Feature Team: Jimmy Graff

Driver Bio

My racer profile is short & sweet. I started racing in 2012. I really got interested in drag racing when I was 12 in 1958 when my brother took me to the nationals in Oklahoma City. That was my first drag race. From that point, I went to races in OKC whenever I could. I really did not have a car of my own until after high school. I saved enough to buy a 283, 3speed, 1962 Impala SS. The Vietnam draft situation forced me to enlist in the Air Force. I met some car guys in El Paso and the 62 progressed to a 409, 409HP 4 speed. Then I got transferred to Spain for 3 years and sold the 62.

I returned from Spain with enough saved to buy a new 69 Camaro 350, 4 speed. I really didn’t care much for car, so I traded for 67 Chevy II SS, dual quad 327, 4 speed. I liked that car, but a 61 Corvette , 375HP, 327, 4 speed came along and I fell in love with that one. I was starting to build 66 Chevy II drag car when I got married and my son was on the way. The Vette and Chevy II disappeared at this point. I stayed a big drag racing fan but was on the sidelines for next 40 years until I found myself without responsibilities for work & family.

I watched the nostalgia movement take hold and started looking for a car. I found my 1931 Chevy gasser in Arizona. The car is not a hard core race car, but it is so neat, I could not pass on it. I raced it in 2012 mainly in Tulsa, Ardmore and Mo-Kan. Being a blown, clutch turbo car, this was not the car to learn in, after not being in a fast car for 40 years. After a frustrating season of breakage and not much seat time, I lucked into my 57 Chevy that I race now. I am slowly getting into the driving groove. I am still struggling with the tree, but at least now I can run mid to low 11s with both cars pretty consistently.

Hometown - Guthrie, OK
Sponsor - Beck's Garage (Oklahoma City)
Special Thanks - Jeff Beck, who keeps the car running and helps me a lot at the track. Gary Smith for building a good car. Robert LaRue who keeps the car going straight!

1957 Chevy Info:

I purchased the car in February of 2012 from Gary Smith, G & P street rods, in St. Louis, Oklahoma. He built the car for a family member and himself the previous summer. I think it had only been to the track one time. Prior to that, it had been in storage for 20 plus years. It is actually a two door wagon that was converted to a sedan delivery at some stage of its racing life. It has been a race car in some form for about 40 years.

It has a ’62 Ford pick up straight axle with disc brakes. The interior has been lightened race car style with all non-essentials removed, with aluminum door panels, lexan windows, aluminum rear floor & wheel tubs. It has a single race seat and 8 point cage. It is equipped with Autometer gauges and tach plus an old school tach on the dash. It has a fuel cell & battery mounted under rear floor and a Holley fuel pump. It is painted Chevy Victory Red.

The motor is a 355 small block Chevy, 13:1 forged pistons, steel crank, H beam rods, balanced, Comp cams solid roller, roller rockers, Edelbrock aluminum heads, Edelbrock Jr. manifold and Quickfuel 750 carb. It has a MSD billet distributor, MSD coil, and MSD 7AL box. It has an electric water pump, SFI balancer, flexplate, flexplate shield and transmission shield.

The transmission is a Larry Wilson powerglide with brake and quarter stick shifter. The rear end is a nine inch with aluminum center, 5:10 gears, Moser axles and drum brakes. Slapper bars are only traction device along with Hoosier 29 x 10 slicks.