[Steve Cowell]

Thanks for the congratulations. Really means a lot coming from you all.

The only other time dad won class at Indy was N/SA in 1989. At that time I was age 7 and in school. Looked at that class winner circle picture for years as a kid. Daydreaming of the day we'd both be in the class winner circle at Indy. Took a few years and a couple of tries. But, we made it. Great experience.

Now about the shoes. No heavy steel toe for this race. Dad knew the car would be sluggish with the warm and humid conditions. So, he bought a new pair of lightweight athletic shoes from the Walmart clearance section for $10. Worked great for qualifying and class. Not so well in the eliminator.

To answer Bench Racer's question:

It's the 1972 small valve, non-Stage 1 combination. All 1971-76 small valve 455 Buick engines share the same NHRA horsepower factor for Super Stock.

Steven Cowell