Potluck – Randy Quay Took the Bones of a ’57 Chevy, and Added Gasser Looks and Modern Power – Now He Preps the Outlaw Gasser for Edelbrock Sick Smokies, His First Drag and Drive Event Adventure!
Trends can come and go, but some will show staying power. Gassers are seeing life in many areas of the country, but definitely have a strong showing in the southeast region.
This ’57 Chevy has seen life in a couple different configurations, but was almost left for dead and junked. Randy Quay breathed new into this classic, and will embark on his first drag and drive event as part of over 70 Gasser entries on Edelbrock Sick Smokies, October 12-19th, 2025.
For a guy that enjoys doing body work and painting cars as a hobby, it seems Quay was destined to own this ’57 Chevrolet. A retired race car forgotten, was rescued by Quay, and he started down the path of enjoying it, in more than one configuration.
“The car started out as a roller that should have been sent to the junkyard,” said Quay. “It didn’t have floors, hood, fenders or anything. It was a completely gutted, rusted out retired old race car. But I saw potential.”
Quay patched it back together, filled the engine bay void with a high compression 331 cubic inch small block, back with a 4-speed manual transmission, and went bracket racing. “I had so much fun in this, I sold my other race car and kept fixing the ‘57 up,” Quay said.
Since that first iteration, Quay has replaced every piece of metal, except for one quarter panel, which he says could be on the chopping block soon.
The ’57 Chevrolet has also seen a change in powerplants, and now sports a turbocharged LS-based combination under the hood, and has found its way into the 9-second range on the quarter-mile distance. “The car has come a long way,” said Quay.
Now, Quay is ready to take a step into the drag and drive world, and his entry into Edelbrock Sick Smokies came about via peer pressure. “Last fall, my buddy’s wife tagged me in a Sick Smokies event comment,” said Quay. “She said ‘Randy, are you ready to try your first drag and drive in a gasser?’ I kind of laughed thinking that would be fun, and I really didn’t think much more about it.
“When the event was opened up for early gasser entry, my buddy sent me a pic of the flyer and said ‘Are we doing this or what? I don’t see your car on the flyer?’ I emailed in, got my early entry and sent him a pic of the flyer with my car on the top row.”
To prepare both the classic Chevrolet known as ‘Bad and Bougie’ for Edelbrock Sick Smokies, as well as himself, Quay spilled the details of his approach for next month’s event.
“As my first drag and drive, I’m sure I have a lot to learn. I’ll try and pack as many spare parts I can think of for that ‘just in case’ moment. But we all know how that goes, I’ll probably have everything besides what I actually need in that moment to get me going.”
“The main goal would be making every check point, track, and finishing back at ground zero in an old beat-up gasser. Maybe add in a new personal best. That would be a win in my book. Anything more would be an added bonus.”
Having a car that’s been together and raced for a few years should afford Quay some benefits, and although he knows it’s not perfect, he’s looking forward to the challenge, “We will be pushing it harder in areas we haven’t really experimented with yet. But hey, we still have a little over a month. I’m sure we will get this eighth-mile mile thing down, and if not, it will still be an awesome event.”
Can Randy Quay and his reborn ’57 Chevrolet challenge for the top spot in the Outlaw Gasser class? Don’t miss your chance to see over 200 competitors, and the largest gathering of street-legal Gassers, at next month’s Edelbrock Sick Smokies event, October 12th-19th! CLICK HERE for more details!
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Randy Quay.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com