More dirt track stuff: pickup trucks?

So there are two dirt tracks here close that are both about the same distance away, one is a 1/2 mile, other is 3/8ths.

Bluegrass speedway, in Bardstown, has not updated it's website since the end of last season, and I was looking for rules, but I think I remember seeing a FWD class, which I know people on here have done.

Conversely, Ponderosa Speedway in Junction City has a very nice, updated website, and their complete rules online.

Although I know the FWD stuff is probably cheaper, after reading some rules, I'm interested in is Street Stock. I still get to play with small blocks, but what interested me most was the fact that they allow pickup trucks.

Ponderosa said: Street Stock Rules GENERAL A. A domestic complete bodied car or pickup truck. B. Rear wheel drive only. C. Stock frames, uni-body cars allowed front to back. D. Wheel base 108-inch minimum. E. No station wagons, convertibles, SUVs, ¾ ton or 1 ton trucks allowed. F. Motor and Transmission must match manufacturer. Ex: GM-GM, Fomoco-Fomoco, Chrysler-Chrysler. May mix & match rear ends. G. Rear end must be stock type factory unit. Floaters are okay. May mix manufacturers. May use Ford in GM and Chrysler and visa versa. APPEARANCE A. Cars/trucks must be neat in appearance. B. Numbering must be 18” high (any letters must be 9” high) with contrasting color. Numbers must be on both sides and on the roof. No mirrored numbers. C. Cars/trucks must have TOW HOOKS front and rear. Hooks must be visible and able to support weight of vehicle. EXTERIOR BODY A. Must have original equipment body panels for brand of manufacturer. Can change model and year. B. 8” Rear deck spoiler allowed. No spoiler on quarter panels. C. All doors must be welded shut. D. All glass and chrome removed. NO cutting of body parts to change from stock appearance, EXCEPT for wheel clearance. E. Gutting of trunk and hood allowed. F. Cutting of floorboards not allowed. G. Stock type bumpers, front and rear. Bumpers must be welded to prevent loss. No sharp edges allowed. If ends are cut off they must be capped. May use after market front nose. H. Minimum of 4 vertical bars in windshield with 1” maximum mesh screen covering entire windshield. I. Fenders and hoods must have stock appearance. J. All sheet metal must be steel, no aluminum. INTERIOR BODY A. Must have factory steel unaltered firewall and floor pan. B. Interior of car must be completely sealed from engine compartment. C. Must have a rear firewall from behind seat to bottom of rear window area. D. No uncovered batteries, fluid reservoirs or tanks in drivers compartment. E. No mirrors, two way communications or electronic devices of any kind. F. All bars near driver must be padded. FRAMES A. Frames must match manufacturer of body. ROLL CAGE A. Minimum 6 point full roll cage. May exceed past front of firewall. B. Must be welded 360 degrees. C. 4 kicker bars on driver’s side door, 2 bars on passenger’s side door. .095 steel. 6 kicker bars allowed. D. Padding on roll cage within 30 inches of drivers head. SAFETY A. Racing seat required. B. 5-part nylon quick-release harness and safety belt required. Must be in excellent working condition at all times. Harnesses must be attached to frame. C. Approved fire suit and gloves are mandatory. Hood, socks and underwear recommended. D. Full-face helmet is required with lexan shield. Must be at least snell 85 approved. E. Driver side window net minimum of 12” X 12” is mandatory. Must be mounted to roll cage. F. An operational fire extinguisher properly mounted within the driver’s reach is mandatory. G. Drive shaft loop required. Drive shaft must be painted white. Must be factory stock. No aluminum drive shafts. H. Dash mounted engine kill switch. I. Battery must be securely fastened and covered completely. J. Fuel cell must be secure and firmly mounted in the trunk area. Fuel line must run under floor and/or covered in 1 ½ inch tubing. K. Must be approved fuel cell—32-gallon maximum. WEIGHT A. TRACK SCALES WILL BE CONSIDERED OFFICIAL. B. 3,200-lb. Minimum weight limit with driver in vehicle after race. C. Cars failing to meet the minimum weight after race will be DISQUALIFIED. CARBURETOR A. 4 Barrel carburetor. No dominators or predators, 600 or Quadrajet. B. Carburetor must have stock appearance. No dual lines. C. NO MODIFICATIONS, GRINDING, PORTING, OR REMOVAL OF CHOKE HORN. NO EXCEPTIONS. D. If you have done more than open the box and installed the carburetor- you have broken the rule. ENGINE A. Engine must be original equipment for the make of car. B. #1 or first spark plug must be in C/L with upper ball joint or forward. C. Cast iron intake manifolds only on small block Chevrolets. Aluminum intake allowed on anything but small block Chevrolets. No high rise. No grinding, porting, polishing or alterations of intake. Stock only. D. Cast iron blocks and heads-no cubic inch limit. No after market heads. E. Flat top pistons max. F. Flat tappett cams only. G. Stock type rockers (No rollers. Roller tips are okay). H. No grinding, porting, polishing, or alterations of heads. I. Fuel pump must be stock mechanical only. J. NO ELECTRIC FUEL PUMPS. K. Ignition must be stock. No Magnetos allowed. No MSD type boxes. L. Cast iron exhaust manifolds. No headers. M. Mufflers are required. Noise level may not exceed _______. N. Exhaust pipes must exit out past body behind driver’s seat. O. Car must have working starter and start under own power. TRANSMISSION A. Automatic transmission only, stock type for the car that is being run, must have working forward and reverse gears. B. Must have working torque converters. No direct drive. SUSPENSION A. Front and rear suspension as stock as possible. May be braced for safety. B. No weight jacks allowed. C. Stock type shocks in stock locations. D. No coil overs allowed. E. Stock type steering column for year and make of car/truck. May have quick release adapter. F. Stock upper and lower control arm. No alterations. G. May run floater rear ends. BRAKES A. Required on at least 3 wheels, must be sufficient to stop car. B. Must have stock type master cylinder in stock location. TIRES/WHEELS A. Steel racing or wagon wheels only. B. Maximum 8” wheel width. C. 1” lug nuts on all wheels D. Beadlock permitted on right side only. E. Street tire only, 255 X 70 X 15 DOT maximum. F. No recaps, no Hoosiers, McCreary. G. Tire and wheel must not extend past stock body panel. H. Must fit 10” section width loop. MISC Raceiver are MANDATORY at all events. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE REVISIONS, IF NEEDED! REQUIRED ADVANCEMENT Must move up to Sportsman class the next race after 5 wins in a row or after 8 wins for the season. Also, the track champion must move up a class the next year. Each week’s winner starts on rear of the feature the following week or next time racing this class.

