DeTomaso Mailing List: February 00, Message #86

Hi guys,

I just got home from a really fun trip, just jaunting around the country, 
visiting Pantera club buddies on the government's dime.  

On Wednesday night, Shane Ingate and a POCA member named David Pratt drove up 
from Melbourne, FL (about 30 minutes south) to Cocoa Beach where I was 
staying, and the three of us had a lengthy dinner.  David has been a member 
since '91 when he purchased his red '72, which is now on a spit undergoing 
restoration; in the meantime he commited Grand Theft Auto and purchased a '74 
GT5 conversion in Las Vegas for a fraction of what it's worth, and that is 
his daily driver!

(BTW I think it's only fair to mention that his car has WEBERS and runs 
absolutely terrific according to Shane.  No drama, no muss, no fuss.  David 
is an expert mechanic (he was a Dodge dealer for 25 years, also a pro racer 
who ran the 24 hours of Daytona for eight years, not to mention numerous 
other roadraces.)  

With lots of help from Inglese, he managed to get his Webers sorted, the 
Inglese guys gave him specific recommendations for non-standard camshaft 
profiles that they say are MANDATORY if Webers are to work.  So you see, I AM 
willing to acknowledge that they work for SOME people!

I told him of my almost religious crusade against Webers for ordinary people, 
and he agreed with me.  HE said that 95% of the Pantera owners with Webers, 
shouldn't have them.  He also admitted that he lost most of his low-end grunt 
(which is what Panteras are known for) and replaced it with an awesome, above 
4000 rpm top-end rush.)

Anyway, we broke bread and had a great dinner; he regaled us with all sorts 
of war stories from his Daytona racing days.  His Pantera is beautiful, and 
features late-model Corvette seats which I now think (after viewing them 
closer) are probably the BEST seats you can fit in a Pantera, bar none.  
Better than Recaros, even, because they fit better.  He picked his up at a 
swap meet for $150, then had them recovered to match the car's interior.

Anyway, that was a great night.  Then this morning (as in, 12:30 a.m. 
California time) I woke up and flew to San Diego, arriving at 10:00 a.m.  
Bill Hohnhorst and Craig Cline (Da Green One) met me there, and I got to ride 
with Craig in his '74 Pantera to a restaurant where Dan Miller later joined 
us.  Although lunch was only about an hour, it was still great seeing old 
friends again.

Dan had to go back to work, but Bill and Craig came back to Miramar NAS and I 
gave them a five-minute tour of the airplane; I would have liked to have made 
it longer but the rest of my crew was itching to get home.

I had so much fun on this trip that when I got back to my home base this 
afternoon, I immediately signed up for another, similar trip!

This time I'm heading out to Alberquerque to see the New Mexico Pantera 
contingent that I've been reading about for so long.  I've always wanted to 
meet these guys and see their cars, etc. so now's my chance.

I'll be flying to Alberquerque this Saturday the 5th, arriving around 
noonish, and departing Sunday afternoon.

So Jim Demick, Greg Sullivan, Brian Brogie, etc. etc., what say you to a 
Saturday evening get-together somewhere?

Looking forward to linking up with as many of you as possible!

Cheers!

Mike