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Post by sd787 on Mar 27, 2021 16:56:20 GMT -8
Viper GTS
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Post by wilmywood8455 on May 13, 2021 12:55:50 GMT -8
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Post by mmi16 on May 26, 2021 4:26:21 GMT -8
Blast from the past -
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Jun 18, 2021 14:03:29 GMT -8
This is the Datsun Roadster owned and driven by Rock Vest. In the 1991 Runoffs at Road Atlanta, he started second in E Production, just ahead of the car that I prepped and crewed, Robert G 'Giant' Kirby in his black and gold 914 built by Raetech in Ann Arbor, MI. Mr. Kirby and Rock raced each other the entire race, Rock's Roadster had more power and he would pass Mr. Kirby on the backstraight, but Mr' Kirby had better brakes (carbon ceramic pads with BBS wheel fans for cooling) and would repass Rock under braking for going under the bridge and down the hill to the front straight. Mr Kirby would lead all the way back around to the back straight and it would repeat lap after lap after lap. Finally on the last lap Mr. Kirby passed him one more time to take 3rd ahead of Rock in 4th. What a great race! Mike Anderson’s “Rock Vest” Datsun 2000 Mike recently acquired this famous Datsun Roadster and he has carried the torch by racing it decades after its heyday. This SR311 was campaigned by owner/driver Rock Vest who won over 60 races throughout the Southeast in the 1980s. It has been a joy seeing Mike race on the West Coast and back to Road Atlanta at the Mitty for the first time since Vest ran the SCCA Runoffs 3 decades ago. Mr Kirby's 914 in its 2005 Runoffs winning form after his death earlier that year. It was driven by Mark Hotchkis to the title.
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Jul 15, 2021 4:48:25 GMT -8
Another great Mr. Kirby story I was not aware of. Cal Club thought so much of him that they named one of the buildings at the new Buttonwillow Raceway Park after him. The story has more details about the Kirby 914's run to the 2005 Nat'l Championship as well www.calclub.com/html/html2/archives/2012/SoPacNews-Jan-2012.pdf starts on page 5. The building, and Giant with his 914 ...
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Post by Carlo_Carrera on Jul 22, 2021 13:02:44 GMT -8
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Post by Carlo_Carrera on Aug 7, 2021 8:32:48 GMT -8
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Aug 17, 2021 5:49:37 GMT -8
Brian Redman Lola T600 Chevrolet and David Hobbs March BMW M1/C 1981 IMSA Laguna Seca photo by Steve Potter
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Sept 9, 2021 11:28:27 GMT -8
REWIND: Honoring the AAR Eagle Mk IIIIn 2016, RACER celebrated the 25th anniversary of an IMSA icon, the AAR Eagle Mk III. Ahead of IMSA’s visit this weekend to the Mk III’s birthplace in Monterey, we’ve updated the piece to reflect a few changes to the Eagle’s fabled history as it reaches the 30-year marker since the car turned the series on its head on home soil. All American Racers’ Eagle Mk III chassis made its debut at Laguna Seca’s IMSA GTP round in 1991, and with IMSA’s WeatherTech SportsCar Championship ready to race at the same track, it’s worth taking a moment to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the fastest, most dominant prototype this country has ever produced. “Wow, you’re not the only one that forgot it!” the late Dan Gurney said in 2016 of the Monterey milestone. “25 years ago? I don’t feel younger when I hear that news, but I don’t feel old.” The Mk III’s first presence in the Monterey paddock drew the attention of most fans – and plenty of teams – before the opening practice session got underway. The 2.1-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder engine carried in the back of the Mk III was familiar; AAR had been using it in GTO Toyota Celicas and in its earlier GTPs, but the motor wasn’t the primary point of attraction. Those in attendance – including this writer – marveled at its next-level aerodynamics; the sheer size and volume of the No. 99 Mk III’s high-waisted bodywork, plus the through-flow air channels running from the nose through the sidepods to the back, were unlike anything we’d seen in GTP. “We got a ton of criticism about what we had done by the experts, which was kind of like the establishment in those days,” Gurney said. “You had to do things the way they thought it ought to be done. Or so they thought.” “They said our air inlets on the front were too big. Just generally, they were negative about it. Most of the ‘experts’ didn’t realize what we were doing aerodynamically, and still don’t. If they had realized and saw what happened even in that first race, it was the beginning of the end for the rest of those guys.” This Eagle looked like it was from the future, and once Juan Manuel Fangio II hit the 2.2-mile track with the Mk III, its performance confirmed our suspicions: Every other GTP car was made redundant in an instant. Short on testing mileage, Fangio and AAR used the Laguna Seca event as more of a test held within a race. Despite the lack of knowledge on what the Mk III wanted for mechanical and aero setups, the Argentinian was able to qualify second behind Wayne