This interests me. In true GRM style, you can go fast and win with something completely different. A quick google search finds this.

Granted that truck is on pavement, but that is awesome!

What would GRM build? Not against a car, but RWD cars are slim pickings, and 2WD trucks are cheap and plentiful. Go!

Also, helmet minimum is Snell 85?

'67-'72 Chevy 1/2 ton short wheelbase trucks have a 115" wheelbase and "truck arm" style rear suspension with coil springs on all four corners. That's likely to be your best chassis. As far as engine goes, using s small "stock" carb you would likely want an engine with a decent rev range, so a 302-327 would likely be my choice.

Another vote for Dakota, although make sure you buy the "How to make your Dodge engine survive turning left all the time" book, cause that is a real killer. There is a pretty good reason why 95% of the circle track motors out there are small block Chevs.

Small world. The 72 truck raced at our track until it went to Alberta a few months ago.

http://web.mac.com/streetstock72/MacDonald_Racing72_Street_Stock_Chevy/Welcome.html

Hasn't it pretty much been decided that a competitive street stock car is a late second gem camaro? If you want to build an uncompetitive one, then a 60-72 chevy or gmc with the trailing arm rear suspension would be decent. Good body parts for the 67-72 trucks are hard to find and expensive though, so you probably would want to use old junk rather than smashing fenders worth $300+, etc.

Travis_K wrote: Hasn't it pretty much been decided that a competitive street stock car is a late second gem camaro?

Maybe 20 years ago. Atleast here they were all replaced by G body cars a long time ago.

Either because of the rules, or the fact that they're just not available any more. The Camaro/Nova is still way better than a G body.

This sounds like a way to have a lot of fun really cheaply. V8 dakota would probably have the best power/weight/cost ratio for a truck.

I wish they had this here, I'd go buy a pos truck tomorrow :-P

The 67-72 Chev trucks were available with a 396, and according to the rules, you could use an aluminum intake and 600 holley carb.

mmosbey wrote: Also, helmet minimum is Snell 85?

Knowing the dirt tracks around here, a military surplus Kevlar helmet will do just fine.

SBC with Vortec heads in a S10. Doesn't make mention of 4x4.... But those do have a torsion bar front. Plus doesn't say you can't run the exhaust forward, less weight. Run the 32 gal cell in back, whether you need the fuel or not. Run a dummy converter powerglide.

Those rules have enough holes in them that they make swiss cheese look solid.

In reply to BoostedBrandon:

A ute, not least to annoy DrBoost.