New guy here

[jackmanParticipant]

Hi all,

Well I am a long time Mopar freak 0ver 30 years and live local to Dover but have never been to the track just heard that it was around and then it closed down in 76 when I was 15 so other than that I know nothing of the track happens then or now. Here is how I got to this site (may be some one will recognize them self) I was driving through Millbrook N.Y. in 2007 and a white pick up truck passed me it had a large lettered decal on the rear window for Dover Drag Strip, I was like hey I remember hearing about that place when I was a kid anyway that perk my interest and I googled it but found nothing, new years eve (last week) we had family friends come over got talkin cars I mentioned Dover and the friend says ya I was at Dover every weekend as her Dad or Uncle was a drag racer,,, so another google and I found this site , very cool indeed thanks for creating it I have been clicking over all the pics can’t get enough of this old school stuff 😎 :D… ……
Wish I had something to contrbute here but I don’t was too young back in the day and not at all from a race car type family, anyway here is a pic of my car its a 70 Dodge Challenger 440 Six pack , 4 speed ,Dana 60 I bought it in 1980 and it looked then as it does in the pic minus the T/A hood, very possible the previous owners (a Body shop in Walkill N.Y.) may have drag at Dover with this car, anyone recognize it?

Jack

[austin-shaker]

Hi jackman, nice car
cant say i know the car from dovers past as there were so many and when ya get older lol memory starts failing you . YIKES
i live not far from you at the pleasant valley poughkeepsie line near frendly honda. I.m now building a 1980 dodge pickup with a 70 440 RB engine i plan to go to shows and cruises with in near future.
I guess the hotrod stuff never leaves us all , when Dover closed it broke alot of hearts no place to go unless you traveled to the valley. or LI. so i stopped drag racing. as my sons grew up I started helping them build a few cars , oldest son now lives in NC were he does air brushing and painting hes dont quite a few motor cycles and some cars, I truly miss Dover it was like a home on weekends, even if you didnt race you still had fun and all, take care of that car it looks like its in great shape. Ron

[jackmanParticipant]

Thanks for the compliment Ron 😎 ,,,,, Yes I am local up by Kingston spent the last winter working in Pleasant Valley as a fuel oil driver,,,,,,,,,,,,, and I agree the hot rod stuff never leaves us, the pic that I posted is of the car after I just pulled it out of the garage after a 15 year nap, I changed oil belts hoses cleaned the carbs , fresh gas and she fired right up we then went to the drive way to do some serious burn outs with th old dry rotted tires was haveing big fun when a power steering line sprang a leak all over the header then set the thing a blaze,,,, I was in a pannic we got the fire out and put the car back in the garage,,,,,,,,,,, anyway we are getting a trailer this year and Lebannon valley is the plan just drags no more street time,,,,,, cant wait to get up there next summer……..

[austin-shaker]

dame jackman ya cant go setting cars like that a blaze 😯 glad to see ya saved it hmmmmmm the valley theres a place i have not been since dover closed. maybe its time i hop in the RV and go take a trip. good luck

[storm-king]

Back in the day, the Valley always had a high ratio of Mopars to run with the “mark of pestilence” brand.
My cousin Ted Ryan was the starter both at the oval track and the drag strip in the early years.
Dover was home; but I always loved Lebanon too.

Oh yeah, and get them dumb Chevy slapper bars off that Mopar!

[jackmanParticipant]

Yes I sure do like the Lebanon Valley track, its a lot like me country like , been there a number of times as a spectator only also been to Englishtown and Atco those places are too far and its a hustle just to get there… At Lebanon Valley in the fall they have a nice Mopar day show, drag and swap my favorite , its put on by a decent size Mopar club up there in Albany 😎 …….

hey Storm King those slapper bars were so popular back in the day everyone had them ,I had no clue that us Mopar guys did not need them 😆 ,,,,, for the old school looks and a conversation starter I will leave them on 😆 😀 …….

[storm-king]

Yeah, they’ve always been a laughing point on Mopars; which simply use pinion snubbers (and a superior suspension right from the factory). But whatever floats your boat! However if those are original springs, a new set of S/S springs from someplace like Mancini might be in order. If you did that though, the slapper bars would have to go, because they actually interfere with how well the springs work.
Years ago there was a Speed Shop on 17K, almost directly accross from Park Motors called Ed’s Custom Automotive. He ran a ’65 Dart in one of the gas classes, with a 340 in it. It had slapper bars with stock springs and ran in the low 12’s. We finally talked him into S/S springs, and we helped him install them. The car went three tenths faster on the first run with no other changes! It was running high 11’s with just the addition of S/S springs. My brother still talks about it because Ed was so happy and excited, he gave Bill a big hug, and Bill was afraid Ed was going to kiss him!
Slapper bars were a real mark of pride to GM guys, “lookie, my cars’ so bad it needs traction bars”, when all it really says is, “my car has a crap suspension from the factory”.
Maybe I’m a bit jadded because other than a half season in 1963, we’ve always had a factory super stock race car, and they were built for the job. Mustangs (rebodied Falcons) Camaros, etc, were just street cars.

[thekidd312]

remenber eds bought lots of parts from there. back in the day we had real speed shops here. eds-orange county and east coast speed and sport in middletown. ecs still there but not a real speed shop today. delt with al when ecs was in his house. eds moved to walden after dales left walden to go to new palza. any one remember dales? love rt have 70 dragcar apart and 70 rtse that needs totle resto both my sons he hopes to put back togeather hard at this time with 2 kids 4 and 6. you should try island dragway in nj you should try running the rt but im telling you do it once you will be hooked. the kidd

[bossguy]

I’m a Ford guy but I gotta agree with Storm King. Might as well put a bow tie decal in the back window as have slapper bars on a Mopar. But to each his own.

[billy-casey]

those slaper bars put alot of you fords @ chryslers on the trailer pretty early and regularly if I remember rite … Yes the more I think about it thats a fact Jack 😆 😆 😆 Billy

[jackmanParticipant]

quote storm king:

Maybe I’m a bit jadded because other than a half season in 1963, we’ve always had a factory super stock race car, and they were built for the job.

You can add a bit enveyed too,,,,,, man I sure wish could had a Super Stock Dodge in the family tree, we had Oldsmoble wagon 😆 ….

I hear ya on the slapper bars, how about the black arrow did it come a your regular 8 3/4 stock type pinion snubber?

[storm-king]

No, it had a home made extended snubber. Jenkins or Doc must have made it. We still talk about the springs the ‘Arrow had in it. It launched unlike any other S/S Mopars we ever saw. Most of them raised in the back, (including our max wdge with S/S springs) pushing the wheels down for traction of course, and then the front would raise as it moved forward. The ‘Arrow would just launch out and the front end would come up as it moved out. Never saw another Mopar do that, but it must’ve worked.

[Author]

Posts