Cold Pit

ROLEX 24 BACKGROUND NOISE

2012-02-01T16:03:00.001-05:00

“The reason I’m here is because I can go toe-to-toe with guys like Chip Ganassi, Roger Penske, SunTrust and all those guys who have far bigger budgets than me and I can still win. If you want to race and win, this is the place.” – Mike Shank, a regular guy (even though a huge The Ohio State fan) who grew up in a fairly regular home and whose dad – one who lovingly gave his son a start in racing – didn’t get to see his son win a really big one.

Anyone notice SunTrust's "official" race time, which came in at 29:55.123?

Put in another, perhaps more impactful way: 4.877 seconds shy of 30 minutes, that magical round-number mark that, under Grand-Am's General Sporting Rules (GSR), Section 10, sub-section 5 and mini-section 2, defines a time period in which is stated, "A Driver must drive at least 1 lap under green flag conditions within 30 minutes." Never mind the sentence is, um, "lacking," grammatically speaking, because the boys over at One Daytona Blvd. have what's known as "Sole Authority" or, a.k.a., G-A GSR Section 10, sub-section 1, which allows them to do as they wish, when they wish and however they wish (was any angle omitted?).

All considerations of a simple, safe life being put aside your intrepid reporter made inquiry of La Carrera Queso Grande (The Race's Big Cheese), Mark Raffauf, who explained that the time in question was sampled from the start/finish line and that after the SunTrust car passed such line it then traveled very nearly another lap before abandoning the track and pulled into its garage, thereby more than adequately fulfilling the “30-minute rule,” so to speak.

The 2011 Kevin Buckler and Andy Lally split had more than one tongue wagging over the last couple of months at Daytona. Given their combined successes, a lot of people figured they'd have patched their differences come race weekend and again team for the classic endurance race -- one which they, respectively, as owner and driver together twice won in GT.

They didn't patch what became a grudge match (or so said others), the finish of which was close at race end -- a partial tick of just over 9 seconds -- with Lally and his new team, Magnus Racing, claiming GT's first place over a second-place TRG No. 67.

Mindful that misdirection can be a part of strategy and that sleeplessness can impair judgment, it nevertheless is astounding as to how some team members, having formerly taken all manner of closed-mouth precautions, will diagram a race strategy before the world merely because present is a TV lens and a microphone, wielded by someone in a tightly fitted fire suit. Or would that be the reason behind Mata Hari’s success?

"The new Gen3 DP is basically just your old DP" is part of a chorus line making the rounds. Overlooked, for some reason, are areas like the front suspension, where mounting points were moved and therefore require different parts. Or that the wheelbase has been slightly adjusted so that a Gen2 body, even without the cockpit, um, oh, that's right, the (politically correct?) "greenhouse" wouldn't neatly fit a Gen3 chassis. Now, having noted at least two of still further differences: Change ain't no big thing, it's called "evolution." Something the Earth has practiced, well, until 1940-or-so (at least, in the U.S.), for a few billion years. However, some people call a $19,000 Gen3 (not Gen2) splitter “highway robbery.”

ALMS' Scott Atherton put in a full day on the ground Thursday at Daytona, presumably because he liked the racing. No? Then what else might he be doing there? Could it be yet another round of phantom buyout talks? Or, perhaps, just some good, old-fashioned "Good luck!" chatter with former ALMS and present Grand-Am competitors? Oh my gosh! You don't think . . .? Cajoling for the sake of regaining or, perhaps, just stealing about?

David Hobbs finally pronounced the Daytona Prototype a proper-looking race car, "very sleek" and "looks like a modern race car."

Maybe that's why the 197-seat DIS Media Center went into overflow mode on Friday, additional nearby rooms being made available to photographers, media representatives and the ilk. Yet, a good dozen-or-so media types were still seen working from randomly occupied chairs here and there, media lunchroom tables and outside on Fan Zone tables and benches.

The conditions under which we journalists sometimes must labor for our loyal readers . . .

Later,

JUST THE FACTS, JACK

2012-01-31T15:33:00.001-05:00

The 50th Anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona (This is a proper noun, the owner of the name having chosen the name and to which doesn’t apply are grammar rules other than the “proper noun” rule; the reason the “At” is capitalized. K?)

Time of race: 24:00.36.793

Laps completed: 761

Miles covered: 2,709.160

Average Speed: 112.834 mph, 181.588 kph

Fastest Race Lap/Time/Average Speed/Driver: 497, 1:41.470, 126.003 mph (202.782 kph), Ryan Dalziel

Margin Of Victory: 0:05.198

Caution Periods: 13 for 64 laps

A total of 10 cars would lead at least one lap (car Nos. 76 and 6), four cars posted double-digits while two cars, No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford and No. 8 Starworks Ford, would account for the greater number of collective laps led, 249 and 295, respectively.

In their shared ride, Starworks Motorsports' No. 8 Ford, Scots Ryan Dalziel and Allan McNish topped the race's 22 overall lap leaders with 146 and 137 laps, respectively.

Four of the No. 8 Starworks Ford's five drivers claimed leader laps, adding Lucas Luhr (9 laps) and Enzo Potolicchio (3) to the aforementioned.

With 92 laps, Justin Wilson was at the top of the No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford drivers' lead-lap chart, followed by A.J. Allmendinger (90) and Oswaldo Negri Jr. (67).

A total of 22 drivers in 10 cars exchanged the lead 53 times during the 24-hour race -- or, slightly greater than two lead changes occurred on-average each hour of the race.

Justin Wilson (No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford) compiled the most consecutive lead laps with 84, followed by Ryan Dalziel (No. 8 Starworks Ford) with 75 laps, and Allan McNish (No. 8 Starworks Ford) 64 laps.

Each having eight times crossed the finish line ahead of all others, two drivers shared having most often led the race: A.J. Allmendinger (No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford) and Scott Pruett (No. 01 Telmex/Target BMW). Allan McNish (No. 8 Starworks Ford) led on five different occasions.

In Grand Touring, Andy Lally, in the No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche, topped the most-laps-led column with 132, followed by Andrew Davis' 124 and Leh Keen's 100, the latter two in the No. 59 Brumos Porsche which led the race on 22 separate occasions, followed in that category with 19 by the GT-class winner, No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche and, trailing well behind with seven different lead changes, the No. 67 TRG Porsche.

The No. 60 LiveOn.com Ford (DP) completed 761 laps, tying 1990 race-winners Davy Jones, Jan Lammers and Andy Wallace's No. 61 TWR Jaguar XJR-12 (GTP).

The winning MSR team fell one-lap short of equaling the Rolex 24's record 762 laps, set in 1992 by Nissan Motorsports' No. 23 Nissan R91CP (Grp. C), driven by Masahiro Hasemi, Kazuyoshi Hoshino, Toshio Suzuki and D.C. Williams (nah, not really, but got ya for a microsecond, huh?).

Ruminations of the Rolex 24 are coming . . . just not today.

Later,

FALSIES II

2012-01-25T17:18:00.001-05:00

ROLEX 24 FALSEHOODS

MOV(e it on over)

"It Was So Much More Competitive 'In The Day'" and "Racing Was So Much More Exciting!"

Um, exactly what "day" might that be and, further, do some define "exciting" in a manner other than, say, does Webster?

The 2009, 2010 and 2011 Rolex 24 At Daytona races produced a combined margin of victory of 0:54.746 -- well under the 3.56-mile track's fastest recorded lap time, regardless of year or vehicle. Averaged, each of the three races' MOV is 0:18.25-seconds.

Given the nature of averages -- with which two or three measurements a 10-ft.-deep pond can be conveyed as something that "on paper" appears far shallower -- it's only kosher to note that the 2010 Rolex 24 At Daytona recorded the highest MOV, 0:52.303, of the three races.

Of those three races, the 2009 Rolex 24 provided the narrowest first-over-second-place gap at 0:0.167 (167-thousandths of one second).

How does one compare or describe a gap of 0.167?

In that time, an otherwise unencumbered light beam traverses a little over 50,065,340 meters or, distilled, 50,065 kilometers -- about a 20-percent greater distance than the Earth's 40,075k equatorial circumference.

A little more down to earth: at 30 mph one travels 7.35 feet in 0.167-second.

In 0.167-second at 200 mph, a car will span 48.99 feet -- or about five feet more than the distance of three nose-to-tail DP's.

First-through-fourth-places in 2009 were separated by 10.589 seconds. The funky part: the 2009 race's final caution period ran through Lap 705. The winning No. 58 Brumos Racing Porsche-Riley, with drivers David Donohue, Darren Law, Antonio Garcia and Buddy Rice, covered 735 laps. The 2009 race finished with a four-car, pedal-to-metal, 30-lap scramble for first.

After a late-race, three-lap caution, the 2011 Rolex 24 At Daytona's five up-front competitors had only a single green-flag lap in which to sort their final finishing order.

Reaching the checkered flag in fewer than two minutes, only 3.572 seconds separated the top-four finishers, at the front of which sat the No. 01 Telmex/Target BMW Riley of Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, Joey Hand and Graham Rahal.

"It was an awesome way to finish a race," race leader and eventual winner Pruett said.

"Even though we were in the lead, I was hoping we wouldn't finish the race under yellow. The fans won in the end because they got a race that was determined by what happened on the track."

Wasn’t there another relatively recent race, say, in 2009, give or take, that finished with four-hours to go after about five hours? Something like that; officials deciding the race, too.

Meanwhile, back in Daytona: Chip Ganassi Racing w/ Felix (con me amigo José) Sabates No. 01 Telmex/Target BMW Riley had the race in hand. With pit-road souls disposed of celebrating having already started their flow into the team's pits, Chip Ganassi wasn't at all in a similar mood. It's something he'd seen before -- celebrating before a victory had been locked up by a checkered flag -- and it usually didn't bode well.

On Lap 690 and a part of the Ganassi team for the first time, talented young British driver Justin Wilson called over his radio that while traversing the chicane something had gone wrong with the car's front suspension.

In the East Bank and rapidly closing on pit entrance, a decision was made to bring the driver and car in - straight the garage.

While the Telmex/Target car's front clip was replaced and car refueled, Pruett jumped in for the final run.

With fewer than 65 laps remaining in the race the No. 9 Action Express Racing Porsche Cayenne Riley suddenly was out front.

Two of the rookie team's four veteran drivers, Ryan Dalziel and Mike Rockenfeller, were late in joining team regulars João Barbosa and 2004 Rolex 24 champ Terry Borcheller.

For Dalziel it was a chance at getting a paid ride and such wasn't much different for Rockenfeller. Perhaps neither felt the race was theirs to win . . . until the race's last 90-minutes.

Of the 2009, 2010 and 2011 Rolex 24 At Daytona races, the 2010 race would provide the largest margin over a second-place car -- the No. 01 Telmex/Target -- but the winner's dark horse win was no less surprising than any other in recent memory.

WHAT ABOUT MAX?

"Close finishes happened all the time back in the GTP days. I can remember that Daytona race when Max Papis finished second," so goes the refrain.

Max Papis never competed at Daytona in a GTP.

In an inspired performance that has a far better, first-Daytona background story that preceded Papis' famous 1996 ride in a Gianpiero Moretti-owned Dallara 333SP (neither a misprint or miscue, ask Kevin Doran about it, sometime), a second-place Italian-driver actually named Massimiliano Papis finished 64.099 seconds short of first place after 2,481.32 miles of racing.

Other people remember it, too, and most particularly, the race winner, um, er, uh . . . now who was that guy?

Oh yes! Wayne Taylor!

(You know, the always impeccably dressed, like Warren Scheckter, head of SunTrust Racing. That is, Taylor is the head of SunTrust, not Jody Scheckter's nephew or, for that matter, Ian Scheckter's son nor, for the same matter, Tomas Scheckter's cousin. The race team; not the bank; Taylor owns the race team. David Pijot owns the bank. Right? Well, maybe not, but he's sure been there a long, long time.

("Oh, you mean the tallish, bald, sort of old guy who has reading glasses and wears golf shirts?" No, if anyone on the SunTrust team might fit that description it is Simon Hodgson, the real brains of the outfit and who wrenched Alex Zanardi and Juan Pablo Montoya to open-wheel championships. Hah-hah, just kidding, Wayne. That is, about Simon being the brains and such, after all, he really did wing the championships’ thing.

(And it's not that Simon doesn't have brains, either. It's just that he doesn't look at the world through rose-colored glasses. Which I see you've finally given up . . . for blue glasses! Nevertheless whatever makes your car race, Wayne).

"It's probably the only race, ever, that more people remember who finished second than remember who finished first," Taylor said of 1996 Rolex 24 race (said other ways in various ways at various times, some being monosyllabic, unprintable and likely quite close to what he's thinking of me this very instant).

"With two and one-half hours to go we had a four-lap cushion," Taylor, who drove the race's final 70 minutes, told a Daytona Beach News-Journal reporter about three years after "Back In The Day" actually ended with Dan Gurney's GTP team taking the cake in 1993.

"Max Papis was lapping at six seconds a lap quicker than us. We calculated that by the final lap he would be on the lead lap with us -- which he was."

"He would've passed us had I crashed the car, or pulled over and parked it, or did something really stupid, which included fighting for a lead which we securely held," Taylor recounted years later during a golf club locker-room interview, "So, I let him go 'round."

"The point was to win Daytona, not to keep some backmarker from overtaking. At that point I knew all I needed to do was keep him in sight and win the race."

And he did, well, win the race, along with co-drivers Jim Pace, Scott Sharp; Doyle Racing; Oldsmobile (ask your grandfather); and, some outfit known today as Riley Technologies.

(The '96 race's overall third-place finisher? Only 48-laps behind were drivers Jim Downing, Butch Hamlet, Tim McAdam and Barry Waddell (who IS this Waddell guy?) in a Kudzu DLM Mazda.

TIME 'GOLDENS' ALL WOUNDS

Or MOV Revisited, Reexamined

During the oft-cited, so-called “Golden Era" of "Back in The Day" prototype racing -- roughly 1985 through 1993 -- in those nine races the single closest Margin Of Victory was a 0:1:49.150 recorded in 1986 when Al Holbert, Derek Bell and Al Unser Jr's No. 14 Porsche 962 beat the No. 8 T-Bird Swap Shop 962 quartet of A.J. Foyt, Arie Luyendyk, Danny Sullivan and Preston Henn.

