Not that my opinion matters much on this subject, I thought I'd throw my two cents in anyway.
-To oversimplify things, an engine is an air pump. It doesn't care what sheetmetal surrounds it, and it doesn't know what brand it is. They all each have their own set of pro's and con's. Would I put a Chevy in a Pontiac? No way. If a particular Pontiac is Chevy powered, and it's fast & well engineered, then I still respect the person who put it together. I don't necessarily like it, but as long as they're having fun with their vehicle and fellow enthusiasts, that's all that really matters. I like Pontiac engines because they're different from the norm, and, in my opinion, Pontiac had the best body styles. I also like being the underdog, as there's a lot of preconceptions out there among the ignorant about what you can and can't do with a Pontiac. I like proving those types of people wrong. However, all in all, if it's a V-8 powered domestic vehicle, then it's okay in my book. It doesn't matter what brand it is.
-The PE deal: For the most part, magazines have to try to be all things to all people for whatever subject the magazine covers if they want to make any money. Any information that is published on Pontiacs is better than not having anything out there at all, so I'd rather have PE around even if the coverage isn't everything I'd like it be.
-Arnie Beswick: Regardless of what he has and does campaign, he is a friendly, intelligent, proven, and influential racer that is very obviously capable of building a fast and competitive drag machine. Anybody who does that deserves respect, period.
-Steve and his event: I think Steve has largely been misunderstood on this thread. To meet him in person, you'd realize he is a friendly, intelligent, and helpful individual. He's very die-hard about Pontiacs, and because of that, has some strong opinions that can rub people the wrong way. However, for the small amount of time I've known him, it's safe to say that his intentions are not to offend anyone. Granted, his event would probably be larger and gain more coverage if he allowed corporate powered Pontiacs in, but I for one applaud him for sticking to his guns and putting the event on for true Pontiac power only. While an engine doesn't care what it's in, I feel that a Pontiac loses it's identity and appeal without Pontiac power in it. Also, with regard to the event being ran in a bracket format, in a perfect world, it would be heads-up instead. Heads-up is quite simply where it's at. However, with an event of this size that caters to a core group of enthusiasts, the bracket format becomes necessary to cover the wide range of E.T.'s that are posted with respect to a relatively small but diverse car count. There simply aren't large enough groups of cars running 12's, 11's, 10's, so on and so forth, to actually run a COMPETITIVE heads-up format. If the event has to be ran in bracket format, then so be it. I'd rather have the event around than not. Anything that promotes and preserves the Pontiac hobby is deserving of support and appreciation.
-Tow vehicles???? Who cares? This simply isn't a subject worth debating about. Besides, real men drive their car to the track.
(That's a joke -- nobody get up on the tires about it!)
Last, I'd like to say that I think this board and most of it's people are great. I've learned a bunch from this board, and it's nice to help out fellow enthusiasts when I can. It's great to have such a large and diverse group of people who share an interest in Pontiacs.
"My car would be fast if it had an engine, transmission, and rear axle in it."