[Geerhead55]

Actually,, the aftermarket has stepped up in recent years regarding 409 parts,, Edelbrock heads and intakes, among other suppliers. Once you can get a block, parts are parts, theres lots of stuff out there. As far as 396-454 items those are still plentiful at swap meets, and once again, there are builders and suppliers that offer larger engines also, 496s, 502s, 540s, 565s, 632s,, how big do you want to go? You can also build or buy a great running small block too,, I'm running a Dart 406 in my Chevy II.
As far as racing in an "open" class, theres this thing called, (I'll just whisper it, bracket racing) that you can get involved in, that has few rules, mostly safety, and is as affordable as you want to make it, depending on how much you want to spend. Of course like anything else, the more you can do yourselves, the more you can save.
The bracket racers( like myself), are sometimes looked down upon, by some of the classracers, but I'm betting most of them do it or have done it in the past.
The main thing is to get out there and have some fun. Do as much as you're comfortable with until your learning curve starts to flatten out, then take on some more.
You may eventually want to have a class legal car, and then you can tackle that adventure. What ever you decide to do, you can post pictures and take us along on your build in the classracer builds section. Take care.
Danny Durham