Second-closest MOV in that time frame was the 1989 Daytona 24, with a 0:2:06.597 MOV, in which the No. 62 Porsche 962 of Bob Wollek, Derek Bell, John Andretti and Jim Busby came in first place, followed by the No. 61 TWR Jaguar XJR-9 of Price Cobb, John Nielsen, Andy Wallace and Jan Lammers.

Three-race, consecutive close-finish comparables to that of the Rolex 24 At Daytona's 2009-2011 stretch couldn't be found in the 1985-1993 time frame. Indeed, even consecutive year-over-year tight finishes weren't to be found, the 1985-1993 first-to-second place MOV's most frequently not being measured in seconds or minutes as much as quantities of laps:

1985 - 17 laps

1987 - 8 laps

1988 - 1 lap

1990 - 4 laps

1991 - 8 laps

1992 - 9 laps

1993 - 10 laps

Yours truly chose the 1985-1993 time period as being most representative of the "The Golden Age" based on the following considerations:

In 1985, due to a westward shift of the Pedro Rodriguez International Turn ("East Horseshoe" or "Turn 3"), the track's overall road-course length decreased from 3.870 to 3.56 miles;

Porsche's 956 prototype never competed at Daytona International Speedway. A one-off Porsche 962 was introduced in the 1984 SunBank 24 for testing purposes, only, and it broke, um, was "voluntarily retired" after 127 laps (well, at least Mario Andretti claimed the race pole for the 962 with a 1:50.989). In 1985, six of the world's eight 962s at the time, started that year's SunBank 24 At Daytona;

With the conclusion of the 1993 SunBank 24, also concluded was the GTP, or Grand Touring Prototype, designation to the favor of the "World Sports Car" concept -- in simplistic terms an open-top, flat-bottom race car -- which in a collaborative effort was mandated by IMSA primarily because the GTP handwriting had been on the wall for years, the 1993 race closing out the "era" with all of eight GTPs in the field.

Should anyone care to squawk, though, IMSA's "GTP" designation was first used in 1982, when at race-end the MOV was 9 laps. In 1983, 6 laps; 1984, 9 laps.

The dawn of the World Sports Car concept, which began at Daytona in 1994, took three years to take hold before the first win, achieved by the aforementioned Wayne Taylor, Jim Pace and Scott Sharp.

In the meantime, Scott Pruett, Butch Leitzinger, Paul Gentilozzi and Steve Millen in their Nissan 300ZX GTS car won the '94 race, ushering in the WSC form of racing -- by a piddling 24 laps.

In 1995, driving a special-exception "LMWSC" Kremer K8 Porsche Spyder, Christophe Bouchut, Giovanni Lavaggi, Marco Werner and Jürgen Lässig, won with a 5-lap margin.

If a special "era" exists -- that is, a consecutive number of years having competitive racing -- it is “now.”

Later,

FALSIES

2012-01-24T20:54:00.001-05:00

ROLEX 24 FALSEHOODS

Haywood Drove a 917 at Daytona

(Note: This is the first in a series of Rolex 24 falsies of however many Ol' DC cares to post. But, he figures at least one more will hit before The Seriously Big Race later this week. The links will whisk the clicker to exotic background material at least once or twice. They're mostly for Ed Bennett's sake, though, so he can gain a sense of the sport's background).

When one works closely enough to something, probably anything, it's surprising what others may see or for that matter not see and, even, see something where nothing such existed at all.

Thoughts of what is, isn't and couldn't have been recently arose during a question-and-answer (QnA) between The Fourth Estate Inquisitors Club and a couple of notable, accomplished sportscar drivers, both of whom having been around the sport a lot longer than many of the inquisitors.

One of the interrogators confused a couple of facts and spoke of them as having simultaneously occurred when they hadn't at all.

"Hurley, what was it like to drive a Porsche 917 back in the day?"

For all the considerable knowledge and great ability possessed and displayed by one Hurley H. Haywood, competitively driving a Porsche 917 wasn't among it, for he hadn't at all been at the wheel of a 917 (parade, show or "historic" laps notwithstanding) in either its or his "day."

Haywood might've, probably has driven a 917 since the car dominated its two Daytona 24 races (1970, 1971), but FIA rules would sunset Herr Doktor Norbert Singer's first contribution to his storied Porsche career about two years before Haywood became a household name of lofty enough stature to drive any factory backed Porsche.

(Bar Bet Material: No, Dr. Singer -- who has his own fan club, by the way -- didn't design the 917, but he did design the 917's ducting.)

(OL’ DC NOTE: As usual, when Ol’ DC blows it, he leaves the evidence trail intact. Thinking “Daytona” and “prototype” racing, Ol’ DC just up and totally forgot HHH’s 917-10 Can-Am days, even though Ol’ DC personally witnessed a few. So, in one way, Hurley did drive the 917 in his and a few other people’s “day.” But he still didn’t drive a 917K, or 917L, which were a different breed than the 917/10 and, eventually, the Porsche 917/30 that flat-out dealt a death blow to Can-Am. And I even possess personally shot pictures of Haywood in the Brumos 917. Bummer.)

Herr Doktor Singer's mind was at work hatching the 917's air-ducting system just about the same time, give or take, that Peter Gregg discovered Haywood in 1968 at a Jacksonville, Fla., SCCA autocross.

Haywood, driving a Corvette between college classes he'd soon, um, make like a tree and leave, had all but tripped over the autocross in a hunt to dispel boredom.

Gregg was at the same event for the purpose of breaking in a new Porsche being prepped for racing.

Haywood, not knowing any better, was unbothered by Gregg's already well-founded racing reputation and turned faster laps than did Gregg, who not only noticed someone did better than he but civilly talked with him.

In a much later, similar situation at Savannah, Georgia's Roebling Road Raceway in a new race car both drove (no, not at the same time, Menego), Haywood again was the faster of the two.

"He hired me on the spot," Haywood said of the aftermath.

Co-driving a 911S the two drivers afterward won their first race together at Watkins Glen International in 1969, after which Haywood involuntarily was on his way to a government job in a Southeast Asian paradise.

When Haywood returned to racing at the start of the 1971 season, the 24 Hours of Daytona was his first stop, the FIA long before that event having already mandated the 917's competitive demise, so angry were they with the Germans.

In 1971, two-driver teams were common to an international-level 24-hour race (23 of that year's 48 Daytona starters were such) so as a twosome, Gregg and Haywood were de rigueur in tackling the race without a third or fourth driver along for the ride in their No. 59 Brumos Porsche Audi Porsche 914/6 (#9140430705).

But they really wouldn't need one, either.

Qualifying 23rd, after 260 race laps something snapped mechanically (never does a Porsche engine fry; don't believe the race's official record keeping) and the pair finished 29th overall -- 428 laps in arrears to eventual winners Pedro Rodriguez (his fourth Daytona win) and Jackie Oliver, whose John Wyer No. 2 "ride" was one of four Porsche 917's on hand.

The good news? Gregg and Haywood finished nearly 150 laps ahead of Derek Bell and Jo Siffert's No. 1 John Wyer Porsche 917K and only 14 laps behind a 28th-place No. 4 917K driven by Vic Elford and Jonkheer Gijsbert van Lennep, Esq., who later in 1971 co-drove the same No. 3 Martini and Rossi 917 to a Le Mans win with Herr Doktor Helmut Marko (yes, that Helmut Marko) who co-drove with Rudi Lins at Daytona.

(BBM: In its 1970 Daytona debut, the Porsche 917K scored a victory with co-drivers Rodriguez, Leo Kinnunen and Brian Redman. Redman also finished second, driving a sister 917K. According to, well, the storytellers, Kinnunen had difficulty with understanding the Queen's English, as spoken by John Wyer and company. Having been repeatedly told to slow due to his massive lead but apparently not having a "clue," when Kinnunen next pitted for fuel Redman went in for two slower-driving stints so as to preserve the car for the finish. Of course, there are those who would say, even to this day, that Redman is slow, slow, slow anyway. Countering such fallacy was his later 1981 championship romp in the Flying Banana, aka the Cooke-Woods' Lola T600).

Insofar as Daytona and, especially, the FIA was concerned, when 1971 ended so, too, did the Porsche 917: two Daytona races; two Daytona wins; and, Daytona done.

The 917 was a helluva car having a legendary status rivaling that of axe-wielding Paul Bunyan's -- but even Herr Doktor Singer didn't rank it the equal, much less ahead of the Porsche prototypes that would follow. Then again, the following race cars would pretty much be "all" Herr Doktor Singer's whereas the 917 wasn't.

Before imaginative enhancement and following fantastic tales took hold, the Porsche 917 likely was more attributable to a boring racing climate fostered by the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) than anything else.

In a series of moves during the years immediately preceding the 917's introduction at the March 13, 1969, Geneva International Motor Show, the FIA in June 1968 had come down hard on prototypes having large-displacement engines.

And who had kicked bootie with large-displacement engines? Exactly!

All sorts of behind-the-seen political reasons were cited for the FIA's almost complete sportscar racing rulebook rewrite (try to quickly say that three times, starting with "complete") but the FIA (with the ACO celebrating in the background) made it pretty clear American-based engineering was no longer welcome unless it first could "homologate" Yurrupean-sized engines. For goodness sakes, Ford's Pinto and Chevrolet's Vega both were a couple or three years still down the road.

Small-displacement engines!? At the time, frankly, yours truly was trying to just get his head around something called "cubic centimeters" and eventually would acquire a Vega to better understand it.

But liters?

Having unloaded on Zee Ameerikahns on the Atlantic Ocean's western shore, the French-dominated FIA hadn't given much consideration to chronic foe Germany (the reader does know France and Germany are historically acrimonious, no? Believe it: doubtful would be the recent collaborative resolve of France's President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel if not for a considerable fear of a collapse of the Yurrupean, oops, European Currency Unit, with such doing no good whatsoever for either country, especially Germany -- according to leading German economist Jörg Bergmeister, who happens to also drive a Porsche every now and again between economics lectures).

The result of the FIA's rules rewrite was a 800-kilogram (1764-pound), 5-liter homologated sports car class having a minimum build of 25-units.

It was a racing class that, in net effect, produced the world's first "supercar," the 917, because the class was intended for "street cars."

As known by anyone possessing at least some awareness of Porsche's glorious racing history, the company scrambled to produce their 25 examples of the 917 but only after the FIA learned of Porsche's intent to compete within its "S" or "Sports" (not "prototype") competition class and, most particularly, after learning that Porsche had only fully constructed six of the FIA's 25 required cars.

(A lot has been said, indeed, "urban myths" arose in a couple of cases, as to how Porsche met the minimum.

(Porsche's own story: Porsche "'had all the bits and pieces to build 19 more for the homologation,' according to Rico Steinemann, Porsche’s racing manager at the time, 'the FIA then decided, no!'

("'As all of the racing department’s resources were being utilized, the workers to build the cars would have to come from elsewhere.'

("'We put together apprentices, messenger boys, bookkeepers, office people and secretaries,' remembered Steinemann years later. 'Just enough people, taught just enough to put together 25 cars!'" - Source: "40 YEARS OF THE PORSCHE 917," Motorsport PR, official Porsche press release distributed Mar. 9, 2009.

(Author Randy Leffingwell's Porsche Legends not only possesses beautiful photography but has even more on the 917's origination, in "Porsche's" own words, as well as other interesting Porsche historical tidbits, as of the book's August 2002 publication.

Oh, yeah, the rest of the Haywood "early" story . . .

In 1973, driving a Brumos Porsche 911 Carrera RSR (given the 917 story: ironically entered as a prototype because it wasn't homologated), Haywood and Gregg won the Daytona 24 in an upset by besting supposedly "faster, better" 3.0-liter sports prototypes like the (N.A.R.T.) Ferrari 312P, a (factory) Matra-Simca, a (Reinhold Joest) Porsche 908 and a John Wyer Gulf-Mirage.

Haywood saw his and Gregg's Daytona 24 win in 1973 as that which "put my name on the international stage for the first time. It was when everyone really started paying attention to me," the overall Daytona 24 win leader said recently.

Haywood eventually added another four Daytona 24 victories to a longstanding record five that only now is being directly challenged by Scott Pruett, who has four wins overall (and five others in-class).

Although believing his name was thrust into worldwide circulation after his 1973 Daytona 24 win, people surely had started taking notice of "Haywood" by that time, he having won five "sprint" races during the preceding two seasons.

Among another three Daytona 24 podiums (1st, 1975; 3rd, 1976; 1st, 1977) Haywood would win an additional eight races among 24 total podium finishes in the series' following years before he'd go to Le Mans for the first time in 1977, winning at Circuit de la Sarthe with co-drivers Jürgen Barth and Jacky Ickx in the No. 4 Martini Porsche 936 (#77 001).

In a touch of irony, the fellow who "discovered" Haywood, "Peter Perfect," placed third in that year's 24 Heures du Mans (with co-drivers Jacques Borras and Claude Ballot-Lèna in a privateer Porsche 935).

Later,

IT’S TIME

2012-01-16T15:37:00.001-05:00

DAYTONA BEACH – Search the world for an opinion as to the one culture considered to have the most persistent romantically inclined males and, hands down, Italians rule.

Substitute "sports car" for "romance" in a similar search for "the most" or "the best" and, again hands down, Italians rule.

It seems only natural that an Italian appreciative of both worlds would wax metaphorically, as if the two actually were one, while he stood highest on the 1998 Rolex 24 At Daytona Victory Lane podium.

"For many years I think, 'Daytona doesn't love me,'" a suave, salt-and-pepper-haired, 50-something Italian male said in halting English about a race in the pursuit of which he had spent enough money to perhaps have bought not just one Rolex, but Rolex itself.

"I said, 'Well, Daytona is like a woman, I try again and again.'"

Having just won a race he'd been pursuing on and off for nearly 30 years, the Italian's win in a Ferrari 333SP likewise plied a 500-lb. winless-at-Daytona monkey from the back of Italian sportscar-maker Ferrari, who hadn't won at the famed track since another Italian, Lorenzo Bandini, and New Zealander Chris Amon won in it 1968 while driving a Ferrari 330P4.

A cheering throng, chanting "Moretti! Moretti!" had gathered around Daytona International Speedway's victory podium while Gianpiero Moretti wasted little time in fastening a new Daytona Cosmograph to his wrist (unlike today's winners who stiffly stand while photographers almost endlessly snap pictures of drivers displaying watches in boxes, "Right hand here; left hand there. That's right, just like everyone else," a brand manager endlessly coaches).

