Description
Author: Doug Boyce, Softbound, 176 Pages, ISBN: 9781934709917, CT505, !st Edition, 2012
- Drag Racing The Family Sedan - Stock-Class Drag Racing 1964-1971
The early days of organized drag racing saw the need to group cars of similar potential into classes to encourage competitive racing. As time passed and the sport evolved, a wide range of classes were organized, pitting cars with similar power-to-weight ratios against one another. Older cars were lined up against newer models, and lighter-weight cars with six cylinders could be paired against heavier models with V-8s. Depending on how class breaks were organized, the car you drove daily could be a contender, if it were well-tuned and you had some talent behind the wheel.
This is the story of the Junior Stock classes, which blossomed in the 1960s and were pretty much killed in 1971 when the NHRA implemented a new "10-year" rule, specifying that cars more than ten years old were no longer able to compete. The era oi competitive early-1950s Oldsmobiles and Hudsons and dominant 1955-1957 Chevys was over, and so were the average guy's chances at winning a class trophy. This colorful era spawned many of the legendary drag racers we remember today, including Grumpy Jenkins, Jere Stahl, Wayne Jesel, Arlen Vanke, and teams such as The Ram chargers.
Doug Boyce turned his first wrench at age 8 and attended his first drag race at 10. By 14, he was working on restoring cars and swapping engines. Now 49, Doug has worked on many drag cars and has,written several articles for automotive magazines.
He spent 15 years as an automotive technician and still enjoys turning wrenches for fun. He lives in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.
