Wednesday, August 17, 2011

SCCA Autocross in Coburg, Oregon



Sharyn and I got to the parking lot for the Autocross at 8/15/2011 / 2:24:56pm to find ...


... a few of the cars in the lot preparing for the next heat. There was this really cool red car...



... and an even more interesting go-cart.


I liked the red, white and blue AM 31 car...


... and this silver/gray muscle car...


... and then we saw Isaac coming to the lot with Nicole (sigh) we missed his race and he did very well winning his heat.


This was so cool...


... almost like being in the pits at the Indy 500 without the crowds...


... and getting up close to the racers and their cars.


Isaac and Nicole then joined us for a few moments...


... along with Chris and Jaxon who was proudly wearing his Red Sox hat he had personally chosen at the store.


Jaxon saw I was taking pictures and forcefully demanded I get a picture of Nicole.


After a brief visit Isaac went to work as a cone spotter for the next heat, that's him in grey on the far side of the track.


There is the little red race car I saw in the parking lot going through the paces on the track.


SCCA is a really great organization split into regions, we are in the Northern Pacific Region.

"Since 1944, SCCA has championed one mission: To bring motorsports to the masses of American men and women who are passionate about automobiles, speed and competition."

Drivers are professional, novice and everything in between.


There goes the beautiful AM 31...


... and one of my favorites that I am not sure if it was a pinto or what. When I was in High School I knew every make and model by year and Horsepower. Today I know only four cars: Honda Odyssey, Cute little cars, Muscle cars and Race cars, so don't ask and clarifications are welcomed.


Some of the cars are obviously regular street cars...


... like this T-Bird (okay so I did know one) that was rigged for road trips or taking the kids to school...


... some were pure muscle...


... and others obviously real race cars...


... some were tricky fast (note the roll bars) .


There was a little burning rubber and one 360 degree spin-out...


Isaac said this was a female driver in her VW Bug...


... I had a feeling this was a guy.


Some cars had riders going along and Nicole rode with Isaac - Everyone does wear helmets...


... whether they need them ...


... or not.


I did talk to this driver about his car - its a very old Lola


... and was probably my very special favorite.

Lola Cars International Ltd. is a racing car engineering company founded in 1958 by Eric Broadley and based in Huntingdon, England. Lola Cars started by building small front-engined sports cars, and branched out into Formula Junior cars before diversifying into one of the oldest and largest manufacturers of racing cars in the world.

This isn't a Lola but was a fast running small car ...


... competing against more powerful but not as agile big cars like this one ...


... and this (nice color) one .


Some of the cars cornered evenly ...


... and others leaned a bit almost getting air between the tires and pavement...


... and then came the go-cart and brother did it go. Perhaps because of the size it easily appeared to be the fastest in the field and especially quick not to mention agile. I did like what I think was a camera on the driver's helmet. It was a fun race and I hope to go to more and maybe comtete in the Musemobile, I'd be in a class by myself *Just Kidding Sharyn*

Quote of the Day ~
My dad was very successful running midgets in Texas. Then, his two drivers ran into some bad luck. People started saying that Daddy had lost his touch. That it was the cars and not the drivers. I wanted to race just to prove all those people wrong. ~ A.J. Foyt

Copyright

©Paul Viel