The watch secure to his wrist, the chant gave way to raucous victory cheers when Moretti thrust his fist into the air, co-drivers Mauro Baldi, Arie Luyendyk and Didier Theys heartily celebrating, backslapping their team owner -- who for the moment celebrated as much as might have Gaius Julius Caesar in claiming Rome after crossing the Rubicon.

Moretti wasn't interested in winning just any DIS race -- for in 1980, driving with Reinhold Jöst in a Porsche 935J, he'd won the season-ending sprint race at Daytona -- it was the Rolex 24 Moretti had fervently pursued and, in so doing, had grown a little older, a little slower and tired more easily.

Noting his weaknesses as much as his strengths, after wheeling two Saturday race stints Moretti handed the 1998 Rolex 24's Saturday night and early Sunday shifts to his three younger drivers.

On Sunday afternoon, with victory in sight, though, Moretti wanted to take the checkered flag and, most of all, drive the MOMO Ferrari into DIS' Victory Lane.

With just under an hour remaining in the race and the team having reversed an early race 18-lap deficit to a net eight-lap gain over second-place Rohr Motorsport's 911 GT1 Evo, team manager/part owner Kevin Doran called Baldi in for the car's final pit stop and driver change, whereupon Moretti climbed in with 50-minutes to go.

"This is a feeling I want to have. I want to see a picture of my car, me in the car in Victory Lane in Daytona," Moretti emphatically said after the 711-lap race. Clearly, he felt it was something he'd earned and wasn't about to blow the opportunity.

Fielding a reporter's following question, Moretti responded: "You ask me what I want to win, here or Le Mans? The answer is easy; if I win Le Mans, I will be happy." Then, raising his arm for all to see the Rolex on his wrist, he said, "No doubt, the Rolex is what I want. It has been my desire. Today, I did it!"

Moretti, having previously tried and failed 15 times to win the Rolex 24, was asked if he'd return for another go in 1999, so that he might have a Rolex for each wrist.

"I'm 58 in two months, it's time . . ." Moretti said, words failing him at that moment and his eyes welling with emotion.

Those who well knew Moretti were aware beforehand that the '98 race likely was his final Rolex 24 At Daytona. He was tired.

They knew that had Moretti not won he would at least know his best effort had been given, even if it meant defeat, as is sometimes the case in love for a woman. Indeed, some later opined, it may well have been his recognition of that being his last Daytona try; a soul-calming acceptance and resignation that made the win possible.

Finally, even though at times exasperated beyond despair in the past, he in 1998 would win the chase for his "love."

Moretti was a man of class, a man of his word and served well as the very definition of "gentleman racer" or, for that matter, "gentleman," alone.

On Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012 -- just two weeks shy of the 50th Anniversary of the race he loved and which 14 years ago finally loved him back -- gentleman Gianpiero Moretti passed.

"It's time . . ."

Later,

AIN’T NO WAY!

2012-01-05T19:53:00.001-05:00

Now that fait accompli is Lady Gaga in Times Square on New Year's Eve having had a ball with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is it too late to publish a 2011 "best" list?

Inasmuch as many astute motorsports journalists have already published top-10 lists focusing on various series and within which its "best" drivers, teams and etc., your humble scribe feels only somewhat compelled to do the same.

Thus, he digresses a bit with his simple yet distinctly complex, "AIN'T NO WAY!" Awards, the occurrence of that which follows being entirely haphazard.

After finally settling a reported monetary squabble originating in 2001 -- whether it hallucinatory, paid, forgiven or forgotten -- the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series' 2010 return to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin's Road America race track was delayed until 2011 (something had to give when vociferous cries arose for a "West Coast" race upon such being omitted with the 2010 schedule's original release).

After finally arriving in cheese-head land and those angered, roaring race car engines having since fallen silent, most everyone likely thought the race's highlight was Gunter Schaldach and Joe Foster taking wing at the 4-mile road course's Turn One perimeter.

Schaldach having flown his No. 07 TheCoolTV Camaro beyond it, while Foster, having been gently extracted from his No. 40 VisitFlorida.com Mazda, was soon thereafter flying, too -- albeit in a hospital-bound helicopter.

While it was the kind of crash that makes onlookers cringe and sponsors cheer (exposure, exposure, exposure) and women swoon, your scribe deigns to disagree that "flying" surprise trumped all else at Road America's 2011 Rolex Series race.

Nope, the race's biggest surprise started coming together when No. 31 Whelen Engineering Corvette regular driver Boris Said temporarily booked it to Fairytale Land, alternately known as California or "The Left Coast," so as to compete in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

(Should anyone think Greece and the Euro to be a big deal, just wait 'till the un-Golden State implodes.)

Thus short one of its "A-Team" drivers, Marsh Racing paired John Heinricy with its "other" A-driver, Eric Curran.

An engineer and a retired GM High Performance Vehicles director who over the years has squeezed in a couple-hundred-or-so car races, The HeinRocket didn't disappoint, placing the unfamiliar Corvette on the race's second row.

Upon Heinricy's race-shift conclusion, co-driver Curran was presented with a healthy car for a finishing push that ended at the absolute front of the Rolex Series' Road America Grand Touring field.

Considering the team had in nine 2010 races (missing the Rolex 24, HMS and DIS 2) averaged a 14.4 finish and, though albeit better, a 9.6 average finishing position in 2011's five races prior to Road America, thus emerged was one of 2011's biggest surprises, barely edging "Ain't No Way!" second-place finisher Team Sahlen.

AIN'T NO WAY!

Coincidentally occurring at the same track, Road America, and the same race, the Rolex Sports Car Series Driven by VisitFlorida.com, Nonnamaker Racing's three Sahlen-sponsored Mazda RX-8 cars, lacking relative straight-line speed, had to lean heavily on carving and cutting the famed 4-mile Road America course into bits and pieces, not unlike a butcher at work.

"We came in here (Road America) concerned about our being down on power, especially with this track's long straights, so we concentrated on getting the car to turn," team engineer Catherine Wallace said after Wayne Nonnamaker and his No. 42 Sahlen Mazda RX-8 scored his first top qualifying spot since a 2004 SGS (defunct) class pole at Daytona International Speedway.

Employing a deft pit strategy during the 13-lap, 50-minute caution that followed Gunter Schaldach's No. 07 TheCoolTV Chevrolet Camaro's tangle with Joe Foster's No. 40 VisitFlorida.com Mazda RX-8, the team's newly enlisted MazdaSpeed Ladder driver John Edwards -- who too often fails to appear on "best driver" lists not because he isn't -- drove the No. 42 Mazda to a second-place finish fewer than 6/10ths of one second behind winner Eric Curran's No. 31 Whelen Corvette.

AIN'T NO WAY!

Third in the most-competitive-to-date Ain't No Way Awards (even if this be the first ANWA) is a team that over the last two seasons scored back-to-back, fourth-place GT team championship finishes but still was mostly, if not completely shuttered at 2011's end.

For 2010, James Gué and Leh Keen teamed to drive the newly formed No. 41 Team Seattle/Global Diving & Salvage Mazda RX-8.

Harbored in Norcross, Ga., along with Dempsey Racing's No. 40 VisitFlorida.com Mazda RX-8 sister car, the team was comprised mostly of new-to-Dempsey personnel who, in only their second race, would score a podium finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Though all Mazda RX-8s labored in 2011 relative to 2010's rules, a well-prepared car, devoted pit work and a mighty fine pit-side folding table, atop which the No. 41's engineer, crew chief and team manager toiled, Gué and Keen, on their way to a fifth place in the GT driving championship, delivered 11 top-10, six top-5 and four podium finishes that first season, capped by an unforgettable Crown Royal 250 win at Watkins Glen International -- Dempsey Racing's first in the Rolex Series.

After 2010's trophies were distributed in Las Vegas, 2009 GT-champion Keen, for some odd reason, opted for Brumos Racing's hallowed ground for the 2011 season.

Staying put at Dempsey for 2011, Gué was joined by up-and-coming 23-year-old Dane Cameron, who's compiled multiple rookie-of-the-year awards and as well as championships, simultaneously collecting both in the 2007 Star Mazda season.

After the Mazda RX-8 platform claimed 4-of-5 and 6-of-10 of corresponding 2010 Rolex Series GT team championship's top spots, a manufacturer's title and top driver awards, Grand-Am here and there massaged a few rule book words and, viola (Italian for "wah-lah," Menego; ask Max), a "more competitive GT environment" emerged for 2011. Restated: A similar Mazda RX-8 traffic jam atop the GT championship ladder wasn't particularly desired for 2011.

Indeed, Mazda scored only 3-in-5 and 4-in-10 of the final top-10 team championship spots, yet the No. 41 of Cameron and Gué conjured precisely the same fourth-place end of year team championship as had it in 2010.

The third-highest ranked of eight Mazda GT teams in 2010, the Cameron and Gué-led team improved by one spot to finish second best of the eight Mazdas competing in 2011.

Insofar as the 2011 drivers' championship was concerned, Gué and Cameron actually finished one spot better than did Gué and Keen -- fourth vs. fifth, respectively.

Though more occurred behind the scenes than does meet the eye above, walking papers ultimately were handed to a group of otherwise very talented people.

A necessary thing, ego, but never so important that in its maintenance all else should fail.

AIN'T NO WAY!

Honorable Mentions:

For the 2010 Rolex Sports Car Series season Autohaus Motorsports poked its GT nose out of the shop door only five times -- a few as a Pontiac GTO.R; a couple as a Camaro.R -- and finished a best 11th place at the season-ending Tooele, Utah race.

Something good must've happened in the offseason -- perhaps the team acquiring the driving services of Jordan Taylor and Bill Lester -- because the team by the 2011 season's end was leading a tight championship battle having only a five-point spread among the top-3 contenders as the Rolex Series arrived at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

The championship was Autohaus' to lose which, in a gut wrenching single-car spin at Mid-O's wicked, three-turn complex just before pit straight, it did.

Autohaus, Lester and Taylor would lose the team and driving championships by two points, respectively, to Brumos Racing and its drivers, Andrew Davis and Leh Keen.

No matter who; no matter how, it had to hurt, and badly so.

Speaking of First-Year, Championship-Winning Teams . . . They aren't supposed to accomplish as much; "developing" for "next year" usually being the song sung.

Sure, any race team wants to win. A race car driver worth his or her salt truly believes such will happen, in fact.

The reality is that a first-year team has a lot of kinks to shake out and while one might do well here and there, the idea of winning a championship mostly is fodder for jokes and sarcasm because few debuting teams will climb so high as the pinnacle in Year No. 1.

Or, so such is supposed to be and which the Brumos Racing team evidently ignored, never mind altogether disproving in 2011.

Yet, early in 2011 it was a point this writer hardly had considered yielding, especially after the season's third race at Barber Motorsports Park, before which Brumos scored fifth and seventh-place finishes at Daytona International Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway, respectively.

After the Rolex Series had called it a day, Ol' DC remained afterward to watch Friday's final Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge practice from BMP's picturesque Turn 2-3 complex.

Upon its end and a return to the Rolex Series' paddock Ol' DC found himself surprised to be strolling along a string of mostly closed haulers, excepting one.

Parked perpendicular to the team transporter's rear, Brumos Racing's iconic No. 59 Porsche GT3 Cup car sat in the paddock roadway, flanked on the driver's side by a shoulder-to-shoulder Brumos crew that, other than being neatly aligned and handling all manner of pit side essentials, appeared fully prepared to party hardy.

Filling the surrounding air were no fewer than a half-dozen different conversations, from which laughter occasionally arose, nearly all of the assembled crew seemingly oblivious as to the reason for their being there.

A first stab at a pit stop practice lasted all of about 8 seconds before Joe LaJoie called for everyone to get serious and at least try to make good another following attempt.

And another.

All took next-to-forever, according to Ol' DC's stopwatch -- really, it's right there on the watch's face, between "Sometime Today" and "Eternal Damnation" -- and they hadn't even attempted a driver swap.

A couple-more similar record-setting attempts set off Ol' DC's stomach, which commenced growling, "feed me!" and in the pursuit of satiating he proceeded to saunter away.

After Brumos' Saturday race finish of 20th overall and 10th in class it wasn't really too hard to imagine that the team in 2011 would do exactly what so many other teams had done in the past: "prepare" for a following year by "getting experience" and learning where to "improve weak points."

So much for "imagination."

Later,

ALL(MENDINGER) OF THE STORY

2011-12-30T12:30:00.001-05:00

DAYTONA BEACH – During the recent Dec. 19 Rolex Series test at Daytona International Speedway, A.J. Allmendinger was full of energy, vim, vigor and all that stuff while testing Michael Shank Racing's new Ford-powered, third-generation Riley Technologies' Daytona Prototype -- which a member of a certain "Trustworthy" team claimed The 'Dinger as having sandbagged; regularly pulling up just short of clocking low 1:40's.

Allmendinger's fire, smile and upbeat attitude took a Stuka-like nose dive, though, when mentioned was "RPM" (Richard Petty Motorsports) or, even, "stock cars."

In need of some material for folks who handsomely pay for such (that is, the guy who cuts the checks being the "handsome" one, 'cause the stringer pay darn sure ain't), so as to speak with Mr. Allmendinger your intrepid reporter risked life and limb in running a rear-to-front transporter gauntlet of hostile MSR team members.

Likely seeing themselves akin to the Wizard of Oz's winged monkeys, they chanted "Oh-re-o, Oh-reo. Oh-re-o, Oh-reo."

So I tossed a package into their midst and that was the end of that gauntlet.

Climbing stair leading to the "2nd floor," forging ahead into the midst of an "up-front" groupthink by "The Talent," (that is: owner/s, engineer/s, drivers and, sometimes, Barry Waddell), Mr. Allmendinger was in the midst of chow when asked if he might provide a few, um, "testy" thoughts.

"Sure, but don't ask me anything about my other racing activities," Allmendinger responded with narrowed gaze.

The confused reporter (a regular condition of which ColdPit regulars are aware) wondered aloud as to why such circumstances should, even could exist, "After all, you can hardly not mention your other driving job in NASCAR, even if only cursory."

"Not even a word," was Allmendinger's terse reply, followed with, "Don't bring up the subject, at all, please. If you want to talk about (Mike) Shank (Racing) and sports cars, that's cool, but don't go anywhere near my other racing job. If you do, I will be forced to say things no one will believe I am capable of saying, even if captured by video."

Given the reporter's primary want of sportscar stuff, the driver's wish to steer clear of that "other" anti-subject was duly noted.

“But still . . .”

