Phantom Lifter Noise

[rms29 at cornell.edu]

During an autocross event last weekend, the normally docile lifter tick
turned very loud on my 87 5kcs.  Every time it started the tick (quite an
understatement, could be heard across a 75yd parking lot) would begin,
and continue until I shut the car down.  Normally I will get loud tick
for about 2-3 seconds, then relative quiet, which i understood as
normal.  The intersting part of the story is the loud ticking (banging,
whatever) stopped as soon as I left the parking lot and there were no
longer people staring at the car.  Its been driven over 600 miles since
then with no re-occurance of the loud tick.  Is this normal or should I
really be looking for a problem?

I've considered replacing the lifters and timing belt, but does this
sound more like a clogged oil passage somewhere in the block/head as
opposed to purely lifter problems?  I'd hate to pull the top end apart
and replace said parts (may as well toss in a new cam too) if this is
more indicitive of larger problems.

Rob Shydo
'87 5kcs