Gallery: Trans-Am's Glory Days Glow on New Track

Time for a quiz. Who was the winning maker of the inaugural SCCA Trans-Am race?

Javelin? Mustang? Camaro? ’Cuda?

Surprisingly, it wasn't one of those vehicles. Instead, it was an Alfa Romeo from the Under 2.0-Liter category that claimed first place in the very first Trans-Am competition. At that time, this particular racing series was underway. was referred to as the "Trans-American Sedan Championship."

The initial contest was a grueling four-hour race held at Sebring. When the clock ran out, it was Jochen Rindel driving an Alfa GTA who finished ahead of everyone else, followed closely by Bob Tullius and Tony Adamowicz in their Dodge Dart. This event took place in 1966, nearly four years prior to when Rindel secured the Formula 1 drivers' title for Lotus posthumously following his fatal accident during the 1970 Italian Grand Prix.

If you're ever interested in delving into the details, you can check out the race results. Historic Trans-Am’s website (More about this in section two.) The scoring sheets from that inaugural year of competition featured vehicles such as the Mini Cooper, Chevrolet Corvair, Saab 850, and BMW 1800—quite different from typical high-performance racing circuits. The event split participants into two categories based on engine size: below and above 2.0 liters. An Alfa GTA and a Mustang secured victories in their separate divisions during that initial year.

By 1967, the rosters looked drastically different, with Camaros, Cougars, and other sports coupes joining the over 2.0-liter class. Porsche lobbied to reclassify its 911 as a sedan so that it could compete in the under 2.0 class, and then promptly won its class that year. Oh, and the name was shortened to Trans-American Championship.

Additional iconic figures added their names to Rindt’s list of victors. Among them were Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones, Mark Donahue, David Pearson, Peter Revson, and George Follmer—more champions followed suit. Concurrently, financial backing began pouring into racing teams from various corporations. Contributions came from big players like Ford, Chrysler, along with promotional brands such as Hot Wheels and tire manufacturers including BF Goodrich, significantly boosting team finances. These developments marked the start of what many consider Trans-Am’s golden era.

The consensus holds that the peak period of the Trans-Am series occurred between 1968 and 1972. During this time, Mark Donahue raced a blue Z/28 Camaro under the Penske banner before transitioning to an aggressive-looking AMC Javelin. Meanwhile, Parnelli Jones initially steered a Mercury Cougar and later switched to driving bright yellow Mustangs for Ford.

Earlier this month, these vehicles became part of the lineup for the Historic Trans-Am Series at Ten Tenths Motor Club in North Carolina, where they inaugurated the recently constructed racetrack in Concord. Similar to a legendary rock band touring collectively, the series travels together with various events scheduled throughout the season. This year, races will take place over five distinct weekends ranging from Sebring to Sonoma. We have previously provided extensive coverage of their impressive appearance at Monterey’s Rolex Reunion; you can catch a glimpse of that event here. here , here , and here .)

Cars carved Ten Tenths’ fresh pavement for two days. The tight confines tested the agility of these V-8-totting muscle cars and their drivers. Driver Ken Adams pointed out you don’t have the speed that you might have at other tracks like Sonoma that help drivers overcome the lack of power steering—an option that much of the field does without. “It’s a workout,” said Adams.

A couple dozen of the most iconic Trans-Am cars packed the pits. Sam Posey’s high-impact green Challenger, Gurney’s striped ’Cuda, a star-spangled Camaro—Trans-Am’s golden era looks like a bag of Skittles.

And the V-8 symphony is just as sweet. If there was any reason for me to switch from still photography to video, it would be to capture a field of Trans-Am cars at full rip.

Take a look at some of my preferred photos from the exhibit at Ten Tenths. Afterwards, make sure to search for the Historic Trans-Am lineup to discover where and when you can catch these displays again.