Baxter,
I guess I wasn't clear. The Regal was the car which was very competitive in
it's class, which was large 'merrican sedans and small Japanese cars. The
engine was stock, with a recurved dizzy, matched ports in the manifolds and
most of GM's police pursuit suspension. For it's size, it handled
exceptionally well. Of course, the front tire pressure was raced at just
over 50psi and the castor was pushed out to 11 degrees to keep the sidewalls
off the pavement. =(8^0)
I recall my first autoX driving school in the Regal. The instructor, an MGB
driver, rode with me. He asked if was OK for him to talk during the run. I
told him sure, that would be good. At the end of the run I asked him why he
hadn't said anything during the run. He told me he was so amazed at what
was being done with this HUGE car, he just didn't talk. I don't necessarily
believe that I was a great driver, he just wasn't used to riding in a big
car, but it was a nice stroke. When he introduced me for my real runs at
the race later that day, he announced "In the start box, number 18, Jack
Brooks in a Buick Regal... yes, I did say a Buick Regal, you're going to
want to watch this one". I get goose bumps thinking about it now, but it
really pissed me off then. The car regularly placed in the top quarter to
third of the class. This was back in the early-mid '80's.
RE: the Vega If you got past the potential for fast wear in the block of the
Vega, it really was a fun car too. The car was a '72 GT, black with a fat
white stripe. It had a good engine. In '73, they really started killing
the HP on this car. '71 and '72 had a better head and (maybe) more
compression.
I learned all my wrenching skills on that Vega, my first car. (Hmmmm, what
does that say about me?) BTW - I honestly don't recall what I raced against
in the Vega. That was the mid-late '70's; millions of brain cells ago. ;-)
Later,
Jack
************
> kinda makes one wonder, just what is in the same "class" as a Chevy Vega?
> and, does this redefine the word "class"?
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jack Brooks <brooks@belcotech.com>
> To: fot@autox.team.net <fot@autox.team.net>
> Date: Wednesday, May 05, 1999 2:22 PM
> Subject: Introduction
>
>
> >FOT'ers,
> >
> >Singers? Quartets? Huh? I thought this was the "serious" list <huge
> smile>
> >
> >Hi. Judging by the names on the messages I've received today,
> many of you
> >already know who I am. For everyone else, I'm "relatively" new to
> Triumphs,
> >just a few years into owning my '60 TR3A, but I've been catching
> up on lost
> >time as quickly as possible.
> >
> >My TR was acquired as a substitute for my 1974 Norton Commando (still in
> the
> >shed) and 1978 CB750 Honda (sold). It was always a little dicey
> riding the
> >bikes in this suburban New York City, traffic nightmare, so I gave the
> >motorcycles up when we had our first child. My wife,
> recognizing the fact
> >that I would then be toy-less, pushed me to find a new toy; one with four
> >wheels. She wanted an MGB, but we did our homework, saw a lot
> of cars and
> >bought a TR3 instead; a decision she now knows was right. (We looked at
> >some cars with those new-fangled roll up windows too, but I'm pretty sure
> >it's just a passing fad.)
> >
> >Why am I here? I spent a number of years autocrossing a '72
> Chevy Vega and
> >(no laughing, please) a very competitive in it's class, 1980 Buick Regal
> >Limited. I've wanted to get back into AutoX for a while and the
> TR is the
> >chosen tool. I'm within a month (hopefully) of installing an engine to
> >replace the wheezy one I've been patching for a few years. This is the
> >engine I built with advice from many of you, via the regular
> Triumph list.
> >
> >I'm looking forward to participating on the FOT list, but I've got one
> major
> >concern, I can't sing worth a damn.
> >
> >Jack Brooks
> >TS69032L
> >
> >BTW - The missus (wife, not car) and I will be running in the modified
> class
> >at the VTR-99 AutoX. See you there.
> >
> >
>
>
>
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