Unleashed then was a short verbal volley that would've impressed any U.S. Marine, after which six assorted others in immediate proximity said something along the lines of, "Somebody might've said what we just heard but clearly it wasn't A.J."

The reporter, properly silenced (stunned?) but nevertheless remaining curious as to that which had occurred to Allmendinger's previously believed "secure" 2012 sponsorship deal -- 26 of the 36 official races on the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup's official schedule. As everyone knows, "Two out of three ain't bad" (thank you, Meat Loaf).

Having paid little attention beyond the point of Kurt Busch and Penske Racing each having respectively acknowledged a need of marching to different drums (thanks to Linda Ronstadt and/or H.D. Thoreau), some of "the rest of the story" subsequently became apparent to your humble scribe at the Fountainhead of Informational Flow, the DIS Media Center.

Simply put: Despite Allmendinger having scored his best Sprint Cup points finish as yet and with 2012 agreements already in place, when a certain Mr. Kurt Busch became a free agent a certain Richard Petty Motorsports executive displayed something other than magnanimity with regard to Mr. Allmendinger's continued association with RPM.

Speaking unreservedly to the favor of acquiring Mr. Busch's talents -- even if to the detriment of Mr. Allmendinger -- at least one RPM executive offered his soul, um, er, real estate in exchange for Mr. Busch's services.

“I would mortgage my house to make Kurt (Busch) a part of this team,” RPM Chief Operating Officer Robbie Loomis said in a Dec. 13 interview on SiriusXM's NASCAR-themed satellite radio show, Sirius Speedway.

"We value what he (Busch) has done on the race track. He has won a (Sprint Cup) championship and worked for a first-class operation like Penske Racing. Guys like that don’t come along every day.”

“(Sponsor) Best Buy has been a great partner for a long time, and A.J. Allmendinger has done a fantastic job for us. He’s coming off his best season yet, but I can tell you there is a lot of interest on our part in having Kurt Busch in the fold," Loomis said.

That RPM is struggling to stay viable is the gist of more than a few Charlotte, N.C., conversations. That someone within RPM would put at risk one of a family's most sacrosanct financial assets shows a high regard for RPM and Mr. Busch.

Yet, to all but callously discard someone else in the process, especially a darn decent (in more ways than one) "someone else," just provides for bad air.

If someone can be simultaneously noble and ignoble, Loomis sure made a good run at it.

If incorrect, nonetheless peripherally tied to the matter ("collateral damage," if one might), is (wait for it) "leading multi-channel global retailer and developer of technology products and services" company Best Buy (really, the preceding quotation is Best Buy's self-description).

Seeing some entwine Best Buy in Allmendinger's abandonment, thus sought by this reporter was an Allmendinger comment as to Best Buy's culpability.

"No, no, no!" Allmendinger said whilst in the midst of exchanging his driver's suit for street clothes.

"I've got absolutely no issues with Best Buy. They're good people and have been a terrific sponsor. They've got nothing to do with this. It's just one particular guy," Allmendinger at that moment stopping well short of naming that "guy," also effectively ending the discussion in silence but with downcast eyes and a shaking head saying volumes about disappointment and disbelief.

Allmendinger -- on the record or off -- could've at that time trashed someone, anyone, but did not. He took a higher road when more than a few folks would've chosen, perhaps did choose differently.

It's little wonder why Mike Shank (actually, everyone on the MSR team) thinks so highly of Allmendinger.

Even though Allmendinger over the course of his five NASCAR Sprint Cup seasons has in each improved his points standing over the previous (starting at 43rd his first season and in 2011 scoring a career-best 15th), his move to Penske of course doesn't guarantee a 2012 Chase spot.

Looking at its racing-entity empire as a whole, Penske Racing has compiled nearly 350 major race wins (about 70 of 'em in NASCAR), over 400 pole positions, 15 Indianapolis 500 victories, a Daytona 500 win and nearly 25 national championships (among them, Brad Keselowski's 2010 Nationwide Series title).

Yet, the organization has yet to get any closer to the topmost of the Sprint Cup ladder rungs than Rusty Wallace's second-place finish to Dale Earnhardt in the 1993 Sprint (nee Winston) Cup championship. (Note: Wallace drove for team-owner Raymond Beadle when the driver captured his 1989 Cup Championship crown).

Given Mr. Penske's success elsewhere (Chip Ganassi presently is 12 wins shy of Penske's Indy 500 win total, though the former enjoys a 5-to1 advantage over the latter in the Rolex 24), many are left wondering why a class-act Penske Racing organization has over the course of its 40 NASCAR seasons failed to claim center-stage at the stock car sanctioning body's annual awards ceremony.

Given Penske's seeming affinity for open-wheel types , maybe, just maybe, The 'Dinger can help turn that particular championship corner.

Being among the best liked in the Sprint Cup family, a 2012 Allmendinger surge into a year-end Chase ranking will be widely celebrated in the garage, mainly because Allmendinger, despite a head-spinning period no one saw coming, continued to display a personal class-act style that's a perfect match for the Penske organization.

Later,

SPEED, WHAT SPEED?

2011-12-07T12:05:00.001-05:00

DAYTONA BEACH – Gawd, what an absurdity.

You get up in the mornin', you hear the ding-dong ring (with thanks to Johnny Rivers), get the coffee a-brewing, rub eyes with balled fists (or extended fingers; depends), whiz, yawn a couple of times while stumbling along the drive in search of a newspaper, reverse course and stumble anew whilst returning to a structure wherein existing are "Honey-Do" demands for acts to be performed whereupon.

Inside again, (where presently in Detroit it is colder inside most houses than outside everywhere in Daytona Beach), finally in hand is a warm coffee cup possessed of wispy steam arising and its bearer headed for a favored morning-time butt holder (whether "chair," "couch" or "throne" being a matter of timing and a highly personal decision, but it being beneath one's butt being universally true . . . unless absent is that particular anatomical feature and, no doubt, an offended someone now reaching for his phone so as to protest this writer's "insensitivity" of those without. But, that's another ramble, altogether saved for the future, whilst still rolling with this one).

Contained still by the slumber from which you had just been loosed are the yelling kiddies, spouses, bosses and those who think themselves Bosses of The World (that is, every other driver on the morning commute) who will yet get their "moments."

It's a beautiful thing, those early day moments of quiet near-perfection.

Yet, deep inside you know it somehow is falling short.

At first struggling to understand the void felt and give it voice, a "EUREKA!" moment then arises.

Quickly grasping one of the most important tools of the modern-age male (archaeological digs millions-of-years in the future will confirm such), a remote control in an instant has set alight a nearby television and SPEEDtv subsequently tuned for the latest word concerning the world of motorsports – a “morning news” having been deemed an important part of nearly every real-time cable channel’s line-up (as distinguished from tape-delayed, scripted "reality" shows, the advertised description of which surely makes proud the likes of Aldous Huxley, George Orwell and Joseph Heller – were they still kicking, that is).

After all, among Tuesday’s hot-topic motorsports banter were the IndyCar Series' Dallara weight-distribution hassles – according to some the chassis apparently having been devised by Rube Goldberg's progeny at the behest of an ICS committee which forgot the car would occasionally race on surfaces other than just road courses.

The open-wheel car's integrated chassis weight having been shifted rearward by committee fiat and the Goldberg-types happily complying, the Dallara reportedly is a road-course dream not-as-wonderful on ovals, upon which IndyCar Series cars either charge ahead famously fast or, elsewise, when "baby got back," seriously rub along walls.

Then, there are the legions of sportscar fans eagerly awaiting news on what will likely prove to be the most competitive GT-class season since last century and while under the sanction of IMSA version 1.x.

Why, on Tuesday alone, at Daytona International Speedway were nine different marques -- Porsche, Ferrari, Viper, Ford, Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Mazda and Buckler -- begging to differ with those who decried this week's DIS test as "inconsequential."

The January 28-29 GT race within the race? Well, it'll probably be nothing short of spectacular and just as likely to set off a firestorm of mid-Rolex 24 complaints from the faster Daytona Prototype types who expect the GT guys simply to move over whenever in proximity -- plus-or-minus a one-mile radius -- and discounting a proffered GT-position-fight argument as being not at all germane to a DP’s sole right of way.

In fact, such reminds one of some highway drivers all too often seen in a rearview mirror contained within the painted boundaries of a multi-lane highway's farthest-right lane, the following driver absolutely foaming at the mouth because the car immediately ahead is motoring along "too slowly" at the lawful speed limit.

Then, also at the test was the Brazilian driving talent, Filipe Nasr (in No. 58, at left), who came to DIS Tuesday after undertaking a detour journey through Yurrup and winning the Sunoco Challenge along the way. The guy is intelligent, more handsome than Ozz Negri, well mannered and speaks English without apparent trouble. In short: A perfect interview subject. Was “darn fast” omitted? We’re talking lickety split, actually.

Last but not least: Arriving Tuesday at Daytona International Speedway for the first time anywhere in decades was the first official Corvette prototype design to be officially produced by an official Corvette race car producer in the form of four darn-good-looking copies (SDR No. 90; SunTrust No. 10; Action Express Racing's Nos. 5 and 9, the latter pictured way up above and, shown at right, two of its drivers: João Barbosa, left, and Terry Borcheller, middle. The guy barely discernable pictured to Borcheller’s left was widely rumored as Bill Riley, but such remained unconfirmed. Besides, Shank’s new Gen3 Ford DP is supposedly being built this week at the Riley shops).

So, returning to this morning’s real world, what did SPEEDtv offer avid race fans? The chance of acquiring one's very own Personal-Time Gut Trainer, for "three easy installments" of $19.95, plus handling (at another $1,295.99 each, by the way. Yessiree, quite a sales-tax savings there).

Well, at least the morning started with great promise.

Later,

CHANGING THE GAME

2011-11-17T17:01:00.001-05:00

Plain and simple: The Corvette DP is a game-changer, notwithstanding is whether it immediately goes faster than everything else.

For now.

Still, in an odd, ironic kind of way and after having taken a route that's stretched over nine racing seasons, the Daytona Prototype concept is "coming home" in its 10th season.

When former Grand-Am president Roger Edmondson in 2001 revealed the DP concept to this writer -- which at the time didn't even have an official name ("Daytona Sports Car" would be its first) -- one of the embryonic project's ambitious intentions was a desire to have everyday car owners relate to the future racing class through styling cues, primary among which were headlight and taillight lenses.

It's fair to say Porsche wasn't exactly thrilled with the whole DP styling-cue idea, but rarely is Porsche thrilled when something is outside of its hands, anyway.

Porsche has said, will say it's a matter of quality control. Others will, have countered (ask those whose association with Erwin and Manfred Kremer dates to the 1979 Le Mans) it's a matter of Porsche being able to make a buck or two. There's probably truth to be found in each, not that such shouldn't.

As those who were aware of those times have since conveyed, Porsche so lacked, um, enthusiasm for the DP concept that it supposedly threatened to shut off the parts-supply pipeline to those involved. That is, until someone noted that while countering clout could be exercised in new parts distribution channels, out in the wilds of America were thousands of junkyards from which sufficient parts quantities could be gathered.

Though Porsche's attitude became helpful in time, it remained antagonistic because even the Cayenne-based engines built by the Lozano Brothers came from a junkyard or through surreptitious means.

Oops.

On the domestic side, the DP which took the 2003 Rolex 24 At Daytona class crown was a "Ford Focus" fielded by Multimatic Motorsports and driven by Scott Maxwell, David Empringham and David Brabham.

Seeking to improve throttle response or "drivability" at the accelerator pedal which the three drivers pressed "to metal," changed was that proverbial 25-cent part -- though due to inflation the cost allowance probably should be around five bucks.

The three drivers -- Brabham, Empringham and Maxwell -- got their desired response but from a locally acquired spring that hadn't been previously tested at all on the (then only) Robert and Doug Yates-built engine, much less properly so.

Three springs, inconveniently placed, would snap and need replacement during the race. Alone subtract those laps lost in the pits replacing only the springs and a Ford Focus would've been entered in the history books as finishing ahead of all others in the 2003 Rolex 24.

Yet, despite Dearborn's officially approved name, the Multimatic Ford Focus effort immediately afterward all but entirely ground to a halt and languished to such an extent that precious developmental time passed quickly and irretrievably, making the Ford Focus DP an also-ran barely beyond its first race.

GM Racing, although willing to put its name Chevrolet name on valve covers and associated exterior car decals, was similar to Porsche in its not being thrilled to see a DP carry Corvette taillights and headlamps.

The Corvette, at the time, was only a handful of years into a relatively new program elsewhere and, reportedly, wasn't desirous of confusion arising.

At the same time GM didn't wish to offend those within the Grand-Am's topmost ranks who likewise had firm, similar connections to a very successful form of North American stock car racing.

The GM folks then said, "Let there be Pontiac," and between the 2004 Rolex 24 At Daytona's first practice day and race end, transformed within every GM-associated engine bay were Chevrolets to Pontiacs -- save one.

"No one's signed a contract with me yet," Jim Bell said after a reporter asked why his race-winning, Bell Motorsports-fielded No. 54 Kodak Doran JE4 still bore "Chevrolet" decals.

Car owner/driver Forest Barber, knowing drivers Andy Pilgrim, Christian Fittipaldi (who wasn't even listed on some official forms) and 2003 DP driving champ Terry Borcheller were sufficiently imbued with talent to have already carried the show, barely had enough time (or engine compression) to drive the DP's final 30-or-so minutes.

"Pontiac," at the time deemed GM's high-performance division as the guys in marketing would supposedly see it, offered a neat, clean way to escape fan confusion and for years to come keep happy the Grand-Am powers that be.

Yet, with the Chevrolet-to-Pontiac (and a similar Toyota-to-Lexus) switch came cries of woe heard from owners, who were reluctant to spend money merely for the sake of styling cues, and constructors, who noted that a seemingly simple headlight and taillight swap required engineering and associated expenses.

Though David Klym's FDSC/03 DP design was most associated with the Brumos Porsche Racing team, Darius Grala's Cegwa Sport chassis No. FDSC/03 004 "Toyota" had competed in eight of 2003's12 races and was expected to again undertake a limited 2004 schedule (eventually, three races).

"While a Lexus tail lamp might be an off-the-shelf part, the structure (the DP) into which it is mounted isn't," FABCAR's David Klym said in the changes' wake. "We've got to do everything from CAD (computer aided design) to making new molds before the first body part can even be produced."

Thus gone in 2004 due to practical considerations now reemerged, ironically in the "Corvette DP."

