of the annual Ames Performance Pontiac Tri-Power Nationals. From among the hundreds of participants, HPP invites a select group of drivers to join us for a private day of racing, to test new engine tunes, develop new strategies for improved e.t.'s, and acquaint or reacquaint themselves with the Summit track, all within the relaxed atmosphere of the our magazine event.
This month, we start our Shootout with two Pontiac racers who wanted to take the road less traveled. Instead of racing GTOs or Trans Ams, they opted for the less-likely Pontiacs you'd find at a dragstrip. The first campaigns a one-owner A-body that he received as a graduation gift from high-school more than 30 years ago, and the other battles in a Pontiac-powered X-body because he's tired of seeing only collector cars at the track. Now, let's meet the racers.
Mike Kasparian of Lowell, Indiana, brought out the big guns with his '71 LeMans Sport Coupe. It's equipped with an IA-II block, Tiger heads, a Turbo 400, and 4.86 gears.
Tom Fredericks of Wheeling, West Virginia, prefers the nimble firepower of a '72 Ventura. It features a 400 engine bored to 406 cubes, cast-iron No. 12 heads, a Turbo 350 trans, and 3.90 gears.
Weather Report
The temperature at Summit Motorsports Park during our Shootout ranged from 73.9 to 78.1 degrees. Barometric pressure was measured at 30.06 hg, and the dew point was 53.1 degrees. The track is 853 feet above sea level and density altitude ranged from 2,022 to 2,296 feet, so we use a factor of 0.9731 for e.t. and 1.0283 for mph for 2,300 feet to chart the theoretical best performance at sea level. This is done on the best pass only, based on e.t.