318MoparGuy
MoparHokie
I listed the car and motorcycle show I was going to at VIR (Virginia Intl. Raceway) in Alton ,VA on the events forum about a month ago. As the date was approaching (this past Sat. Aug 9th) it was evident that Mother Nature was not going to cooperate here or in Alton,VA. The morning of my trip, the heavens opened up and I had a 3 hr. trip in front of me from Charlotte, NC. Since I already registered the Dart for the show and the event was held to support my alma mater (Virginia Tech), I said "Let's Go". This was the first long trip for me and the Dart, and I was curious as to how she would fare on it. Some particulars...automatic stock 318 with Summit 6900 (mild hydraulic cam), Eddy 1406,Eddy Performer intake , changed over from Champions to NGK GR4 V-Power plugs and ran 89 octane as always. The hood tach was checked and rpm's were pretty much right on....2.76 gears with lockup torque converter at 35mph ....as best as I can recollect between the wipers and the rain...60mph 2400rpm.....70mph 2600rpm...75mph 2700....80mph 2800...85mph 2900rpms. Gas gauge worked great,voltmeter at a steady 14 and temp gauge never went past 190 as weather was cooler...(Thanks Ben (RedFish) for all your excellent instrument work and upgrades). I stopped for gas about 150 miles up to top her off and calculated mpg's to be 19.24. I thought that was real good as I stayed at 65 for most of the trip with some faster bursts here and there. Anyway,I arrived at the show and there were some motorcycles and a handful of cars. My wife made up a beautiful 24"x 30" display board with a picture of the Dart, stuff original to car,upgrades and fender tag code breakdown (she's a part time graphic artist) and nice oval with FABO member and my site name in it. It came out really, really nice. I had it laminated and got a frame for it but wrapped it in plastic due to weather conditions. Guess what?...After judging, the Dart was awarded "Best in Show"...talk about beginners luck....I was floored and very happy as it came down to the Dart and a Corvette. Maybe this will be my only one, but at least I got one. Even though it was a rainy weekend coming and going, it was well worth it to support my school and best of all....the inside of the car stayed dry with the new wiper pivot seals and the wipers ran smooth also with the new bushings. Just thought I'd share my trek with you and the surprise ending....P.S. When I got home, I awarded the "Best In Show" plaque to my wife for all her hard work (like installing drivers side wiper pivot seal WITHOUT taking the instrument panel out and stuff like that). She's quite a "girl". All the Best,Greg GO HOKIES!!!!
