February, 2003
Vintage 2.5 Challenge
We Held the Newsletter Back a Few Days
so that we could give you a quick update on our first race of 2003 at Willow Springs. This years opener had a little smaller field than last year due to a lot of cars that were not quite ready after their winter rebuild. Those that made the race enjoyed ideal weather and a really fast track. Congraulations are in order for Tom Neely, who drove a great race in a Datsun 510 to a win followed closely by the Lotus Cortina of C.J. Bonura and the Alfa of Kevin McKee.We were pleased to be joined by John Morton and Sylvia Wilkinson as guest of Les Cannaday (of Classic Datsun Motorsports) and once again John joined us for a little "seat time" with Les's Datsun 1200 on Saturday. The real show came when John took out Steve Link's 510 for a few laps in the A & B Production group (pony cars along with a few Corvettes and Cobras). John started at the back but quikly moved the 510 into the mid-pack, much to the suprise to the drivers of the higher horsepower V-8's. To make it more interesting, C.J. Bonura brought his Cortina directly behind John and was showing a slight gain on each lap to the point he was just a few car lengths behind Morton at the end of the session.
During the final race on the weekend Sylvia and John watched from the pit wall when three 510's drove into turn one three-wide with almost the entire pack on their bumpers. Sylvia, author of the classic 2.5 Challenge book "The Stainless Steel Carrot" was heard to remark; "the orginal series was never this good" !
It was apparent that most drivers had done a lot of work on their cars over the break because the times had dropped again this year with Steve Link setting the fastest single lap of the weekend at 1:34:637. In looking at our history in this our third year of opening our season at Willow Springs we note that the very first Vintage 2.5 Challenge fast lap was set by Alan Ward in his Alfa at 1:36:361 and Kevin McKee was the only other car that posted a 1:36. This year C.J. Bonura (pole), Kevin McKee, Mickey Cohen, Tom Neely and Steve Link all posted 1:35's in the qualifying race! We should have the full race report ready later in the week.
We Want to Welcome a New Sponsor of Orange County Motorsports. Mickey Cohen recently announced that his Orange County Motorsports firm has become a "Tire Rack" dealer and he will make a special offter to those racers that compete in the 2.5 Challenge. OCM will provide tires at their true cost! The line of tires on this offer will include race tires as well as street tires that are shown as available from the Tire Rack. In addition OCM will provide what we have termed "Mickey Money" at all of our events this year for finishing positions 7 through 11. These are coupons good for $20 off any tire ordered through OCM and they may be accumulated during the year and redeemed all at once for a significant savings. You can contact OCM at 714-429-9200 .
As some of you might have noticed, the Vintage 2.5 Challenge will not
sponsored by Magnaflow this year.
They were not able
to provide level of support this year that they had in the past however we all
owe Magnaflow a big “Thank You” as without their backing it would have been
difficult to get the series off to the great start we have enjoyed.
With our remaining sponsors and other fund raising efforts we should be in good shape this year however we are working diligently to secure a major sponsor for the series and hope have an announcement in the next few weeks.
Rules No we are not changing anything but we are going to designate a single contact for all rules issues of our Chief Steward, Fred Schudekoff. From this point forward all rules questions must be directed to Fred and only his opinions will carry weight. We are making this change to avoid confusion over the interpretation of the rules. We strongly advise that you not make significant changes to your car unless you are sure that the change is "period correct" and either specifically authorized by the rules or you have pre-1973 documentation to show the change as legal or you have reviewed your change with Fred and gotten his nod of approval. Send your questions to rules@bsedan.com or see Fred at any of our events.
Las Vegas Update It appears that we have a lot of interest in this event but we are also exploring another opportunity that presented itself over the weekend. The potential alternate would be around the same time so we have elected to wait a few weeks before finalizing anything.
There’s lots of activity around the upcoming Portland Histoics and our participation as a featured race. The official website for this great event already has a lot of information as well as the race schedule posted. They also have entry forms that can be downloaded as well and we recommend that you use this to pick up an entry rather than wait for one to be mailed to you. The link to the site is: http://www.portlandhistorics.com
There are rules posted on this site that might cause some cause confusion. These rules rules do not apply to our group as far a eligibility and preparation are concerned. As with all VSRG races, our rules are used for car eligibility as well as the guidelines for preparation. If you have any questions regarding this please contact us at VSRG, not the promoters of the event.
One of the first VSRG members Anthony Rimicci has asked us to announce the launch of www.AlfaBB.com . Anthony and his friends (and VSRG members), Simon Mestas and Chris Sniady have been busy building up a bulletin board web site for Alfa Romeo owners and enthusiasts. The site has various threads that are very helpful and entertaining to read. VSRG events will be covered with pictures and results. Membership is free and you do not need an Alfa to join. If you have any further questions, email Anthony at ITALCARGUY@aol.com
We Were Reminded Recently that
the Theft of Racecar Trailers is Still All to Common
. A letter is
being circulated about a recent theft at a Buttonwillow Motel. Here is
what we were told:
“The following was
stolen from the Super 8 Motel in Buttonwillow California. 1998 Swift 008 Formula Atlantic, S/N
008-001, Wht/Blu/Yel in color. Number 48 on rear wing, Advanced Medical decal
on side. Also a 1988 White Chevy
3500 one ton crew cab dually, California plate# 3T99328 along with a 1886 White
Dico trailer, California plate# YF6874. All was seen
driving out of the Super 8 motel between 1:00-2:00 am on the 17th
of February. If you see these please
let me know.
Lee Atkins
Advanced Medical Inc.
email: hotlasers@hotlasers.com
Tel: (425) 844-1189”
And for Something Really Different Gerie Bledsoe, the North American Coordinator of La Carrera Panamericana or the “Mexican Road Race” has asked us to make our membership aware of this historic race series. He wrote recently:
“I am sure than many of your members already know about the Pan Am. I would imagine that some have participated in it. It is a 2,000 mile pro-rally for cars made between 1940-1954, and 1955-1965. This year the race is scheduled for Oct 24-30. We will run the length of Mexico, from south to north. I am also attempting to contact all owners of "Carrera" cars to get them together at the Wine Country Classic and perhaps in Monterey. Our web site is www.PanAmRace.com .
Riverside Raceway Monument is in the
works and we have some information on the campaign that is underway to
erect a memorial monument near the site of the Riverside raceway. The
information below comes from the group driving this effort.
An RIR Monument non-profit organization has been established to construct and erect a monument to the famed Southern California Circuit.
The
Monument has been selected to grace the entrance of the new, 4,000 square-foot
TownGate II Community Center in Moreno Valley.
The Center will also house in perpetuity, a display of Riverside Raceway
memorabilia.
The
Recreation Center will be located close to where the track was on Eucalyptus
Street. At the Nov 12, 2002 City
Council meeting, unanimous approval was given for the RIR Monument and the
theme for the Community Center. Now,
the fundraising effort for the Monument can begin.
Dedication of the Recreation Center and Monument is tentatively planned for May / June of 2003. Many drivers, owners and fans that were a major part of RIR history are invited and expected to attend a day to remember. A historic car and motorcycle show, guest speakers and more will all be a part of the festivities.
To
financially support the non-profit RIR Monument project, please make your
donation to: Riverside International Raceway Monument
Please Note on your check “Donation” And send to:
Riverside
International Raceway Monument Fund
PMB
325
P.O. Box 68021
Anaheim, CA 92817-0821
Your support for this worthy project is appreciated very much, and please plan to attend the dedication ceremony. For further information about the RIR Monument Project, please follow “The Nostalgia Forum” and the “Riverside Today” thread at www.AtlasF1.com
