EVENT
By barry kluczyk 
Photography by The Author
wen Simpson raised more than a few eyebrows on a cool September morning when his ’70 Yenko Deuce cut the beams in 11.88 seconds at Mid Michigan Motorplex—a track more than 200 miles away from his home in rural Ontario, Canada—during the Pure Stock Muscle Car Drag Race.
It was not only the quickest pass for a Chevy at the race—and second-quickest overall, behind only a Hemi Mopar—it was the quickest-ever pass for a small-block-powered car in Pure Stock Drag’s history and the highlight for a competitor who’s been coming to the race since his high school days more than 15 years ago. It’s a legacy that builds on his father “COPO Pete” Simpson, who’d been a fixture at the event since its very beginning until his death about a decade ago.
“It’s a family tradition,” Owen says. “My dad was competing here from the very start of the race and it’s just something we do.”
The 2023 event was the 29th running of the Pure Stock Drags and the formula remained the same: After a day of qualifying runs, competitors are matched up by the closest e.t.’s and roll into three-round heads-up shootouts. The best two out of three, wins.
“The goal from the very beginning was to give owners a place to enjoy their cars the way they were always intended,” event co-founder Dan Jensen says. “The cars are as evenly matched as we can make them for heads-up racing. It makes for some great matchups that often come down to a hundredth or thousandth at the finish line.”
When it comes to Pure Stock Drag rules, they’re pretty simple: Participants’ cars must have been originally offered with a 12-month/12,000-mile warranty (to weed out the factory race cars). They must also have been equipped with at least a single four-barrel carb, dual exhaust, and other factory performance components.
There is some flexibility with the engine specs to accommodate rebuilds, such as a 1.5-point allowance for compression, but the spirit of factory-stock performance trumps all. Ringer cars that, you know, run 10s are politely shown the exit. In fact, running quicker than 11.50 will get you pointed straight back to your trailer, but for track safety rules more than “is it really stock?” conspiratorial reasons.
Sandbaggers who amazingly run four-tenths and/or 4 mph or quicker in the shootout versus qualifying are also disqualified.
Also: The cars must also run on tires no more than one size larger than stock, with 60-series rubber being the widest. And believe us, those repro bias-ply tires hook amazingly well. Fifty years of track prep advancements help a bunch, too.
There were more than 50 shootout matchups for the 2023 event, with Chevys in the four-quickest pairings. In addition to Owen they included Tim Clary and his ’69 Chevelle SS 396, Bruno Beltrame (another Canadian racer) and his ’69 Camaro SS-396, and Jim Lerum running a ’69 COPO Chevelle. That Hemi stayed ahead of Owen throughout the race, but it’s no less satisfying to see he and his compact, small-block-powered Nova giving the mighty Mopar a good run for its money.
As always, the real trophy for other shootout wins was the satisfaction of conquering a Brand X rival, including Michigan-based racer Victoria Waligora, who wheeled a ’69 big-block Camaro around a Six-Pack ’Cuda for her series win. More than that is the fun and camaraderie of a weekend of gear-banging with dozens of other muscle car racers regardless of the outcome.
Go to psmcdr.com for all the rules and details on the next event.
Canadian competitor Owen Simpson is a veteran racer at the Pure Stock Drags and set an all-new e.t. record for a small-block car: 11.88 at 116 mph. 
In the shootout matchups, Owen and his authentic Yenko Deuce ran against a Hemi-powered car that was just a little too quick, but the hard-launching, high-revving Chevy gave the Mopar a fight. 
Another quick small-block car at the race was Keri Radde’s ’65 Malibu. With a 327, a Powerglide, and 4.10 gear, it ran a best e.t. of 13.54 at nearly 108 mph. 
Ferland Elliott came from Tennessee to run his ’69 427-powered Corvette, but during the shootout he ran a little too quick against his 13.25 qualifying e.t., handing the win to his competitor.
Carter Maher’s ’68 Z/28 only had 302 ci, but with 4.56 gears and a four-speed it clicked off best e.t. of 14.14—and looked stellar with every nose-up launch. 
The ’70 Chevelle SS-396 actually displaced 402 ci, and this one, driven by David Byers, with a four-speed and 4.10 gears, ran a best e.t. of 13.23 at 106 mph. 
From Nebraska, Dwight Waldo put up a strong fight in his big-block ’68 El Camino, running as quick as 13.63, but in the shootout he couldn’t overcome a hard-charging ’69 Barracuda with a 440. 
Mike Siebold’s ’69 Camaro SS-396 looked strong in qualifying, running as quick as 13.48 at 105 mph, but he had to drop out before the shootouts started. 
Jim Lerum’s COPO 427-powered ’69 Chevelle was one of the meet’s quickest Chevys, running 12-flat at more than 115 mph. 
Longtime Pure Stock Drags competitor Thomas Payne always runs hard in his 327-powered ’66 Chevy II—and he’s always consistently in the mid 13s, as he was for this event, with a best e.t. of 13.48. His consistency paid off with a shootout win over a ’69 Barracuda. 
Another hard-launching Chevy was Charles Gilliland’s ’70 Z28, which ran 13.73 through an automatic and 4.10 gears. There wasn’t another competitor near Gilliland’s time, so he got a bye win for the weekend. 
Even with lower compression than a couple model years earlier, the inherent grunt of a ’72 454 big-block remains an advantage. Gary Place proved that with a strong 13.48 in his Chevelle. 
Thomas Norton brought his white Chevelle SS-396 from Tennessee and ran a 13.90 qualifying time but couldn’t keep the car in the 13s during the shootout, allowing his competitor to take the win. 
Big-block power and 4.56 gears helped put Troy Teichthensen’s ’72 Chevelle Heavy Chevy into the 12s during qualifying. But he couldn’t hold that low e.t. during the shootout, losing in the third round to an AMX. 
Lauren Rosendaul’s small-block ’75 Corvette wasn’t the quickest Chevy at the race, but her shootout went to the third and final round, where she lost on the tree, as her competitor ran slower, but had a much quicker reaction time. 
Bruno Beltrame drove his ’69 Camaro SS-396 to the third-quickest e.t. among the Chevys, running a 12.16 here in qualifying, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a Cobra Jet Torino during the shootout. 
Indiana’s Mark Barker wheels his ’70 Chevelle SS to a shootout win over another Chevelle, with a best e.t. of 13.84 at 101 mph. The engine is backed by a four-speed and mild 3.55 gears. 
Tim Clary puts some heat in the repro Wide-Ovals here, on his way to a best e.t. of 12.02 at 115 mph. The big-block Chevelle runs an automatic and 4.88 gears. 
Sharon Maher, driving a ’67 Chevelle SS-396 with a four-speed and 4.10 gears, was another competitor with a shootout bye win because there wasn’t another competitor close enough to her strong 13.35 e.t.
Tim Clary (left) and Jim Lerum run their big-block Chevelles to the traps during qualifying, with each capable of 12.00 e.t.’s.
Theo Diller’s Ohio-based 327-powered, solid-axle ’62 Corvette ran low 16s, with a Powerglide and a 3.36-geared rearend.