Later,

FEAR AND LOATHING

2011-11-04T04:16:00.001-04:00

LAS VEGAS – Back in Ol' DC's Daytona Beach-area neighborhood is a matte-black Subaru WRX that a grocery store stock boy has driven to work for the better part of two years - a best-guess that Ol' DC's brain neurons can summon, that is.

Given the array of other fixed and electronic devices (translucent license-plate cover; radar detectors - yes, in the plural, arrayed on the dash like a bank of launch controls) the WRX about a year ago transitioned from a lovely shade of blue to a flat-matte finish, presumably in an effort to evade a bouncing of local and state gendarmes' radar and light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation ("LASER") guns. (By the way, whatever happened to "VASCAR?")

Whatever the intent, the WRX guy plainly was ahead of the curve given the flat-matte look so prevalent at SEMA Show v. 2011.

Indeed, given quick retrospection, "prevalent" is an understatement of nearly stellar proportions.

Matte was "in" big time. It was displayed on cars throughout the Las Vegas Convention Center's numerous halls, being displayed by small mom-and-pop car accessory displays to major automakers’ small-superstore-sized showroom footprints.

Running hands and fingers over many of the encountered matte surfaces, Ol' DC walked away with one principal thought: "What will become of Mothers, Maguire and like?"

Is the shine dead? Clear-coating a thing of the past?

Will FuzzBuster fade from the day-to-day battles between scofflaws and law?

To some degree, one is left wondering if the dark, foreboding flat-matte shift is a reflection of a soured economy, just as are long dark skirts (yes, it's true: shorter skirts accompany upbeat economic times and soaring stock markets. Get out there and do your part: buy stocks, bonds and whatever else that may help make legs look longer, sleeker and leave old guys longing for youth's "good ol' days").

Still, colorful rays of hope were seen at SEMA, almost literally.

Beating all to heck what long ago was termed "metallic" colors was what appeared to be, well, "colorized" metal.

Definitely metallic-like in an aluminium foil-like manner, Ford's display contained a red Mustang that was indescribable, as would the above words tend to support. But it sure was beautiful. Likewise, a greenish Camaro over at Chevrolet.

Both were astounding finishes that one best avoid should sun or Klieg lights be bouncing around in the immediate neighborhood. Or maybe not, if carried is a spare pair of welder's glasses.

MATING CALL

Ol' DC, now arising at times before many others even consider going to sleep, was already strolling the Specialty Equipment Manufacturer Association show’s middle part of its 2-million square feet well before others had even arisen. Then again, such is probably expected in Viva Las Vegas.

Suddenly, from the other side of an outside wall near which Ol' DC stood, came the squeal of smoking tires and, from the inside and heeding the clarion call, throngs of guys rushed headlong over each other and through the wall's doors, braving the brash morning Las Vegas sunshine.

Created by some fire-breathing Corvettes courtesy of Chevrolet, a line100-people deep soon formed, each hoping for an under-12-second, 1-lap ride around a parking-lot slalom course.

It was a well-oiled drill, for sure, Chevrolet's folks managing to smile each time the whole time, as hundreds of folks were herded through the drill like, well, cattle being led to you-know-where.

In the end, proved was one thing: put loud throaty sounding, rubber-peeling cars and scantily clad wimmin in one place at the same time and guys will either salivate to death or die trying to be the first in line for a spin, even if it hardly gives anyone time to pee one's pants.

Indeed, so numerous were the eye-candy, scantily dressed wimmin that even Neanderthal types must've figured they had a better-than-even chance of scoring, given the misinterpreted wimmin otherwise seen smiling at guys that even female-sized beer goggles wouldn't have countered elsewhere.

Here's a clue guys: The SEMA eye-candy wimmin are paid to: 1. Look good, 2. Smile, and 3. Look like they're actually interested in whatever you say.

HANGING AT CONTINENTAL, BOOTH 43425

At the Continental Tires display were Patrick Dempsey Racing's No. 40 Mazda RX-8, dazzlingly shiny in its "Florida" livery, and the No. 01 TELMEX/Target BMW-Riley Rolex 24 lookalike car complete with Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, Graham Rahal and Joey Hand's names atop the doors.

Standing off to one side and observing for about 30-minutes, nice to see were the number of people - male and female alike - who looked inside the shiny car, walked around it, knelt and stood alongside it (despite the flat-matte show theme) for portraits taken by camera-wielding friends.

A SPONSOR PARADISE?

SEMA's gathering of every (or doggone close to "every") automotive, truck, desert, deep woods and related accessory manufacturers just seems to be the perfect place to knock on doors for sponsorships.

Why, even Turner (Motorsports) had a prominent location with their championship-winning Rolex Series BMW parked within.

One hears Turner's already committed its sponsorship dollars, leaving, oh, perhaps a few thousand other exhibitors needing, wanting exposure.

Yet, awaiting a sponsorship just to up and jump into an awaiting lap are nearly every racer who complains they can't find sponsors.

Later,

Somewhere Over The Good Ol' US of A –

2011-11-03T01:06:00.001-04:00

On the way to SEMA in Las Vegas . . .

SCHEDULE TIME

For all you skeptics out there, yes, it's true, there will be a 2012 Rolex Sports Car Series without being presented by Crown Royal.

(Thank goodness . . . that is, for a reduction in the previous never-ending story, um, er, series title.)

Lucky thirteen - the number of venues the series' will be undertaking in 2012, beginning at Daytona International Speedway with the 50th Anniversary race of Rolex 24 At Daytona and ending in New York City at a very well known, longstanding hotel where certain other series also celebrate their season's end.

Between the beginning and end are 11 other races - one more than every season since 2006, during which Infineon (Sonoma) and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca were on the Left Coast swing, Autodromos Hermanos Rodriguez on the southern end and Watkins Glen to the north.

Look for some interesting revamps - like a big date change for Lime Rock Park - when Grand-Am president Tom Bledsoe will be announcing the rest at SEMA.

KROHN DOES AND, MAYBE, DOES NOT DAYTONA

"Krohn Aviation" (as was on the side of the team's No. 76 car) tested Oct. 25-26 at Daytona International Speedway.

Even though testing with the 50th Rolex 24 At Daytona in mind, owner Tracy Krohn and Krohn Racing head Jeff Hazell were pretty doggone non-committal about returning for the Rolex 24.

"It depends on what they (Grand-Am) do with our car," Krohn said, Hazell later echoing the boss' words.

Following its DIS test, the Proto-Auto Lola car was destined to face the manufactured winds of Langley Research Center's wind tunnel.

Located adjacent to Virginia's Langley Air Force Base and a part of a ever-shrinking NASA, the wind tunnel, built in 1934, is billed as "the world's largest."

Ask some racing folks long familiar with it, Langley is also "the world's leakiest," "antiquated," and shouldn't be used for establishing the aerodynamic efficiencies of one Daytona Prototype, much less comparing and establishing the differences between Daytona Prototype models.

"Whether we come back (to Daytona and the Rolex 24) depends on what Grand-Am gives us or takes away, aerodynamically," Krohn said, who tilted with and won all but one (minor) of the multiple civil counts leveled against it in 2009 by Lola.

"I've spent a lot of money on legal fees (Proto-Auto v. Lola) and little to show for it. So, now, I'm just waiting to see what they'll do after they take it to the wind tunnel.

"I'm not interested in running for the sake of running. I'm a competitor. So if whatever they give us, whatever they say is 'okay' aerodynamically and we think it'll work, then we'll be here (for the Rolex 24).

"But if we think it won't work, if we think we don't have a real chance at winning, why come?"

THE NEW CORVETTE DP

"Your next door neighbor, even if she's never even heard of a DP, would know this car is a Corvette when she saw it. I don't get all fired up over body shapes but this car is the most bad-assed car I've ever seen," one (Corvette DP-to-be) owner said recently, off the record.

Those who wish to see the car and, perhaps, the likes of Jimmie Johnson on hand for its unveiling, should be in the vicinity of Daytona International Speedway come Nov. 15 - the day preceding the Rolex Series' test commencing on the 16th.

MY FAVORITE ROLEX 24 PICS

Over the years, especially when the world depending on dark rooms to move a picture from camera to print, Ol’ DC took his fair share of pictures, especially at the Rolex 24. Some were good, some weren’t so good. Nevertheless, herein over the next few months will occasionally appear some never-before-published Rolex 24 images taken over those years by yours truly.

At left is the 1988 winner, managed by Tony Dowe and driven by Martin Brundle (GB), Raul Boesel (BR) and John Nielsen (DK) in Tom Walkinshaw Racing’s No. 60 Jaguar XJR-9. It completed 728 laps in 24:00:34.940, one lap in front of a second-place Porsche 962 driven by Bob Wollek, Brian Redman and Mauro Baldi, after the No. 60 Jag qualified 6th on the grid with a a 1:40.716.

Later,

ON THE TRACK AGAIN

2011-10-23T16:17:00.001-04:00

Colin Braun, the 2006 Rolex Series Daytona Prototype-driving-champ-who-wasn't-because-a-lawyer-didn't-understand-age-isn’t-always-all-defining was at Barber Motorsports Park last week for a two-day test with Starworks Motorsport.

Team principal Peter Baron before the test said Braun's 2012 seat with the team "is his to lose."

No word, as yet, if Braun did so, but such idea is difficult to fathom when involving such a talented racer.

(Be forewarned, it's at this point wherein arising is a treasure trove of bar-bet material produced by the 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series season, mostly connected to Braun.)

At Krohn Racing in 2006, when “allowed” to compete Braun was teamed with Jörg Bergmeister in one (No. 76) of two (No. 75, the other) Ford-powered Riley Daytona Prototypes throughout the season, the latter being teamed three times with drivers other than Braun (altogether excluding those who were a part of the first-of-year, multi-driver Rolex 24 team).

Bergmeister’s spare-driver rotation included: Max Papis at HMS; Boris Said at WGI’s (Sahlen’s 6 Hours at The Glen); Niclas Jönsson, team-owner Tracy Krohn and, again, Said at Sonoma. Should the reader be a tad confused about all those drivers at Sonoma: yes, Herr Bergmeister drove two different cars. (An Ol' DC maxim: "Rules rule at the time they are, or are not rules." Rules, laws, regulations, ordinances, statutes and kindred edicts can change or even be nonexistent at one time or another. Desirous of an example? Compare the quantity of Federal Statutes as of the close of the First Congress and that of the most recent).

Despite being altogether absent for three of that season's 17 points-paying races (it was a busy year) Braun nevertheless finished fourth in the 2006 championship fight.

Just in case someone thinks Braun, or Bergmeister for that matter was taking a veritable "cruise" lacking competition: In 2006, nearly 38 drivers completed at least 82-percent of that season's 17 races. As a whole, 21 drivers would meet rules definitions for having competed in every Daytona Prototype race among the 51 drivers who appeared at no fewer than half of that season’s 14 venues. Keep in mind that every Rolex Series driver must compete, or “drive” to at least some minimal, defined extent so as to score points ("complete" a race) but wherein attempting, more than one driver has found himself on the short end of the stick – no track time at all – when a preceding driver did not complete a car’s handoff to a teammate whether the result of mechanical failure, wreck or dumbheadedness. (Krohn Racing No. 76, right, in 2006 Sahlen’s 6 Hours At The Glen Victory Lane).

Together Braun and Bergmeister (below, left and right, respectively, with thanks to Krohn Racing for images) together produced two wins; eight top-fives and thirteen top-10's – only once finishing out of the top 10 (a 12th at Mazda raceway Laguna Seca, Race 1).

Braun's three in-absentia races wasn't the design of anyone from Krohn Racing or the Rolex Series.

Instead, some lawyer/s, lacking the ability to think outside of a particular legal box, used the term "under 18 years of age" to define a “minor” class of people who were excluded from what may well have been established, ordinary and gainful professional practices coincidentally conducted at a racing venue having engaged contracts between the Indy Racing League and Philip Morris USA.

Um, er, wasn't Krohn Racing a sportscar team? Yep, still is a sportscar team, in fact.

The Rolex series just happened to schedule a race the same weekend (Saturday) as the IRL (Sunday).

"So, Williams, you're saying Braun couldn't 'legally' race because of a contractual agreement that didn't directly involve the Rolex Series, Krohn Racing or Braun? And they didn’t even race on the same day!?"

Yep.

A misstep typical of those who haven't stood on a particular fence side (and we've all been there; or not there), some arguing of late that the same has befallen IndyCar Series' CEO Randy Bernard, who clearly has accomplished what his employers sought – "out-of-box thinking" – but who in so doing, some claim, lacks perspective unique to motorsports and, particularly, open-wheel racing. Indeed, the absence of intimate knowledge of one racing style as compared to another, say, stock car versus sportscar, can lead to miscues, too. Woe inevitably visits those who conjure answers when a question’s full grasp eludes.

The whole Smoking Braun deal was still weirder in a number of ways, such as Braun could've raced on Monday (which because of the legal squabbling nearly occurred), but we in the United States have in recent times "gotten off" on telling others not only where to go, but what to do and how to do it along the way. So let's just stay focused on Braun's racing or, perhaps, lack thereof.

So, as a result of smoking, a nonsmoking Braun in 2006 didn't race at Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS), Watkins Glen International (WGI) or Infineon Raceway (Sonoma) – at all of which the race card included the IRL – where Bergmeister (at right, credit Grand-Am) respectively finished 8th, 1st and 9th, ultimately besting (who else?) Scott Pruett and Luis Diaz ("Memo Rojas" before a name change) by 16 points for the championship crown . . . well, er, Rolex "watch." Okay, okay: "timepiece."

Perhaps more surprisingly, having been “exposed,” Braun still didn’t partake of any tobacco product, even though he daily remained at The Glen during the race weekend. Amazing, that.

On 2007, Braun finished fifth in the championship, hampered again by an undesired and forced race absence again at Sonoma, only this time it was at the hands of Rolex Series competition director Mark Raffauf, who insisted, "Colin Braun is one of the brightest talents the racing world has seen in the last few years," just before exacting a 16-day suspension period, within which was a race date at Sonoma.

Raffauf claimed (as did also claim a few team owners and drivers) Braun earlier that year breached the peace at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Barber Motorsports Park and Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal.

Again driving for Krohn Racing (it's a "Texan" thing) in the season's third of three 2007-season visits to Watkins Glen International, Braun was reportedly handed a pre-race "aggressive driving" warning ticket by Raffauf but nonetheless, while fighting for second-place in the race's final laps, committed the egregious act of contacting the No. 10 SunTrust Pontiac-Riley and driver Max Angelelli, who has been known to, um, rub fenders, too.

