WHITBYFREEPRI WHITBY FREE PRESS, DURHAM MOVES, MARCH 16,1988, PAGE Ai AUTO-NEWS 'Classie' forstreet rodders,car buffs It struck Harold Middleton of Oshawa as odd that Oshawa, which claims to be the "City that Motovates Canada," has never held a car show within its city limits. So Middleton wants to change that. "This is "Motor City." In this area alone there are many street rodders and car buffs," says Middleton, who six months ago thought of putting on a car show in the area. The Durham Classic and Rod Car Show is the outcome of Middleton's efforts. From Friday March 18 to Sunday March 20, the McLaugh- lin Armouries will be host to some of the .meanest street cars and classics ever to be put on show. "I tried to get cars people will want to look at. People are going to come to this show- and see something different," says Mid- dleton, a member of a Durham car club called Street Dreams. One of those cars on display is aý1957 Chevrolet Candy Runner. Th ecar côost more th'an $80,000 and, ·according to Middleton, the setting for the car when it is put on show cost $10,000. Another car on display will be a 1934 Ford called Green Envy valued at $75,000.- Middleton himself will have at least a couple of cars on display including a 1947 Ford Club See page A4 'lii il I I A The CandyRunner THIS 1957 CHEVROLET, called Candy Runner, will be on McLaughlin Armories thie weekend. The car is valued at display at the Durham Classie and Rod Show at the $80,000. Anie Bray one of leading drivers of TQ midgets Arnie Bray gained a love for the fast lane when, as a boy, he sped around the go-cart track in Whitby and even raced go-carts in the U.S. But he was then mostly a spectator of races until about five years ago when, attending an indoor race of three-quarter midget cars, he suddenly "got the itch" to again race. Now Bray is one of the top drivers on the Can-Arn Midget Racing Club outdoor track circuit. He won four of the 20 races last year to finish second overall in points-but for a dis- qualification in the final race, he probably would have been the points winner.' And he finished 1987 with a win in the first of the three-race Coors Niagara indoor champion- ship, the next eight places in the race occupied by eight top ,U.S. drivers. He wasn't so fortunate in the second race, Jan. 23, in Niagara Falls, N.Y., finishing 15th. That's not bad, however, as he recalls "I had no brakes the whole race." The front wheel of his car also fell off at the finish line. Bray's success is all the more remarkable since the top point drivers always start a race in mid-field or at the back of the pack. And with only 20 laps around what is usually a quarter-mile track in an outdoor race, that doesn't allow much time to move up. "I try to get up early," says Bray, who says he would prefer longer races, such as the 50-lap indoor races. He notes that many of the other drivers are "too serious," as they are so fixed on what's ahead they don't pay adequate attention to what's going on around them. "There are guys who are running into you...some are just plain trying too hard," he says. "Everything happens so fast," he says of race action. But he says the nervousness that he felt during his go-kart days never occurs now. Bray said that until the "itch" at that indoor race in Niagara, he had never paid much attention to the three-quarter (TQ, as it called) midget cars. At the end of World War II, the cost of building and-carryini a full midget racing car became too much for many racers and sponsors, so a scaled-down or three-quarter model was produced. Today a team can spend from $2,000 to $12,000 to buy a racer. In 1983, Bray bought a car, owned by Bob Myers of Kenmore, N.Y., that had won 19 out of 19 features in 1982. "It was a championship car," he says, adding that it was then "ahead of its time." Now his car is one of the few without wings, and Bray admits there are times when he could have used them. The TQ midgets corner at speeds of 85 mph and reach 100 mph on the straightaways. Cars come in three basic types: the traditional UP-right in which the engine is under the hoods and, driver sits upright; the roadster, with the saine shape as the UP-Right but the engine mounted outside the main chassis; and the rear-engine, with the engine mounted behind and centre to the chassis and the driver reclining as he would in a roadster. Bray's car is of the latter type, in which, he says "the motor and rear end are all one unit. "The driveshaft and rear end are all one constant piece...it's like a big L-shape." While the style of car can vary, the same basic rules apply to wheel base and engine. The motorcycle engine used most commonly in the Can-Am racers is a four-stroke. powerplant limited to two valves per cylinder and limited to 820 cc. Bray has a Honda engine, and all four-stroke 820-cc engines use methanol as fuel. Bray does most of the work on his car, but he notes that Earl and Rick Worthington of Whitby Sheet Metal built the body for his car and attend the races. He's also had some special help from another local resident, Mike Naît, to make car parts. Bray says that while he enjoys the excitement of the circuit, it's a time-consurning hobby, every weekend during the outdoor series in the summer, and also quite expensive. "They sure eat the money up," he says. Despite being a top driver, he has considered with- drawing from the '88 summer season, but the lure of the track may prove too strong. Prize money varies from race to race, but he notes that his Niagara indoor win earned him-- $700 (U.S.), plusanother $200 for a win in the time trial., The Can-Am club, based in Buffalo, N.Y., the home of club president Harry Macy, will begin its 23rd yèar of outdoor See page A3 TABLE OF CONTENTS New Suzuki dealership See page A2 Misuse of safety seats f or children See page A7