My sky is falling!

[jwinkler]

This isn't CR-specific, but I'm hoping to take advantage of the impressive depth of experience of the CR forum regulars.

I figured that was an apt subject line, because I'm hoping that this is a simple problem. I took my car out for a quick trip around the block, and about 10 minutes into the drive, I was slowing down to turn around, and the car went D E D dead. I was going too slow to start it by popping the clutch, so my only option was the starter. I opened the hood and looked around at everything - all wires looked good, no leaks in the line from the fuel pump (mechanical) to the carb, popped off a breather and saw nice oily rockers. With the hood up, I turned the key just to see if the belt was turning, and it fired. I got back in, and it started OK. I got most of the way home, which included a couple of stop signs, and some idling while rolling, and was almost home when it happened again. I was waiting for it, but even so, it caught me by surprise. I *think* it happened when I put the clutch in, and I had enough speed to pop the clutch and get it going. However, it didn't catch - the car's motion forced the motor to turn over, but it never started again. I coasted to the curb, and sure enough, a few minutes later, it started, and I managed to make it home.

I was originally thinking fuel deliver might be the culprit - an obstruction in the fuel line somewhere, maybe. Writing this up though, am I right in leaning more towards a spark problem? Can anybody detail a debugging procedure for both of these possibilities?

Thanks,

JLW