"However, like other emerging stars before him, occasionally these young drivers need to be refocused," Raffauf was quoted in the suspension announcement.

"I have no doubt that Colin will emerge from this suspension as an even better driver."

After Sonoma, Braun returned for the season's final race and proceeded to finish fifth in the championship, one spot better than when he was suspended. Funky, that.

Other than in a few one-off rides since the close of the 2007, Braun's been doing just that, becoming an "even better driver" while under the wing of Roush Fenway Racing.

After three years, a win and a personal best fifth-place NASCAR Truck Series championship finish in 2009, Braun's ride fell prey to a sponsorship plague which has yet to be defeated at Roush Fenway Racing (as well as others).

Released by Roush in Dec. 2010, after taking a year off Braun's apparently returned to sportscar racing and there's little doubt he's a "better driver," too, maturity's process being what it is.

Unsure at present who exactly will land in what car and with whom as Starworks owners Baron, Alex Popow and Enzo Potolicchio (who also moonlight as fairly good drivers) are working toward fielding three cars for the 2012 season. (Dalziel, Baron, Potolicchio, at right)

Just a few weeks ago at the end of the 2011 season, Potolicchio and longtime Baron driver Ryan Dalziel won the 2011 season's final race at Mid-Ohio, overcoming an otherwise season-long winless drought for Ford (Roush Yates Engines).

Also in Starworks’ Barber Motorsports Park test pits was Canadian Mark Wilkins, who isn’t likely to return to Woodbridge (Toronto) based AIM Autosport in 2012, especially since his Riley DP No. 001 is being restored to its black and gold livery – the colors worn for 2008-season race wins at Montreal (at left) and Watkins Glen International (race No. 2) – in preparation for its soon-to-be delivery and display at a Canadian motor sports museum.

"We're on good terms," Wilkins insisted of his relationship with his former team, soon without the Daytona Prototype in with which Wilkins and 2008 co-driver Brian Frisselle scored three podium finishes and finished fifth in the Rolex Series championship.

"I wish Ian (Willis) and AIM all the best but now is a good time for each of us to take new directions."

It was was in a Starworks Porsche-Riley (in a sole Porsche flat-six DP) that Wilkins led seven laps at Mid-Ohio in mid-September, one of the six drivers to lead the race, giving way to Starworks’ sister car and eventual winning-driver Dalziel (at below right, credit Grand-Am) after Wilkins’ tires went away toward race end.

A battle to be Starworks' engine supplier has since emerged, with Ford and Porsche the apparent leading contenders.

One only can wonder if Ford will beat Porsche at Starworks, just as it may have prophetically done at Mid-Ohio, or whether the team will run the flat-six – an engine even Porsche says has likely already traveled the full length of its developmental spectrum (yet, when Alwin Springer is involved, one wonders what magic he might still perform).

Whatever the power, Starworks appears set for a heckuva strong 2012 driving team.

Later,

DEMPSEY GONE?

2011-10-20T21:01:00.001-04:00

"Depends," according to some observers at Barber Motorsports Park.

Following a primary sponsor's withdrawal from Dempsey Racing's No. 41 Mazda RX-8 program, Dane Cameron (left, hatless) and James Gué (right, in hat) won't drive in 2012 what they drove in 2011 despite having finished fourth in the Rolex Series' GT championship, 13-points shy of first place.

Thus the former two-car, full-season (emphasis on "full season," please) team now is down to one; presumably driving are Joe Foster, Patrick Dempsey and, probably, Charles Espenlaub as needed, as the team's principal drivers.

Dempsey Racing and Foster, who not only drives but is the administrative "brains" behind the team, were at Barber Motorsports Park, often being among the earliest to hit the track Monday when the various sessions commenced (pictured at below, left).

When the checkered flag fell on the Monday's final Rolex Series session of the two-day test, though, Foster and team struck the tent, jumped on the nearby I-20 eastbound ramp and headed for their Atlanta-area shop.

Before departing, Foster was enmeshed in an animated conversation with Grand-Am officials who promptly declined comment.

One nearby team's crew member wasn't as mum, claiming Foster at various times during the day expressed dissatisfaction with the new tire, saying that Foster (at right) felt it was better than what previously existed but fell short of the mark he wished to experience.

"What mark?" rhetorically grumbled yet another nearby GT competitor who's been in the thick of more than a few pitched points battles over recent years.

"What racer doesn't think tires can't be better? We always lack enough horsepower; always want the latest 'this' or the latest 'that.' Like golfers playing on a golf course, he (Foster) just needs to quit bellyaching about the clubs and focus on the fact that everyone else faces the same sand traps, too.

"If you ask me, either the team can't deal with the situation it's in or it's falling apart; one or the other. The tire just happens to a convenient excuse."

Noted is the turmoil that reportedly roiled within Dempsey Racing during the 2011 season, most particularly as it related to Cameron and Gué's No. 41 Mazda RX-8.

According to firsthand accounts, the team's behind-the-scenes performance at that time was deemed poor given the level of driving talent, only thrice cracking the top five (4,4,5) in nine starts.

Reportedly attributed to poor strategy calls, a sponsor's subtle requests for change evolved into a clear-cut demand for change, heeded just before the series landed at New Jersey Motorsports Park.

"What happened?" the Barber source asked rhetorically. "They finished on the podium at the very next race (NJMP) and kept on improving."

In the season's four remaining races, Gué and Cameron finished with three thirds and one sixth-place finish, averaging a 3.75-place finish as compared to a 7.375 average finish in the races prior to NJMP.

"2012 probably would've been a helluva good year for them if they had stayed around," the source continued.

"No one ever really wins in a sponsor versus owner face-off like they had over there because a sponsor doesn't generally get where he's at professionally unless he's competitive, too.

"You've got a team owner who's competitive but you can be sure that the sponsor's competitive, too. The difference is the sponsor's the one who's funding the team, man. He may be proved right or proved wrong but you've got to listen to him. You can't blow him off like he hasn't a clue as to how to win."

"You just don't find yourself taking something like that to the mat and then have everyone walk away with a warm and fuzzy feeling after that kind of deal. It was his (the sponsor's) ball to take home and he did."

Nevertheless, Dempsey Racing's No. 40 RX-8 (left, at Daytona) -- with Foster, Dempsey, Charles Espenlaub and Tom Long sharing the wheel -- made an early season statement on the 2011 Rolex 24 At Daytona podium, finishing a team-best third place in the race.

Unfortunately, it also was the team's final 2011 foray into a top-5 finish, averaging roughly an 11th-place average in the 11 races in which they scored points. Keeping the string intact, the No. 40 finished 11th in team points, seven spots behind a fourth place for the No. 41 team. In the GT driving championship, Foster finished 13th; Dempsey two places better in 11th.

Dempsey is a light year or two ahead of the driving ability he demonstrated just after the actor wrapped the movie "Made of Honor" and finally was free to run at the 2007 season's third race, ironically, at Barber Motorsports Park.

Dempsey's first intended 2007 race, the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (then Grand-Am Cup), occurring on the Friday preceding the Rolex 24 At Daytona, was preempted by Dempsey's desire to be at spouse Jillian Fink's side while she delivered twins Sullivan Patrick and Darby Galen on Feb. 1, 2007.

Outside of childbirth, in one of those darned if you do; darned if you don't rock-and-hard-place things, Dempsey's weak point was not getting enough seat time when conflicting were TV and movie shooting schedules which, as Dempsey has noted, provided the funds with which to seed Dempsey Racing.

Undertaking a concerted effort in 2011 to better himself -- often involving strenuous cross-country flights which are never particularly fun regardless of "cabin class" -- Dempsey competed more than he'd previously raced in a single season and it showed in his improved skill set, too.

So where's the team's weak spot?

It surely wasn't TV time, which aptly came shortly after Gunter Schaldach's No. 07 CoolTV, Leighton Reese-owned Chevrolet Camaro rammed Foster's No. 40 Mazda RX-8 at Road America, afterward making more newsreels than J.C. France and Chris Bingham's 2006 Mexico Hat Dance.

Also, Foster isn't exactly what one can describe as a shabby driver, by any measure.

In the 2011 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Foster teamed with Scotty Maxwell (at right) in driving a top-of-the-line Ford Mustang Boss 302R prepared by Ford factory proxy Multimatic Motorsports -- Foster the opener; Maxwell the cleanup.

For the most part considered de rigueur in "team sportscar," especially insofar as sprint races are concerned, a team's "weakest link" usually starts a race (and in Grand-Am, the starter must qualify the car), followed by the "strongest" of the driving crew, who then theoretically can close a race providing the best possible results given the overall conditions.

Earning a series-leading three poles (tied with Rum Bum Racing's Nick Longhi) at Barber Motorsports Park, Lime Rock and Watkins Glen International, plus sitting on an additional four outside poles, Foster sat on the greater number of Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge front rows than did anyone in 2011.

Hobbled somewhat with a shoulder and neck injury following the Road America shunt, Foster still finished the 2011 season having compiled the third-greatest number of lead laps, 87, bested only by Matt Plumb (89) and Billy Johnson (108). Trailing Foster in the three following spots were the likes of Bill Auberlen (78), Longhi (49) and John Edwards (45).

Despite some criticism leveled at Dempsey at NJMP over SPEEDtv, the driver has more often than not received praise for his heads-up driving, generally transferring a reasonably positioned and "whole" car to teammate Foster, who closes when he's in the RX-8.

That the teamed averaged an 11th-place finish in GT seems at odds with potential, thus perhaps lending credence to the now-former sponsor's reported perspective.

Dempsey Racing is looking to run two cars in the 50th-anniversary Rolex 24 At Daytona (Jan. 29-30), reportedly having most, if not all the available seats filled. As of now, the team will halve that car count for the remainder of 2012.

Later,

DAN WHELDON, RIP

2011-10-16T22:52:00.001-04:00

In one of the most dominating performances in the history of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, in 2006 Scott Dixon, Casey Mears and Dan Wheldon teamed to win the twice-around-the-clock event.

Compiling a race-leading 272 laps on the point, the team - born of drivers coming from Chip Ganassi Racing w/ Felix Sabates and Target Chip Ganassi Racing teams - would compile 734 laps in their No. 02 Lexus-powered Riley DP by race end, at the time ranking fifth overall (now sixth overall) in the race's all time completed-laps category - just 28 laps shy of 1992's leading 762 laps.

Wheldon's finish, in the pursuit of which he'd personally lead an individual sixth-best 58 laps, was a considerable improvement over his 33rd-place finish just a year earlier, in which he co-drove the Pontiac-powered No. 2 Howard Boss Motorsports' Crawford DP03 along with Milka Duno, Marino Franchitti and Dario Franchitti.

Though Wheldon and the Franchitti brothers had already long known each other, Wheldon once later said it was in the trenches of that grueling 2005 Rolex 24 race where he gained a keen appreciation for "those two Italians masquerading as Scots" - said with a hearty laugh after dislodging a tongue previously implanted firmly in cheek.

In just a few months' time Wheldon would've returned to Daytona International Speedway to join the many other returning Rolex 24 At Daytona champions, who will help celebrate the race's Jan. 28-29, 2012, 50th anniversary.

Wheldon wasn't exactly the tallest to be found in a paddock, but what he lacked in physical stature easily was overshadowed by his accomplishments in a race car - 16 IndyCar Series wins; a 2005 IndyCar Series championship; and, two Indy 500 wins coming in 2005 and 2011 - as well as his being just a darn nice guy who joked, laughed, smiled and made others feel as perfectly at ease as could anyone.

Perhaps that's the best way, too, for Wheldon to be remembered.

There's a cold certainty found in numbers which are indisputable. The warmth of a meaningful smile, the quick extension of a welcoming hand is something altogether different.

And that's the Dan Wheldon this writer will most remember.

And miss.

Later,

LOVE AND HATE

2011-09-19T17:13:00.001-04:00

LEXINGTON, Ohio -- On the one hand, there's Brumos Racing, whose contributions to racing -- should anyone in racing have somehow missed their scope and magnitude -- have been considerable.

Of Brumos' prominent founders, the late Bob Snodgrass also was instrumental in getting the Grand American Road Racing Association -- now just "Grand-Am" -- off the ground at the tail end of last century.

Another who is deeply involved in both Brumos Racing and the Jacksonville, Fla., Brumos automobile dealership chain from which the team draws its soul, is entrepreneur Dan Davis, who was a well-established Floridian when Snodgrass (along with Mike Colucci) cars in knee pants watched race cars compete in downtown Watkins, Glen, N.Y.

Then there's yet another race-day member of the Brumos Racing "founding" cast, Hurley Haywood, who as a driver captured wins for "Brumos" in cars as diverse as 914-6's, 917's, 935's, 962's and a Porsche-powered FABCAR. Still, Haywood can be found wherever Brumos Racing may be, lending his brain if not his body to the No. 59's Porsche GT3 Cup car's effort.

Brumos Racing drivers Leh Keen and Andrew Davis -- both having developed championship forms before joining Brumos for 2011 -- admitted to understanding theirs would be a tough first year but, as Davis put it, "How can you not be a part of the Brumos team if you've got the opportunity?"

Many others -- from the doggedly handsome Don Leatherwood to "Peppermint" Patti Tantillo -- also "bleed" Brumos red, blue and white.

On the other hand, there's Autohaus Motorsports.

A relative "new kid" on the block when compared to Brumos, Autohaus Motorsports was founded by Robert Kirkland in 1999, yet, it isn't much of a stretch to believe that a guy who sold Mercedes-Benz cars for a living, just as has Brumos, knows a thing or two about sports cars and racing, too.

Whether "new" or old hand, though, doesn't much matter because people don't get into racing, whether at the ownership or driving level, not to win - if you catch the drift.

Also not interested in just tooling around tracks for fun is Autohaus driver Bill Lester.

Having scored a BS in electrical engineering and computer sciences from the University of California, Berkeley, Lester intellectually is on a par with some of racing's greatest names -- past and present.

Lester so loved racing he gave up a cushy job and left behind a whole bunch of stock options when racing's siren song successfully called him away from Hewlett Packard.

Lester's not done badly at racing, financially speaking, but who in racing doesn't think he could've done still better toiling in some dark, pizza-box and Coke Zero-bottle-strewn computer engineering lab?

As have so many others with their work lives; even their love lives, Lester gave up a lot to find that better line; that perfect apex.

