Jim, I doubt that you'll have "very little power off the line". You'll have about the same overall torque off the line as a Chev 350 in a Camaro with 3.73 gears. You will have to either slip the clutch more or spin the tires more with a close ratio. I vote for the tires.

The numbers are "rule of thumb" that slants the numbers toward street racing rather than cruising. They also assume, as usual, that you're running a Chev 350 in a Camaro (ratio of engine size to car size - barges need more engine). A 400 or 455 in a Firebird would obviously need less gear to light the tires up.

I usually use 8.5 to 9 as my highest number and frequently end up with less than 8 because I tend to travel more than a 1/4 mile at a time. I spend a lot more time above 30 mph than below but that's me.

Decide what is more important to you and adjust the numbers to suit.