Pontiac Pavement Pounders Shootout: Lone Star Part 2

This installment of the Pontiac Pavement Pounders Lone Star shootout illustrates what big cubes and nitrous can do for Fourth-Gens, how good, old-fashioned attention to detail can result in pure Pontiac-engined machines being quick in the quarter and a blast on the street, and how boost and a few bolt-ons can make a six-cylinder Third-Gen act like a worked V-8. Yes, we're back at the Texas Motorplex in Ennis, Texas, with members of the Dallas Area Pontiac Association for a shootout that is sure to be of interest to any reader who likes to go fast and check out the combinations that make it possible--and even read about the ones that may need further development.

Lydia Watson from nearby Lewisville, Texas, rolled in with her '02 Trans Am fortified with a built 375ci LS1 engine and nitrous to represent the Fourth-Gen contingent for this shootout. With her came the support of the staff at Real Performance Motorsports (RPM) where she works and where the Pontiac was built. The hopes were for very low 10s out of the combo on lots of squeeze.

Wayne Barnes arrived in style from Whitesboro, Texas, with his pristine 462-cubed '67 GTO. In stunning Tyrol Blue and with an engine from which you could serve lunch because it was so clean, Wayne's Goat appeared to be a show car. However, it would run some very respectable 12s at the shootout--but not without a problem.

Larry Navarro, after trying to compete in the Lone Star Shootout for the last two years, finally made it happen this year with his '79 T/A SE. The first year, a Texas flood kept him away, and the second year, an intake port wall developed a pinhole water leak in his engine, causing a flood of a different sort that put him out of the competition. Originally a 400 four-speed machine, the Spring, Texas, resident's Bird is now show-car fresh, packs a 474 stroker motor, and is looking for deep 11-second e.t.'s. Let's see if the third time is a charm.

Lee Atkinson drove his '67 Firebird 400 250 miles from Baytown, Texas, to put its 468ci engine to the test--not to mention the new converter that he'd just installed. With fresh paint, a desire to run solidly in the 11s, and only a tire change, Lee was ready for action.

Mark Metdker waved the Third-Gen flag proudly by showing up from Whitesboro, Texas, in his '89 20th Anniversary Indy Pace Car Turbo T/A. His is #797 of 1,555 produced, and with just a few bolt-ons and lots of boost, it was ready to impress the rest with low 12-second timeslips.

Now that you have met our contestants, let's get to the racing. Power adders or no, these Pontiacs were built to go. Will the drivers, their machines, the racetrack conditions, and the weather conspire to create blistering performances or milquetoast passes?

Owner Bio: Lydia Watson
Lydia Watson, at 20 years old, has only been racing for one year yet she already is close to running 10.0s in her '02 Trans Am. She works at Real Performance Motorsports, a company which specializes in LS1 performance and that's owned by Lydia's fiance Brian Lohse. The '02 T/A was chosen by Lydia because she "loves the design, and it was the last year of production." It was modified at RPM, and Watson recalls her favorite moment in the Pontiac was the first time she engaged the nitrous. Accolades include taking runner-up in the Super Duty class at the 2003 Pontiac Southern Nationals and garnering the HPP Best Reaction Time check for cutting a .500 light in competition that day.