Re: Racing Polys

[Jim Rowland <dodge440@xxxxxxx>]

Don;

I used to race my parents 1962 Dodge Dart, Sedan, at Route 30 in Gary,  
IN. That car was a 318 stock 2 Barrel. It was a radio delete. It had  
an open rear end and I am assuming it was 3;23 but it may have been a  
2: something because on the open road it would get between 17 and 20  
mi. to the gallon. Also it was single exhaust power steering and  
manual brakes. It ran in F/SA. It was a 727 trans. It weighed exactly  
3,000 lbs. Also, stock 14 inch wheels.

The first time I took it to the track i had a cutout put on the  
exhaust, standard 6 inch by 2.5 inch galvanized plumbing pipe and a  
screw on cap. Back in the day it was against the law for a welder to  
weld a cutout on a cars exhaust system if they were still on the car.  
I found one in Chicago Heights, IL to do the job, I even remember  
their name (The Brooks Brothers). Most welders wanted you to take the  
exhaust pipe off the car and then they would weld the cutout on it.  
The pipe and cape ran about  $1.25 and the welder charged me about  
$2.50. He just cut a small hole in the exhaust pipe and welded the  
pipe over the hole at a 45 degree angle.  The next step was a seat  
belt only on the drivers side. Try explaining that to your  
parents!!!!!! They will buy the safety logic but why for only the  
driver. I forget what i told them, something like I did not have the $ 
$ for two or the driver is essential to getting help if there is an  
accident. What ever it was they did not make me take it out.

Anyway, everyone was going to be at there on opening day, March of 63,  
and we were excited. I paid my fee $3.00  and go to tech. They tell me  
to take a hick until I get a drive shaft loop. thats when I first  
learned about unibodies My buddies were running Gm cars and they had  
the X frame, thus a drive shaft catch. The next week I got two long  
threaded cheap bolts 1/4" by 1 1/2 inch fine tread, several nuts and a  
piece of steel probably 4'L x 1.5 W" from the trash at the gas  
station. Located the spot on the floor where the drive shaft was  
mostly still in the tunnel hump. Drilled two holes though the floor  
dropped in the bolts and put two nuts up to where they would keep the  
steel piece of the drive shaft and then put the other 2 nuts on after  
the  small, and I mean small. piece of metal.

The next Sunday, i passed tech with flying colors. In those days the  
rules said  at some point the drive shaft had to be encompassed for  
360 degrees. It did not say specifically what type of steel or what  
width and thickness. If my dad saw it i would point out it was another  
engineering safety feature that I read about to make the car safer.

We get to the line and i make my first ever pass and with that cut out  
open I thought i was driving a max wedge. I make my first pass and my  
time slip said about 16:45 and 80 something MPH. My buddy said i  
should  let him drive it. I forget his et but he upped the MPH over  
90. I was mad. I did not realize at the time that the MPH was 60 ft  
before and after the finish line. I do not think he knew it ether and  
just kept his foot in it as long as the engine was still climbing. It  
was not his car as long as he could get it stopped. So i came back and  
and made 3 or four runs with a best time in the 16: teens. Every body  
always lost in that class to a 1958 Old's 98 or 88 Convertibles, there  
were several, with the J 2 option, 3 deuces. Man did they pull on the  
top end. Kind of like how the Hemis would fly by the Thunderbolts in  
mid to late 64. Never did win a trophy with that car. I never realized  
until much later i was always smoking the right rear way too  much.

That is one of my other poly stories.

Just a side note and I will sign off. I would race a friends 64  
Pontiac Cat. three on the tree  389 2 door with a deuce and he would  
always beat me by  about 3 bumpers. If I opened up the cutout I would  
have him by usually 2 to 3 cars. I kept telling him to put on a cutout.

Jim

1965 Coronet 440CI



The next week we took a couple of long bolts
On Jan 30, 2011, at 6:49 PM, Donald Gallimore wrote:h

Gary P wanted to know who raced polys.

Back around 1970, my brother and I raced a 318 Poly in IHRA/AHRA Pure  
Stock.
Pretty much a stock set-up in a 1965 Belvedere 1.  With a slipping  
tranny, we
set the National Record.  Best run was a 15.96 in L/SA.  This was in  
legal
trim.  Back then that was a very amazing performance for a couple of  
guys with
limited financial resources, if I can say so.  Would have been nice to  
see the
performance if we'd had a good tranny and the right gears.

Akron Don Gallimore


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