Quarter-Mile Camaros 1967–1981

The Chevrolet Camaro was built in response to the wildly successful Ford Mustang and was Chevy’s entry into the pony car wars of the mid-1960s and beyond. Borrowing the long nose, short-deck dimensions of the Mustang, the Camaro was an instant hit. Not only was this market segment extremely popular, but the Camaro was also a great way for General Motors enthusiasts to get into the game with an arguably superior chassis and a myriad of powertrain options. In the drag racing ranks, seasoned professionals, including Bill “Grumpy” Jenkins, “Jungle” Jim Liberman, Dick Harrell, and the team of Reher-Morrison, helped Chevy dominate the competition in several categories. Quarter-Mile Camaros 1967–1981: The History of Chevrolet’s Pony Car at the Drag Strip covers all drag racing exploits of the Camaro’s first two generations chronologically. The 1967–1969 first-generation Camaros were wildly successful right out of the gate, with potent small-block category options as well as big-block and COPO category options. While the first-generation Camaros continued to perform well in the Super Stock and Sportsman categories throughout the 1970s, the second-generation cars took control in categories such as Pro Stock and Funny Car moving forward. Emerging stars, including Lee Shepard and Warren “the Professor” Johnson redefined success for Chevrolet at those levels, especially keeping in mind that Chevrolet did not provide factory support. This book covers the years through race results and driver/team biographies, highlighting the success that Chevrolet had with its pony car at the drag strip. No drag racing library would be complete without it.