The team's other driver is Jordan Taylor, one of Wayne and Shelley Taylor's offspring.

SunTrust Daytona Prototype driver Ricky Taylor, Jordan's older brother by just under two years, has been getting the lion's share of attention over the last year or so, but those who hang around racing know Jordan Taylor is far from a slouch.

Indeed, stints in Karting, Skip Barber and Formula Mazda notwithstanding, Jordan Taylor this year in Rolex Series GT was on pace to be the first of the brothers to win a national-level, major sportscar racing championship in that black-and-red No. 88 Autohaus Chevrolet Camaro.

On the Friday night prior to the Mid-Ohio race, it looked like Jordan Taylor would score that championship, too, though certainly nothing ever in racing (if not everywhere else, too) is certain.

The above cast of characters would be largely responsible for squaring the 2011 Rolex Sports Car Series' Grand Touring driver, team and manufacturer championships this past weekend at the Mid-Ohio Sports car Course, all of it coming on the heels of a fifth championship-points lead change in a class within which seven different teams have won in 2011.

With Autohaus atop Brumos by just three points when the team transporters parked and disgorged their respective contents at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, each team needed to hit on all cylinders just to maintain the status quo or, perhaps, one to miss a cylinder or two to drastically change it all.

As Friday qualifying got underway the Brumos Racing team would hit on none of them. Not a one.

Try as it may, not a single cylinder of Brumos Racing engine's six cylinders would fire its fuel charge and without a qualifying time, it would be sent to the rear of the starting grid.

"I was pumped to get the pole," Davis said late in the day as he and co-driver Keen headed for the parking lot.

"We had some fast times in practice and I felt like I could get it."

When a Daytona Prototype is sent "to the rear," it goes to the head of the GT pack. Well kinda, sorta and not exactly. But it ain't the "back," as was found Chip Ganassi Racing's Memo Rojas in the No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley DP when, subsequent to a post-qualifying engine change, he on the race grid found himself at least preceding the Stevenson Auto Group's No. 57Chevrolet Camaro and Whelen Engineering's No. 31 Chevrolet Corvette.

In his Brumos Porsche, Davis, however, really was at the field's rear.

"There's a whole bunch of cars in front of you from there," Davis said in complete sincerity.

Winning the GT title suddenly had taken on a whole new dimension -- for everyone but Davis, who pledged to take the lead and did just that on Lap 27.

Talk about lonely: Sitting inside his idled Autohaus Camaro, one can only imagine the slow-motion silence Lester, must've felt just after a slippery track threw him from it on Lap 15.

For two laps Lester would sit, completely alone, between asphalt and metal barrier.

The silence must've been

deafening as he saw the championship fade from his grasp.

Frankly, Autohaus, Bill Lester and Jordan Taylor deserved better.

But so too did Brumos, Leh Keen and Andrew Davis -- and got it.

One race pretty well summed why this writer hates this sport -- and loves it, too.

Later,

EIGHT MID-O's DOWN; ONE TO GO

2011-09-17T11:10:00.001-04:00

A look back and not-so-bold look forward.

June 28, 2003 - Round 7 of the 2003 Rolex Sports Car Series -- After losing the previous week's Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen race lead over the span of that race's two remaining laps, arising anew the following week at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course were eerily similar circumstances which likewise involved a late-race yellow flag, also occurred with but two remaining laps and left drivers Forest Barber and Terry Borcheller to wondering if life was but a series of replays wherein the locale may change but the script remained pretty much the same.

Whether attributable to lessons learned and differently applied or fate merely hanging a left instead of a right, their Jim Bell-prepared and managed No. 54 Bell Motorsports Chevrolet-powered Doran JE-4 found Mid-Ohio's Victory Lane.

Yet, in every case which involves those who snatch victory from the jaws of defeat lie those on the flipside of that coin: snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, as it were.

Borcheller was at the No. 54's Chevrolet-Doran's wheel when the engine of the No. 29 Ford Mustang of Eric Curran (at the wheel) and Stu Hayner could motor no more - the GTS-class Mustang having dominated the race, leading it for more than 50 laps of the 102-lap race before yielding.

Finishing second was David Donohue, paired with Mike Borkowski in the No. 58 Red Bull Porsche-FABCAR, after the driver slowly unwound an earlier, grass-mowing excursion, likely the only thing having prevented Bork and Donohue from occupying the podium's topmost step because, as is the case in life, all it ever takes is "just enough." In third was Tommy Riggins and David Machavern in the No. 48 Heritage Ford Mustang GTS.

Aug. 7, 2004 - Round 7 of the 2004 Rolex Sports Car Series -- The start of the 2004 season at Daytona brought with it a plethora of new Daytona Prototypes and by mid-season "new kid" Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates had become the bona fide monster of the Rolex Sports Car Series' midway - only there were two such monsters: Scott Pruett and Massimiliano Papis in the No. 01 CompUSA Lexus-Riley; Jimmy Morales and Luis Diaz in the No. 02 CompUSA Lexus-Riley.

After Papis led Laps 1 through 35 and Pruett Laps 39-96 (Wayne Taylor and his mean-ass-looking SunTrust No. 10 car was the only other race leader), at race end it the No. 2 Citgo Crawford-Chevrolet of Venezuelan Milka Duno and English hot shoe Andy Wallace, effectively drove a wedge between the two Ganassi monsters at the conclusion of the Mid-Ohio Road Racing Classic's finishing order. in a sign of the shape things to come, four additional DPs finished on the lead lap of the 96-lap race.

Aug. 27, 2005 - Round 10 of the 2005 Rolex Sports Car Series -- In a finish that saw the members of a half-dozen race teams all but fight each other for space in their respective pits so as to gain clear sight of the final, fleeting moments of the EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio, six Daytona Prototypes charged toward the finish line from the final three turns of the 2.258-mile, 13-turn course, the first and sixth-place finishers of which respectively book-ending the 61/100-of-one-whole-second spread which contained 'em all at race end.

The 94-lap, 225.6-mile race saw 22 Daytona Prototypes undertake the epic battle at race start; 17 DPs finishing at the head of the field's two-class race at its finish.

Out front were Butch Leitzinger and Official Old Guy Grand Pooh-Bah Elliott Forbes-Robinson in their No. 4 red-on-black Boss Snow Plow Crawford-Pontiac, followed closely in second place by Scott Pruett and Luis Diaz in their No. 01 CompUSA Lexus-Riley. In third were Wayne Taylor and Max Angelelli's No. 10 SunTrust Racing Pontiac-Riley, now tamed in its more sanguine and now-familiar SunTrust blue.

June 24, 2006 - Round 9 of the 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series -- While the No. 12 Lowe's Fernandez Racing Pontiac Riley might've started last among the Daytona Prototypes, co-drivers Mexican racing god Adrian Fernandez and Brazilian Mario Haberfeld nevertheless found the means and determination to drive their No. 12 Lowe's Fernandez Racing Pontiac-Riley through the field to earn their first - and last - Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series overall victory.

Compared to 2005's close conga-line finish, all but a yawner was Fernandez' 3.089-second winning margin over Krohn Racing's second-place Ford-Riley, driven by Colin Braun and eventual 2006 champion, Jörge Bergmeister. Finishing third, paired for only their fourth race, were Jon Fogarty and Alex Gurney in the GAINSCO Auto Racing's No. 99 Pontiac-Riley.

In what has become Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates' definitive worst-ever Daytona Prototype finish, Luis Diaz and Scott Pruett crossed the line 36th, some 14-laps in arrears to the leaders, after the No. 01 CompUSA Lexus -Riley tangled in Turn 9 of the 13-turn course with brothers Burt and Brian Frisselle, one of whom having driven the No. 8 Synergy Doran-Porsche DP, essentially to the junk pile, but which set up a resultant funky but frightening crash involving driver Joey Hand.

Driving the No. 21 Matt Connolly Motorsports BMW M3, Hand and Paul Edwards, in the No. 64 TRG Pontiac Pratt & Miller GTO.R , were two among a nearly inestimable pack of GT drivers longing for a win and being handed such opportunity when, on Lap 97 of the race's 99 laps, the Mid-O track went from full-on, no-passing yellow to go-get-'em green.

In a scrum much akin to a pack of greyhounds chasing a warm, fuzzy fake rabbit, just about each of the cars were battling for the race's GT-class win when Edwards made contact with the rear of Hand's car, forcing the No. 21 machine off and eventually into a series of bumps, jumps and flips - or maybe that should've been jumps, bumps and flips - that, in turn, drew hundreds-of-thousands of YouTube hits.

June 23, 2007 - Round 7 of the 2007 Rolex Sports Car Series -- With an air similar to that of Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman's march across The South, Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty took the look of a team possessed with rolling over and crushing their competition in one of 2007's handful of Daytona Prototype-only races.

In earlier qualifying Fogarty put the blood-red, Bob Stallings-owned No. 99 Pontiac-Riley on the EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio pole – the team’s fourth pole and its seventh consecutive front-row start by that point in the 2007 season. The pair soon afterward also scored its third victory of the 2007 season, at the time becoming the sole DP team to have won more than one race thus far in the season.

Well into their cool-down lap, breaking loose were howls of non-official but nonetheless vociferous protests nip, nip, nipping on the No. 99 team's heels faster than the "best of the rest." Thirty seconds and what may as well have been miles behind in second place were Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas in Chip Ganassi Racing’s No. 01 TELMEX Lexus-Riley. In third were Colin Braun and Max Papis in the No. 75 Krohn Racing Pontiac-Riley.

June 22, 2008 - Round 8 of the 2008 Rolex Sports Car Series -- In what was becoming an apparent tradition of domination that included an unmatched combination of pole positions, front-row starts, podium and first-place finishes, Jon Fogarty, Alex Gurney and the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Pontiac-Riley team again showed a mastery of the 2.26-mile, 13-turn Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, even though not quite as great of a mastery as that demonstrated in 2007.

Given Gurney and Fogarty tend toward being cerebral, gentlemanly types disposed of Victory Lane celebrations having a touch of solemnity, arising in that special area where solemn accolades sometimes flow was a veritable nuclear meltdown - coming from a Brumos Racing camp who suddenly again realized, "Yes, we can!"

Having finished second, defined by some as the "First of the Losers," drivers David Donohue and Darren Law and the team's No. 58 Brumos Porsche arrived at race end to its first podium finish in a monkey uncle's age. Unrealized at the time was an impending success that ultimately led to a 2009 season during the first of which every force situated outside the camp would seemingly work against the team to keep its drivers from winning a championship, collaterally collecting the No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche-Riley sister car, in which drivers J.C France and Joao Barbosa had finished fifth at Mid-O, driving the team apoplectic with its dual top-five finish.

Almost anti-climatically, in third place was Matt Plumb and Gene Segal's No. 7 Rum Bum Racing BMW-Riley DP effort, which sadly by season's end would end.

June 21, 2009 - Round 6 of the 2009 Rolex Sports Car Series -- Just as has been the case nearly innumerable times since the driver climbed aboard his first kart, Scott Pruett relishes in "reigning" time and again upon any competitor's coronation parade - the GAINSCO Gang being Pruett's principal focus in things Grand-Am mainly due to the things the GAINSCO Gang themselves did . . . like "win."

Joined for a third-straight EMCO Gears Classic at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course race with Pruett but yet to break the mold cast for himself, Memo Rojas again played understudy to the No. 01 Chip Ganassi Racing w/ Felix (y José) Lexus-Riley's Top Dog.

In the 2009 version something had to give way between the two red, white and blue Daytona Prototypes (think about it) and the TRD "Lexus" engine would do just that when, in a pre-race announcement, was Toyota's North American marketing arm's decision to make like a horse and trot from the series at season's end.

First, though, a race and a championship was to be won.

Seizing the "last" Mid-O Toyota poignant moment as would have Shakespeare a sonnet, Pruett reminded the world that he, too, was of longstanding California stock, even though the genes directly preceding his helped make Levi jeans famous in the '49 Gold Rush instead of those who would rush to race-car finish lines.

Breaking entirely from tradition and making a green car (as in "color") do what it wasn't supposed to do were Niclas "Nic" Jönsson and Ricardo Zonta, the two sharing the No. 76 Krohn Racing Ford-Lola that had begun to field a fine but soon-to-be stilled set of racing legs.

Yet, from Pruett's perspective, like a bad dream not at all inclined to simply "go away" were fellow Californians Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty and the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Chevrolet-Riley fellows, generally otherwise linked to Texas, who placed third.

June 20, 2010 - Round 7 of the 2010 Rolex Sports Car Series -- Memo Rojas, finally establishing himself as a competent driver in his own right and among Mexico's best, put the No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley on pole and Pruett would end it there. Quietly establishing itself as the team to actually beat, the TELMEX duo combined to lead 64 of the race's 107 total laps, yielding to only four others (Nelson Philippe, 18 laps; Michael Valiante, 14; Mike Forest, 8; Buddy Rice, 3).

Mike Shank Racing's No. 60 Crown Royal XR Ford-Riley scored its second podium thus far in 2010, John Pew having qualified the car 10th and Ozz Negri bringing the car home second. In third was AIM Autosports' No. 61 Pacific Mobile/Bio sign Ford Riley with Burt Frisselle and Mark Wilkins at the wheel, the former having qualified right where the latter brought it home.

Sept. 17, 2011 - Round 12 of the 2011 Rolex Sports Car Series Season?

One thing is clear going into today's EMCO GEARS Classic at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: Pruett and Rojas need only to drive complete, 30-minute segments apiece to walk with the 2011 Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype driving championship. Should the pair prevail at race end, it will amount to Pruett's fourth and Rojas' third win at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course since the Daytona Prototype first started competing here in 2003.

Perhaps all the more remarkable is the sheer dominating nature of the Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix (y José) Sabates team at the track since it first competed at Mid-O in 2004.

Already testing its 2012 version of the Gen 3 Daytona Prototype at its top-secret coast-down tunnel, one might as well expect to see the TELMEX team continue its roll.

Later,

“CAN YOU SAY, ‘ADIEU, OH CANADA?’”

2011-08-19T23:38:00.001-04:00

MONTREAL – Since first coming here (coinciding only with the first Grand-Am race here), this most recent north-of-the-border trip uniquely produced a first: Ol’ DC climbed aboard “The Metro” and got where he needed to go. On a first attempt, yet!.

It also may be his last, whether willingly or otherwise.

