[Dwight Southerland]

Another one . . . The very first points race I ever went to in Jackson, MS. Same '65 Chevelle SW 283 but a year earlier when we had to run treaded tires. We tried to set the record on Saturday and made three passes dead on, but could not go under. We took the car back to the motel (back in the day when you could not leave your car at the track) and decided over supper to retard the cam to try to control some wheelspin. Back to the motel, back the car off the trailer and do our adjustment. Since this was the "first big race", we had a circus of friends with us - talking trash, drinking beer, being hosers - and we were having a big time. When we finished, it was late and we did not want to disturb the motel by driving the car back on the trailer so we got the crew around and pushed the car on. Next morning, we drove the five miles or so to the track, into the pits and find our parking place. My partner was driving the truck and borrowed trailer and I was directing him where to put it. He pulled into a nice place between two trees and then backed up to straighten the trailer. When he braked to stop the backward motion, the car just nicely rolled backwards off the trailer, bounced as it made the leap from the ramps to the ground and came to a stop with the front wheels at the back edge of the trailer. Seems in our testosterone delirium of the night's activities, no one bothered to cinch the car down after it was on the trailer!! How it happened that we got to the track without losing the car on way is still a mystery to me.

Incidentally, on the first pass I went a full tenth under the existing record and went on to win the race!