Back in the day, it was possible for a
devoted Corvette enthusiast to order up not just a Vette for racing, but one
that could take on the well-sponsored “big boys” who ruled the roost in SCCA
A/Production racing back then—and win.
One of those was Milton “Babe” Headley of
Paoli, Pennsylvania. In 1969, he ordered up a new Corvette Stingray coupe with
the RPO L88 engine option, and then built it into a race car whose current
owner calls a “giant killer.”
The
Pride Of Paoli ’69
“He won at Lime Rock and Watkins Glen with
that car, and he beat the big guys,” says Tom O’Brien.
Racing out of Babe’s Garage of Paoli
(located not far from the shop of Chevrolet drag racing legend Bill “Grumpy”
Jenkins), it also competed at tracks such as Mosport and Bridgehampton before
Babe sold it to another Delaware Valley-area Vette racer, Scott Perfetto, in
1974.
Its racing career continued—in SCCA’s
A/Production and GT-1 classes and in its Trans Am Series, as well as in IMSA’s
Camel GT Series through 1983. That year, Gary Griffith—long time Corvette Club
of Michigan President who’d purchased it from Scott—ran it twice before his
untimely passing. Gary’s wife later sold it to Corvette shop/salvage yard
operator Bob Smith of Ypsilanti, Michigan, where it sat for years until its
eventual rediscovery and restoration.
In
back, you see the dry break that sits atop the fuel cell, and the lack of rear
bumpers.
Tom says that when he found it about five
years ago, it had been restored, but it wasn’t quite track-ready. “We basically
pulled everything, tightened everything, and re-assembled it,” says Tom of the
work that brought it back to 100 percent restored—to the condition Babe raced
it. “This particular one was brought back to its racing heritage, not to
factory stock,” Tom adds. “The dashboard’s different, and the electronics in it
are different. But the chassis and everything else is 100 percent stock.”
The owner of three other L88s, Tom was
taken with this one’s history. “This car intrigued me because Babe Headley was
an independent racer,” says Tom. “He had no sponsorship, and he did it out of
his little garage. Lo and behold, it became one of the most successful
road-racing Corvettes in history. It beat all the big guys!”
And, in the restored condition we saw it in
at last year’s Corvette Funfest, it looks ready to beat them all again, with
its “430 horsepower”
The
heart of the beast—restored L88 cranks out over 600 hp.
L88. Tom, who says that peak power number
is actually closer to 610, says it’s a handful on the bias-ply tires it raced
on back then, but Babe had a few tricks up his sleeve. “Applying that
horsepower to those crummy tires they had back then the weight of that Corvette
in the back was relatively light, and he did overcome it with some suspension
changes,” notes Tom.
Babe may have had help getting the hardware
he needed, as Roger Penske’s original Chevrolet dealership in Wayne,
Pennsylvania was just a few miles east of Babe’s Garage, and whose parts
department—and customer-service work—would have lived up to Chevrolet’s 1969
sales slogan (“Putting You First Keeps Us First!”) in a big way.
As we mentioned above, this L88 is the
fourth one that Tom’s owned, and he says this one is definitely no street
cruiser. “You’re in another world,” he says when asked what it’s like to drive.
“It’s not for the weak of heart. It’s probably the fastest thing I’ve ever
driven on a straightaway. Cornering-wise, it’s a real handful, but it’s got the
power when you need it. It certainly has the power, believe me!” He adds, “You
have to be a driver to get it around the track.”
