Since witnessing the recent action of the Pure Stock Drags event at Mid Michigan Motorplex in Stanton, Michigan, we were reminded of why this event is a favorite of ours.
To recap, the Pure Stock Drags is a drag-racing event held over two days, where competitors in 1962-1974 American muscle cars are invited to compete against rivals in machines with similar performance.
The rules are fairly strict when it comes to equipment regulations; essentially, all competing cars are expected to have engines that retain all of their correct parts and pieces, and those parts are not supposed to be altered significantly. This means that manifolds and cylinder heads are not to be ported, carburetors must be original type and specification, camshafts must maintain (mostly) factory specifications, and so on. Stock size wheels and tires are also required, and vehicles must maintain complete factory body panels and interiors. Engine teardowns can be a part of technical inspection if the organizers feel it is warranted.
But as we also mentioned in our previous post, cheating is not a common problem among the Pure Stock regulars, who tend to be a very social group. Most seem primarily interested in reconnecting with old friends and getting out on the track, rather than focusing purely on winning. In fact, most competitors have been coming for years, and quite a few became interested in participating after getting a bit bored with the car show scene and wondering what else they could do with their restored muscle machines.
The range of performance runs from 15-second rides all the way down to the mid-11-second range, occupied primarily by Hemi cars and L88-spec Corvettes; in fact, the fastest time of this event was an 11.44 turned in by Jimmy Johnson’s silver L88-spec 1969 ’Vette. This year even saw a genuine COPO ’69 Camaro, running an all-aluminum ZL1 engine (it was originally built with an iron 427). Many of the cars competing are “real,” though accurate tribute cars are allowed.
Some other examples of rare and valuable muscle cars being used as their manufacturers intended included long-time Pure Stock racer Bob Karakashian’s factory-built ’70 Hemi ’Cuda, turning an 11.62 on race day. Rick Mahoney brought out his very rare Ram Air II Firebird, restored and tuned by Pontiac expert Scott Tiemann, who also shares partial driving duty. Speaking of rare Firebirds, Jim Mattison of Pontiac Historic Services showed up with his ’67 Firebird 400 with factory Ram Air package, one of just 65 built, while Mike Waligora brought his Carousel Red ’69 Judge, which left the factory with a Ram Air IV engine and four-speed gearbox. There were several Cobra Jet Fords, W-30 Oldsmobiles, a contingent of Buicks and, as has become tradition, a legion of Studebaker diehards running R1 and R2 models, and those guys don’t often lose.
In all, it was a great weekend of low-stress racing that tends to have a somewhat contagious effect on spectators, many of whom find the inspiration to go home and set up their cars to compete at future events. For more details, including links to event videos, go to
www.purestockdrags.com.
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