A990 Super Stockers

[Jared Jordan]

Originally Posted by Denny Dormaier

Jared, my favorite picture of that car. I'm pretty sure that it was taken at Las Vegas with you driving. If you look real close, you can see your mom watching the pass. Her head is above the SS/BA on the windshield.

Denny

Denny,

That is indeed me behind the wheel. That picture would have been from the 2002 LODRS Event at Woodburn, Oregon. That was my first race in the car. I have a framed copy of a photo that must have literally been taken a split-second after that. In the photo I have, my mom's hands are separated and it looks like she's getting excited. Jim DeFrank is the guy in the white t-shirt with the headset behind the car on the driver's side.

Funny, but that weekend didn't go too well. The car was REAL rich all through qualifying and, on that run in the photo, it FINALLY moved like it was going to carry the front tires. Unfortunately, the fuel pump took a crap as the front end came up and it fell right back down. Ran a whopping 9.79 I think. That was the last pass of that weekend -- 3rd qualifying session. When I went to start the car and drive up for the 4th session, a small Allen screw came loose in the manifold and made its way into the #2 cylinder. Hole in the combustion chamber, water in the engine, weekend ruined. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. That poor old motor needed to be re-done.

[Hemi Moose]

Holton's Hemi '65 A990 Belvedere...

[Hemi Moose]

A few more '65 A990's...

[Hemi Moose]

[Hemi Moose]

[Jared Jordan]

Originally Posted by Hemi Moose

Whose car is the "Velvet Hammer"?

[HP HUNTER]

Originally Posted by Jared Jordan

There's always this old car...

Originally purchased by a gentleman named Wayne Seymour from McMahon Motors in Rawlins, WY. I've got the original window sticker stashed away somewhere...

Owners along the way include (in reverse chronological order):
Harry Holton
Robin Pellisier (Art Pacheco drove for him with Barton Power)
Dan Zeisset
Anatoli Polewik (Alex's dad)
Larry Wikoff
Jay Smith
John Wilson (I've read that it was his "first" car?)

We bought the car from Robin Pellisier in early '95. I think it sat for the better part of a year when we first got it. Grandpa started racing it and did so throughout the late 90's going as quick as 9.28 @ 142.99 with the car in SS/BA. The car was parked after the 2001 season and didn't see a racetrack until I was fortunate enough to get to drive it from July of 2002- July of 2005. In 2004, the car went 8.96 @ 145.67 at the Mission LODRS. To my knowledge, that was the first sub-9 second run for an original A990 car in SS trim. I set the record later that year at the Vegas LODRS running an adjusted 8.92 @ 146.15 (actual 9.15). On the backup run, I ran Grandpa for the first time. Clearly, he thought he was going to leave on me as he was .006 on the tree. Too bad I was .000. We still laugh about that.

A whopping 3 weeks later, David Thomas took the record back with his beautiful Corvette. It might have been a short stint, but the record certificate hangs in my office to this day!

The attached picture is from the 2005 Winternationals and was the next-to-last time I drove the car. The photographers had requested that Grandpa and I line up together. I'll never forget that run -- I had a .066 light and when I pulled high gear the Barracuda was nowhere to be found. Then I heard some noise followed by a (then) 73 year old guy blowing my doors off. He was .300 or so on the tree and claims he did it so he could "watch me leave." LOL

The last pass I ever made in the car was at the 2005 LODRS in Sonoma. Ogburn arranged an impromptu "Hemi Shootout" with the Division 7 cars. To get the car count high enough, the B-body and Street Hemi cars were allowed to run with the Barracudas & Darts. I raced Grandpa in the final. We both absolutely ANNIHILATED the tires off the starting line, but when I looked behind me at the 1000' mark he was behind me and stayed there. I'd like to drive the car again, but if that's the last pass I make in it I'm ok with that.

Car is currently for sale. It's got the requisite: 1) radiator core support stamping, 2) fender tag, 3) VIN plate, and 4) package tray stamping. It's certainly a "real car," but it's a bit of a tweener; it's got good race parts and has been cut, but doesn't have all the original parts and pieces on it that it should have for purposes of authenticity/originality. Be happy to talk to whomever its curious about it.

The second attached picture is from the 2000 Autolite Nationals with the "old guy" driving. We've got another photo at the shop of that run with a 17 year old me squatting behind the car. The older photos of the car are from circa 1985 when the Polewik family owned it. Thanks to Alex P. for sending me those pictures. Finally, the last pic is from 2004 at Vegas. Judging by the shoe polish on the window and the lane I was in, that had to have been the record run.

Ive got a Hemi story for you! I was contacted by a gentlemen in the San Diego area, he wanted to buy an engine from me, he gave me the phone number to person he had contracted to install the engine, I called him and set up delivery for his customers engine. He gave me his address and some how he mentions he ran a SS/BA hemi car, Im thinkin to myself sure you do, well I load up and make the trip to San Diego, an older suburb, pull onto the property, at that point Im told to pull around to the detached garage behind the house, the garage door opens and up against the east wall sits a 70 chevy slope back car hauler with a 1965 SS aluminum front end hemi car complete, with the heads and intake off. I need help with the spelling but here goes Jake Erhlichsen's SS/BA hemi car, it was in the direct connection catalog in the 70s early 80s, Unreal complete hemi car, and yes its still there! One other thing to note was the presents of the Direct Conection SG daytona. It was a cool day, I remember sitting at taco bell trying to take it all in.

[Hemi Moose]

Originally Posted by Jared Jordan

Whose car is the "Velvet Hammer"?

Jared, I don't know who's car it was, maybe someone else on here can identify the driver/owner of it.

[treessavoy]

Does anyone know where the Loose Caboose went after Johnny sold it?

JimR

[ww63]

Originally Posted by Hemi Moose

Jared, I don't know who's car it was, maybe someone else on here can identify the driver/owner of it.

Henry Brom, car is still in Minnesota