Taylor in the one-lap-special Chevy Intrepid. With its track-pulverizing downforce and instant torque, the South African claimed an impressive pole with a lap of 1m14.928s. Fangio wasn’t far behind with a lap of 1m15.223s to earn a front-row starting spot next to the Intrepid, but once the green flag waved, Taylor was a sitting duck. The Mk III came close to winning the first time out at Laguna Seca as Fangio built a staggering lead of more than 50 seconds by the close of the contest, but those chances were derailed by a pit lane violation during a splash-and-go that resulted in a one-lap stop-and-hold. Another violation leaving the pits – after serving the first penalty – led IMSA to tack another 35 seconds onto the No. 99 after the checkered flag. Fangio was credited with an unrepresentative seventh. Fangio did manage to lead 54 of the 84 laps and set the fastest lap during his fiery charge after the first penalty – a 1m15.741s – as Davy Jones went on to win in the TWR Jaguar XJR-16. To fully grasp the raw nature of the Eagle Mk III on its 1991 premiere, AAR returned for the Laguna Seca GTP race in 1992 with a full season of development under its belt and shattered the track record with a pole lap of 1m11.294s set by PJ Jones. That’s damn near four seconds faster – 3.929s to be precise – from where the MK III started in 1991. And to appreciate the Mk III’s frightening speed, the pole for IMSA’s visit to Monterey in 2015, set by Wayne Taylor’s son Jordan in the No. 10 WTR Corvette DP, was a 1m18.718s. Jones’ 1992 pole, a full 7.424s below 2015’s DP benchmark, says more about the changes in prototype technology and relative tire quality than the caliber of driving talent. IMSA’s modern track record at Laguna Seca, a 1m15.035s lap set by Jordan’s older brother Ricky Taylor in 2019 with an Acura ARX-05 DPi on Michelin rubber, effectively halved the difference, cutting it to a deficit of 3.741s. On the Mk III’s return to Monterey in 1992, it had Europe’s most fearsome prototype to contend with as TWR brought the all-conquering Jaguar XJR-14, with its Cosworth/Formula 1 engine and revolutionary aerodynamics, to attack the Eagle. The XJR-14 vs Mk III battle wasn’t even close: AAR’s machine pounced on TWR’s best car without mercy, capturing nine wins from 15 races and the GTP title with ease. Jaguar, along with every other factory program, ran and hid after 1992. AAR returned for 1993 with the same two-car team and swept GTP while setting 10 lap records at 11 tracks on the calendar. “The Jaguar was a terrific car,” Gurney said, “but it wasn’t quite terrific enough. But it was one whale of a good car. And it had exceeded the Formula 1 lap time at Silverstone, we were told. So no doubt it was very good. And the TWR people were a great group. One of the things about the Jag was that it seemed to like really smooth racetracks like a Formula 1 car does. And our car liked those, but it wasn’t bothered by the rough ones. That really made a difference. We had a bigger sweet spot in terms of ride height and angle of attack, and all that stuff. That was really special. What we ended up realizing is our car was even better than we thought it was.” More and more photos @ racer.com/2021/09/09/rewind-honoring-the-aar-eagle-mk-iii/?fbclid=IwAR0vj1rBHc7W6iWWX5LQGJMYnkqLMUNMH3VulTkm4XkaGTcsn3Bb0cwJD8U
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Post by Carlo_Carrera on Sept 9, 2021 15:54:13 GMT -8
^ Damn, that car looks fast.
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Post by struns on Sept 18, 2021 12:47:04 GMT -8
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Sept 18, 2021 13:37:29 GMT -8
^ Damn, that car looks fast. That's because it IS fast. The 98's pole lap of 1:33.875 at the Rolex in 1993 stood till 2019, the Mazda beat it at 1:33.685.
Justin Gurney (jokingly, after congratulating him) told Doonan he'd resurrect the 98, put current rubber on it, tune it up, and meet Mazda at Daytona in 2020 for a two car pole-off with Alex driving
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chernaudi
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Post by chernaudi on Sept 24, 2021 16:21:17 GMT -8
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Sept 25, 2021 13:18:06 GMT -8
A J Foyt 1963 Daytona 250 Miles - American Challenge Cup finished 2nd
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chernaudi
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Post by chernaudi on Oct 27, 2021 12:00:53 GMT -8
I'd like to see a pictorial of the car mentioned in the video, since we know where it is thanks to Allan:
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Nov 5, 2021 0:02:55 GMT -8
Epic Onboard Group C Porsche 956 Nurburgring Nordschleife 1983Le Mans legend Derek Bell guides you through a lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife!
And on youtube (no commentary) ...
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Dec 19, 2021 5:05:19 GMT -8
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Jan 14, 2022 4:09:05 GMT -8
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Post by wilmywood8455 on Mar 1, 2022 4:02:34 GMT -8
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Post by sd787 on Mar 17, 2022 17:58:16 GMT -8
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