First Car to the Strip
 

This might be interesting (or maybe not). What was your first car and year to the drag strip.

Mine was my high school 1956 2 dr 210. 265/205 3 speed. Think it went 15.36 with Caslers and 4:11s. Got beat by Judy Lily's 9 passenger 1957. (By a mile) This was in Sioux City, Iowa in probably 1965 before I was drafted.

Re: First Car to the Strip
 

1958 CHEVY DELRAY 348 TRI POWER 3 SPEED STICK HURST SHIFTER 456 POSI CUT OUTS FIRST PASS OCTOBER 1964 I WAS HOOKED WENT15.25 @94.45mph still have time slip

Re: First Car to the Strip
 

1958 CHEVY DELRAY 348 TRI POWER 3 SPEED STICK HURST SHIFTER 456 POSI CUT OUTS FIRST PASS OCTOBER 1964 I WAS HOOKED WENT15.25 @94.45mph still have time slip irwindale raceway

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1963 Plymouth Spt. Fury 383 Auto

1965

14.9 @ 92MPH

Re: First Car to the Strip
 

1990 Englishtown 1977 Honda Civic.

The infamous 500$ racing honda, which had a JC Whitney header, no muffler, accord rims, 4 speed, the best a poor college senior could do.

Don't recall the time, but I treed the guy.

First time with a real race car was 12 years later 2002 at columbus with my 78 lil red express. 440 with 2 stages of nitrous.

Nice memories.

Eric

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64 Impala. Had a 307 engine (thought it was a 327) powerglide. At SIR Saskatoon International Raceway. Ran a whopping 17.2@75 mph. Was back in about 1977.

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I started bracketracing and did a long time. 1981 in a 1974 Pinto ran 20.10's.

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In 1969 we took my buddies dad's 1964 El Camino to Lions on a Wednesday night. It was dead slow but I was hooked.

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1963 Biscayne station wagon with a 230 and 3 speed, Fall of 1969 at Englishtown. First time out I was runner-up in U/Stock - I couldn't shift the column shift very well. I put a Hurst floor shifter in and won class the next 4 Sundays. Times were in the 19's.

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My street Car in 1963 a 55 Chevrolet ;It had factory air condition a continental kit and a automatic .I took out the air and the continental kit off and put a stick in it had a blast . the car would be worth a few dollars now just like i bought it .My Dad made me pay for it i paid $600.

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1971, Dover Drag Strip, 1969 Plymouth Road Runner, 383 four speed.
I still have the time slip somewhere in my attic, but after 50 years I don't recall the results of that day. I do remember my leg shaking so hard I could barely find the clutch pedal!

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1969 Z-28. I drove it to high school. (1972) My 2 years of savings from my paper route netted me the 1600 dollars needed to purchase this three year old sports car . WOW, how times have changed !
Took the 302 out and installed a new 427/425 target GM replacement motor. Before installing changed cam to the 2nd design L-88 and springs. Hayes aluminum flywheel, 4.88 Zoom gears, cable drive Moroso tack and shutoff, Hooker headers, Thrush mufflers, Holley 800 double pumper. Ran 11.88 at 116.
I was terrified to take it down the track the first pass so my brother John gladly obliged. Brought it home on a flatbed as all 12 bolts holding the ring gear sheared . I had borrowed a set of 10 inch white dot #8 Firestones and those bolts did not like them .. LOL

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Looks like Boburka going through the drive thru in the back ground! LOL

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1968 I believe, Took my daily driver, Maroon, black vinyl top 66 Chevelle Malibu 283 3-speed on the floor to Island Dragway for my very first trip down the 1/4 mile. Nervous as heck, popped the clutch and did a one-legger all the way down. Things sure have changed!

Ken Kopecky

Re: First Car to the Strip
 

1966 - took my red '63 Chevy Super Sport, 283 2bbl 3 Speed on the floor to Porter (old, sadly now closed, drag strip north of Houston). They teched me in O/S. Don't remember what it ran, but it was slow.

My main memory was being in the staging lanes with all of the Houston legends - Raymond Martin, Nickens Bros, Willis Ragsdale, Earl Muscarili, Sammy Cunningham and several others. I was so nervous that I would screw up and do something wrong.

