buckle-up

Indy cars driver, Colton Herta, is very much in the news of late and I have covered him in numerous posts to this blog but it’s a pure coincidence that he just happened to be referenced in this penultimate post to the National Auto Sports Association (NASA) publication, Speed News. However, there is a lot more to cover this time then just references to Colton. In particular, rereading this post I was reminded of a recent email from my good friend and colleague, Robert Rosen. “Think about where and how to go off the track if necessary,” Robert wrote. Particularly if you show up for your first track experience in a bright red powerful car! And this is very good point to make to every reader who is being encouraged to take their car to the track. As you get into the post below you will read of how, our SoCal NASA region’s chief instructor, told this one particular group of first-timers, “Yes, you will drop two wheels on occasion and perhaps even have all four wheels off the track, but u...

  For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven. In these volatile times as economies begin to grapple with some semblance of normalcy it takes very little to move the stock indices either up or down. For those with a penchant for investing, it’s not about timing but rather, investing in stocks about which you know something. I was reminded of this when I read on the CNBC news channel, “Don’t just do something, stand there!” While whoever made this comment – some say it was President Eisenhower, while others recall it predates him - the point is well made. Having written this it is also worth remembering that it’s not just stocks that change but the seasons and here in Colorado, there are many reminders with each turn of a calendar’s page. For Margo and me it has been about adjusting to life at home. We have now recovered in full from the terrible car crash we had a few months ago, with bruising and lacerations no longer visib...

  Look closely at the photo above. That’s right; that’s me in the passenger seat right alongside Brian Kenny. The Kennys and the Holen-Buckle family spent many years together on road courses up and down the Pacific coast and on occasion a little further inland. If you don’t recognize the track or even the corner then no worries; if you haven’t experienced it first-hand it might be totally meaningless to you. However, this is the famous Corkscrew at Laguna Seca and Brian was gracious enough to first take me around this circuit to get a good look at its 11-turn layout before giving a similar ride to Margo. There are many ways to gain experience of a track and there’s nothing like circulating in a car that is being driven competently and with confidence. Back when this photo was taken, Brian was many levels of ability past that of mine (and no, I never did catch up to him) so there clearly was a fun factor involved for me! However, even without any experience on Laguna Seca per se...

  Shattered windscreen; airbags deployed and still visible; not one panel left straight! It was just five weeks ago today, Sunday, when we said farewell to our beloved “L’il Pumpkin.” Yes, our orange Range Rover, two door Evoque convertible, was taken away. We watched it dragged up and onto a tow truck little realizing that we wouldn’t ever see the car again. Being hit in the rear while stationary on a highway, at 65 mph (who knows the g’s that were generated) and pushed into the SUV ahead of us, it wasn’t pretty. Throw in how all four airbags inflated (did you also know that four airbags come up at a replacement cost of approx. $15,000) and the subsequent frame and structural damage, it became a discussion about sorting out who pays what. That part of Interstate 25 (I25) just south of Windsor / Loveland has become essentially a concrete-lined tunnel of destruction. So many accidents over such a short period of time! The state of Colorado is into its fourth year of expansion proje...

There have been numerous occasions where I have been able to watch famous race car drivers in action. My very first taste of actual real world club racing occurred when a friend of mine and I trekked out to Sydney’s then only real racing circuit at Warwick Farm. Over the years it had been the site of the Australian Grand Prix as well as numerous rounds of the Tasman Series. What made this course an attraction for many was how many F1 drivers came down under during the European off-season to try their hand, competing with the locals. If Warwick Farm was my first taste, my interest grew considerably when I owned a track-worthy Torana SLR5000 and finagled my way onto Mt. Panorama the Sunday morning of the big race. The 1974 Hardie-Ferodo 1000 endurance race for off-the-showroom-floor “touring cars!” And yes, very quickly and out of sight of officials, my parade lap become a lot more than a Sunday drive through the mountains. Having the chance to sit by the fences throughout the race it...

Absolutely a dominating performance to take the pole in Nashville How can we start out with anything less than reminiscing over what could have been at the inaugural Indy Car event through the streets of Nashville. Around the carpark of the NFL Titan’s football stadium, across the bridge, around a tight Nashville city triangle and back over the bridge! Margo and I have been following the Indy racing this year and haven’t missed one weekend watching practices, qualification as well as the races themselves. When you have almost-family members as full time Indy racer it brings with it just that added spice of excitement. Following a brief summer hiatus which we think had a lot to do with the Olympics being televised by the same network that covers Indy races, there were back-to-back races in Nashville and Indianapolis. A twisting and unforgiving street course in Nashville followed by a proper road course in Indianapolis. Before we cover the race at Indy, it’s worth revisiting the wee...