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First pass August 1974, in my $50.00 57 Ford Sedan Delivery. Extremely tired 272 Y block, 3 speed manual with factory 3.89 gears. I added a 4 barrel intake and carb from a 57 Mercury that I found parked in the woods. Ran a blistering 17.2 at 78 MPH, at Mission Raceway. The first "real" car was my 70 Mustang Sportsroof (non Mach 1 fastback) that I bought in 1976 for $2100. 351Cleveland 4 barrel, FMX 3 speed automatic with 3.25 open rearend. Bone stock ran 14.72 @ 94.5 MPH, just a set of $79.00 Cyclone headers hooked to the factory mufflers and pipes went 14.22@99.44 MPH. The car was totalled in 1978, but still have the time slips!

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1974 New England Dragway. 1971 6 cyl Nova that I bought off my brother. It ran 18s. I beat a 318 Fury for class. I was hooked. Eventually built the car into a U/SA.

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1979, right after I got my driver's license, right after my 16th birthday. 1964 Chevy Nova SS with the stock 2-barrel 283, floor-shift 'glide, and open 3.08 10-bolt. It got 28 mpg on the highway, and ran 10 flat on the eighth at Portland International Raceway on Wednesday nights and mid-15s on the quarter at Woodburn Dragstrip on Sunday mornings, on a pair of G70-14 sticky recaps.

The first car I ever made money with, was a '71 Pinto coupe (the one with the separate trunk, not the hatchback). It had the stock 1.6 and a 4-speed, and had been repainted the color of a green crayon. I raced it one season, in 1981. It ran surprisingly consistent 21-flat ETs, and more than one opponent threw a temper-tantrum after losing to it.

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It was 1974, my second 1955 210 2dr 265 3 spd. with a Hurst floor shift, 4.10 gears. JC Penny A/FX Cheater slicks, 1969 Z-28 intake and carb(way too big) and Dougs headers. Went to National Speedway on Long Island and ran some 15.80's almost lost it on the first run , rear tire pressure was too low. I've been hooked ever since. I still have the engine in the garage, I lost in the class final to a Ford Fairlane 260 4 spd. 2 four barrels, Its been quite an adventure and now I drag my son along with me! He loves this stuff as well.

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Went Onondaga Dragway with my first car a 55 Dodge Coronet. Won a trophy, only car in my class, went a blazing 19.45 don't remember how fast. They had me hooked every since. I remember E J Potter and Dick LaHaie were racing there too.

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I was the "staff photographer" at Milan in '66 and took my parents 64 1/2 2bbl 3 speed stick Mustang through the other gate one Sunday. Ran K/PS. Kept missing gears during TT but hit them all and treed a guy big time in round one. He was pissed and accused me of sandbagging to set him up. Got a Fastback 4 speed next round and that was that. 15s at 80 something. Exciting.


EDIT: Washed it really good before I got home...

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1981 Pueblo Dragstrip, my Brothers 1968 F/S Camaro. I staged ok but left in 3rd gear.

Randy Wells
I/S 5628

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1967 took my '64 GTO to the old Concord (NC) drag-a-way and won the C/S class trophy, which I still have displayed in my garage.
Still racing a Pontiac, sort of.
Flagman, quarter mile. I was about 3 months out of the service.
The place (race track) was sold to a developer and became a nice sub-division known as, "Old South".

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1967 Fairlane GT 390 car - running down the strip is one of those things I knew what it felt like even though I never did it before I had a drivers license,14.32 90 mph something, still have the time slip somewhere

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Flat towed my 67 Nova SS to Dover Drag strip in Dover NY, in 1973. Used 1969 COPO Chevelle as a tow car. Car had a warmed over 327. Think ran 13"s

picture is what it looked like when i sold it, not from the 70's
Bob Lasko

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1968 Saginaw dragstrip, took my 1966 Impala SS 327/275 hp 4 speed there and ran Pure Stock. Won class, my first race and first trophy. Still have the trophy, car was black with white interior, went with a buddy from school (GMI in Flint)l, we had 'The Buzzard' and an outline of the state of Ohio in shoe polish on the side. Got to the semi finals in eliminator. Met Al Provost at that race, he came over and wanted to know what some Ohio boys were doing up there. He was running a 58 Biscayne I think at the time in Stock.

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First time down a legal drag strip was in 1970 at Seattle International Raceway. The car was a 1970 Plymouth 340 Duster. It ran low 15's and the disease stared then. I have had multiple cars that I have raced including one in Stock for awhile. I'm better at helping other people with their cars and have been on the crew of an Alcohol Dragster for a summer. Lots of work, but fun at the same time.

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1967 Mustang GT with a 390 and a 4 speed at Englishtown in 1967. Bone stock with the 3.25 rear gears and street tires; it ran a best of 13.87@101 in B/PS.

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If you love racing enough, you make do with what you have.

1966, Pacific Dragway, 1959 Nash Metropolitan running in AHRA (I think) XF/G class.

The car? Two reasons. It was all I could afford, and all my parents would allow me to buy. I'd been a car nut for a long time and I guess they thought I wouldn't hurt myself too bad with such a lack of horsepower.

Interesting sideline - they were still using a flag starter but also doing handicaps between classes with a spot system. I never had another car in my class. I remember running against a new SS Chevelle. The starter kept pulling me farther and farther down the track from the starting line.

Of course, he had to be in front of me. I suspect the guy in the Chevelle was wishing he had brought binoculars since the flagman was so far away from him. But my car was snail slow and my huge head start was gone just after I shifted to 2nd gear.

And even with that awful beginning, I was hooked.

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July of 1975, 66 Biscayne originally a 283 2 bbl. 3 on the tree. Put a 350 and 4 speed in it but still had the 3.08 open 10 bolt. National Trail Raceway Friday night grudge racing. Hot, sticky, sweating, knees knocking etc. 15.90 can't remember the speed.

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1976. 69' Camaro 350 2bbl 3 speed on floor. $650 car with 44,000 miles. Want to say low 16s or 15.90. It was slow compared to my friends cars in high school. Only ran it like that once and went back home to make it faster.

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1976 , Flat towed my 1967 Tempest that I had pulled the OHC 6 out of and installed a 1969 Pontiac 428 I got from Post Brothers junkyard in Saugerties , NY . Pulled that whole works up to Lebanon Valley Dragway . I had a great time , I still recognize some of the names , that are still running up there , but they are probably their kids !

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65 Dodge Coronet, 318 Poly head car. Put a 440 in it for street, Wayne Brewer talked me into running it down the track at Mopar Nats in Columbus.
Hooked ever since. 13.83 et

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1975, old Richmond Va. dragstrip.
Went with friends and took my new 1975 Pinto 2.3L 4spd. Ran 17:20's. Got a trophy that night for my class (they had trophy classes that were 12,13,14...17 second) as I was the only one in the 17 second class,,,LOL. Got hooked that night. Had many Pintos after that for daily and race.

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Back 1965 went to Lebanon Valley saw Art Arfons Green Monster jet dragster, to cool. In 1975 or 1976 took my wifes 1969 Chevelle 307 PG down the track at South Glens Falls Dragway loved it . Hook line & sinker done !!!!!!!!!!!!! at blazing 17 sec. Since the late 70s started running my 1969 Camaro 350 AT, H/SA low 11s still love it not ready to retire for a long time! Dan Lynch

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summer of 1965, 55 chev 265/210 56 corvette 3 spd , 3.70 gears drove it to deerpark strip, was an airport, not sure what i ran had a blast, was hooked on this hobby. still at it today. lol.

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I still have the runner-up trophy and my first Class Winner trophy. After that I took the money, $10 for a class win.
I also still have the red metalflake helmet I wore.

Re: First Car to the Strip
 

Great thread, would love to hear about Bobby Warren’s and John Livingston’s first time at the track.

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1962 Dover Dragstrip 1955 Chevy convertible K/S 265 3 sod been racing non stop ever since. Wouldn't do it any different if I had the chance.ugh

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62 Ford 406 tri power 4 speed sedan. Black , red interior. 1965
Puyallup Raceways south of Tacoma, Washington.
Don't remember what it ran. Wished I owned it today, that I do know....

Steve Teeter Stk/SS 620