Furthermore, though, “NASCAR” in whatever form may not return at all to Montreal – or so proclaimed numerous NASCAR “gear” vendor signs greeting those offing the Metro (works for me because “disembarking” doesn’t), reading “ADIEU NASCAR!” and “80-percent off!” the idea being the vendors would rather now take a hit on already absurdly priced products than sell none whatsoever in the future, evidently not yet learning of this thing called “The Internet.”

The issue boils down to bragging rights, according to “The Guys Having Connections,” (TGHC) a.k.a., “informed sources,” because Québécois want it all: a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

Anyone who knows anything about everything knows the difficulty in getting a Sprint Cup date.

Just ask Kentuckians, who were a part of or witness to the travails of Kentucky Speedway lawsuits (involving NASCAR), a buy-out (by O. Bruton Smith’s Speedway Motorsports Inc.) and a race/date/site shift (from Atlanta; another SMI site).

From track construction to date shifts, all told getting a Kentucky Sprint Cup date probably cost somewhere just north of $1 billion when such was finally consummated earlier this year.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Quebec, governmental, travel or “somebody’s” authorities are withholding a $500,000 contribution toward advertising, thinking such will force NASCAR into scheduling a Circuit Gilles Villeneuve NSCS date.

Such even has left one of Quebec’s greatest native sons, Jacques Villeneuve, greatly consternated.

“They are a proud people,” said one of the TGHC’s in reference to the Mexi . . ., er, Canadian, er, Mont Royale standoff.

Just for the heck of it: 2,000 $500,000 units comprise $1 billion.

Chump change, huh?

Do the Québécois in charge really think the $500,000 being held hostage will move mountains?

Interestingly, a $250,000 provincial Quebec grant and $225,000 from Ottawa (Canada’s functional equivalent of Washington, D.C., in the U.S.) were okayed for next weekend's Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières – a motorsport event which draws far more from within the province than without, especially when it doesn’t have a Patrick Dempsey to offer.

Then there’s the road-course aspect .

For some odd, perhaps quaint reason this poor soul has yet to grasp (and, all told, may never grasp), NASCAR clings to holding only two road course events annually for its most vaunted series where drivers proudly proclaim themselves, if no one else, as “the best.”

Without any intention whatsoever of making light of skills involved in oval track racing, one still ain’t gonna git Ol ‘ DC to trash talk road-course racing by comparison.

But he will bash the idea of holding two races among the 36 “officially scheduled events” on the NSCS calendar.

Add a Daytona qualifier here, a “Winston Million,” there, and before long one realizes fewer than 5-percent of Sprint Cup’s annual calendar is devoted to turning in any direction other than just “left.”

Recently, Jimmie Johnson said he’d like to see more road course races on the Sprint Cup schedule while Matt Kenseth expressed disdain for such, his seeing the NSCS as being “rooted” in bull rings scattered throughout North America.

One is just left wondering which of the two drivers have had the greater road course racing success, huh? Take a guess.

In a Thursday, after-dinner happenstance meeting outside of “Vargas” in downtown Montreal, NASCAR Nationwide Series director Joe Balash affirmed that doubtful would be he and his NNS crew hanging at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve beyond the scheduled Sunday race date, unlike last week’s Sprint Cup race at The Glen which spilled like a rainstorm runoff from Sunday to Monday.

If more frequently made were the point that road-course types tend to run a show as originally scheduled – and therefore go home on time – perhaps more “Left Turn Traditionalists” (LTTs) might willingly accept more road course events.

Yet, the boys getting the glory largely are clueless, what with “private” aircraft and personal valets (some would say “go-fers’) abounding who “handle” life’s little hassles.

Noting much is to be said for experiencing those little hassles, even a single unexpected additional day’s worth of on-the-road lodging, local transportation, food (as many as three more meals per day for each team member; 16 for Tom Seabolt) and even better, being told “there is no more room at the inn” – such otherwise regularly happening to anyone and everyone else, fans included, who suddenly learn a race has been postponed.

You know, it’s not like a hotel can cancel all the rooms it booked for still other folks or that commercial air carriers like Delta can or will just show up at an airport with a few extra but empty aircraft alone reserved for delayed team members, fans, media and other workers.

Yep, a delayed race really can put a crimp into a whole bunch of well laid plans, as the gods have attempted at Montreal for many of the NNS dates run there so far but which, as noted, still holds the show as scheduled.

Yet, with all its positives – not the least of which would be proving that NSCS drivers are “real men” – such ain’t gonna happen with the Sprint Cup teams and, if it were, likely wouldn’t happen at Montreal anyway, especially now that the provincial gov’ment has decided to, um, cajole NASCAR’s cooperation.

Having been a part of racing for many decades, this writer has yet to see the equal in ancillary race attendance – that is, family and friends who accompany team members – as those who will come to Montreal for this race.

Husbands and wives find romance; a father – as did this one – will introduce children to a truly cosmopolitan North American city having few equals worldwide.

Do the hard math with the available numbers, e.g., “team members from two North America racing series” (NASCAR’s Grand-Am and Nationwide series) and then reasonably, even conservatively extrapolate the numbers of those who accompany team, media, or fans coming from all over North America, along with international origins, and it soon is easy to see how that $500,000 is easily “repaid” many times over.

“Proud” has its place.

This one is misplaced.

Later,

POST NJMP, PRE-WGI-2

2011-08-11T09:26:00.001-04:00

BUMPING AND GRINDING

Practiced nearly without fail at nearly every race, the guys from Chip Ganassi Racing w/ Felix (where’s José?) Sabates No. 01 TELMEX BMW Riley will store their car and head for the barn (“hotel” to you, Gary) when just about every other team still is thrashing on this or that for whatever race may be on the weekend’s schedule.

Not so at New Jersey.

Situated in one of NJMP’s main garage’s 10 spaces the TELMEX team worked well into Thursday and Friday’s late-afternoon hours, alternately changing suspension and gear components – ultimately allowing Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas to clinch their first NJMP victory on Saturday.

Still, the race hardly was a cruise for the TELMEX squad, which was penalized a “stop-and-go” for having rear-ended Ricky Taylor (celebrating a birthday this week, BTW) and his No. 10 SunTrust Chevrolet-Dallara.

“I felt bad about that,” Pruett said Sunday while at Indy (more on that, later). “I’m not sure what happened, but I didn’t get into him intentionally.”

HOT, HOT, HOT

Race car drivers get the lion’s share of well-deserved recognition for skills and fortitude absent of mere mortals, yet racing remains a team sport, as was demonstrated in the No. 40 Patrick Dempsey Racing Mazda RX-8’s final pit stop.

A fresh Charles Espenlaub dumped the car’s clutch and roared away from the Dempsey Racing pits as a dumbfounded crewmember stood holding a desperately needed fresh recharge for the car’s cool-suit apparatus.

The cool suit easily will turn into a “hot” suit without the means to keep cool the water circulating through its veins, potentially leaving a driver’s cardiovascular system stressed beyond recovery, especially in a 130-degree cockpit.

Though admittedly an editorial shot in the dark, that inability to cool Espenlaub may well have contributed to a Lap 44 incident in which the No. 31 Whelen Corvette of Boris Said was “door-slammed,” as co-driver Eric Curran later put it. A winner just weeks earlier at Road America, Said’s Corvette had clawed upward through the New Jersey pack to eighth place when the car’s suspension was irreparably damaged by the “slam” and exited the race.

Meanwhile, the team’s No. 41 Global Diving sister car, driven by James Gué and Dane Cameron scored that driving duo’s first podium in 2011. Gué and Leh Keen, now paired with Andrew Davis at Brumos Racing, teamed for a 2010 race win in the No. 41 Mazda at The Glen.

The Brumos pair, driving the No. 59 Porsche, sit atop the standings by but a single point over the No. 88 of Jordan Taylor and Bill Lester – that single championship point as likely as not a courtesy of crewmembers Sean Mabry, Sean Murphy and Adain Murawski, who despite fire suits, helmets and a 139-degree pit road asphalt repaired a broken drive (aka, “accessory” or “fan”) belt on the compactly contained, complexly belted Porsche flat-six engine.

The broken belt drew a lot of attention from Porsche factory representatives, who surmised something, perhaps a bolt, was propelled into the engine compartment at just the wrong moment, wedging between the belt and a pulley, quickly stressing and snapping a belt pushed beyond the limits of a belt tensioner.

At New Jersey, Davis and Keen finished 12^th, while Lester and Taylor finished fourth, the former seriously putting a dent in the latter’s previous 10-point championship points lead.

Presently within 20 or fewer points of the leading Keen and Davis are another nine drivers beyond the aforementioned No. 88 Autohaus Chevrolet Camaro pair, all having a legitimate shot at winning or influencing the championship in the Rolex Series’ three remaining 2011 GT races.

CHANGING GEARS?

The Mazda RX8 appears to be heading toward the end of its production line, if the rumblings prove correct. One might consider scoring a Patrick Dempsey autographed version ASAP. For sure, this writer could do it but, how such might impact Mazda-associated Rolex Series teams remains to be seen.

Originally scheduled for an introduction at the Aug. 13 (a great date if one isn’t superstitious) Rolex Series short-course race at The Glen, it appears an announcement of the new Generation-3 Chevrolet “Corvette” Daytona Prototype (officially, “DPG3”) will come at a later date.

With the NASCAR crowd in full force at Watkins Glen during its originally scheduled date, it was believed to be the best possible date for an announcement by some within the automaker’s upper ranks. Still others, though, for unspecified reasons, felt it should come at a later date.

Conspiracy theorists have seen anything and everyone, from the EPA to other sanctioning body principals, as having had undue influence on the Chevy guys – even to the possible extent of canceling the project.

Interestingly, Chevrolet is into the Rolex Series unlike ever before. Really into it.

NIGHT SONG GONE

2011-07-27T16:25:00.001-04:00

DAYTONA BEACH – “Consciousness streaming,” as was ol DC’s writing style once characterized by one dear friend, (yes, Ol’ DC actually has such; one or two, anyway). That is, when his style is unconstrained by the narrow pillars and conventions of journalism, the AP Stylebook and social mores.

(Surely, given the state of American education, someone out there thinks the, um, plural for “more” is entirely misplaced, above.)

For sure, the reader is about to enter another dimension of sight, sound, thought and time; you’re about to enter Ol’ DC’s mind (with coincident “Thanks” and apologies to Rod Serling) – about the only thing that causes Jon Fogarty great pain. Well, that and anyone other than himself holding a race lead.

Now, on to the Rambling Prose (a great Nat King Cole song?):

To be quite frank, the new Grand-Am Ferrari Italia, or “458” or “maybe both,” that tested Tuesday (and today) at Daytona International Speedway is a letdown. Big Time.

Then again, perhaps still adversely affected, this Prancing Horse admirer still is recovering from his visit to New Jersey Motorsports.

(When NJM truly has a facility that is a park, a la Birmingham’s Barber Motorsports Park, then “Park” will herein become a regularly featured part of NJM.

(Until then, it’s just another Sebring - absent a racing heritage that allows toleration of The Zoo. And, yes, Sebring once actually was a U.S. Army Air Forces base, too. No, it didn’t manufacture thunderbolts. It had ‘em and still has ‘em; plus oranges. Lots and lots of oranges that also were vital to the war effort – for should a pilot have scurvy, he didn’t fly.

(In faraway Daytona Beach – from Sebring, not NJM – it, too, had an airbase, and a naval hospital and a beach with lots of scantily clad beautiful women, for the attention of whom even non-pilots claimed to fly.

Furthermore, July heat and humidity are an Alabama staple, so the recent heat wave that hit New Jersey Motorsports’ neighborhood was a relative lightweight, being only a big deal to those unfamiliar with 100+-degree heat indexes.

Why, with NJM heat so great, one woman, apparently bereft of reality, carried a fully deployed chartreuse umbrella, evidently expecting a hard rain instead of harsh sunshine.

If not heat nor recovery from such, perhaps, then, the Ferrari Italia held unmet expectations.

Yes, Ol’ DC does remember watching Pedro Rodriguez piloting a Dino – a name which most Americans associated more with Sinclair Oil’s dinosaur-mascot caricature instead of Enzo Ferrari’s much-grieved lost son – and most especially, the 312P, born of a time when a great battle had been joined between a previously spurned suitor and the object of his passion.

Bottom line, though: During that time period Ford Motor Company as often as not won on the sportscar front.

Beyond the obvious differences in language and styling were beliefs of how cars should be geared and powered, four speeds for the throaty Americans (two for Chaparral); five speeds for the screaming Italians.

As night settled on the world’s sportscar endurance tracks rarely did one see light coming from anyone, anything other than the competitors – whether a car’s or its driver carrying a “torch” so as to affect a fix of it.

And while one could often ascertain a car make through the front or rear lights’ positioning, one also had to risk his retinas doing so.

As much as any dance anywhere, an endurance race has a rhythm which changes with the hour, ranging from the bold brashness of the daylight to the settled rote of night.

By the wee dark hours of a race most fans were and still are disposed of being anywhere but a racetrack’s stands, which then are left to channel and shape the sound going through its bleachers as would gently swaying wind chimes in a breeze.

With those sounds came the ability to identify a car, a team, a winner-to-be and, often with its silence, a loser, too.

While there are few grunts to be found equaling that of an American V8, Ferrari was king of the night’s song – one missing from the also-beautiful Prancing Horse of the last two days.

“That’s treatable,” offered a Grand-Am type, known forever herein simply as “Nine Lives.”

And that’s exactly what Ol’ DC most wanted to hear – for now.

Later,

WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?

2011-07-24T11:11:00.001-04:00

MILLVILLE, N.J. – Let’s just get straight to the point, courtesy of reporter Jason Mazda and the Press Of Atlantic City:

“Driver Max Angelelli said the economy and the new cars are poor excuses, though. He blamed Grand-Am management, and specifically director of competition Dave Spitzer, who was not at the track Friday and was unavailable for comment.

“’I feel like he is responsible for this,’ the always outspoken Angelelli said. ‘Before he came on board (in March 2008), we had 15, 20 DPs. Now he's on board, and we have eight. It's a coincidence, or he's doing something bad. My opinion, it's not a coincidence, because the economy was bad and now it's recovering, and we can see other championships growing. We can see IndyCar growing. We can see part of the (American Le Mans Series) growing. But we're losing cars.’”

Think th-th-th-th-that’s all folks? Hah!

Same reporter; same publication; different mouth:

“His team owner, Wayne Taylor, said one of the big problems is a rule limiting most teams to only five sets of tires for an entire weekend. Since three sets are generally needed for a race, it often leads to teams skipping practice sessions because they don't have enough tires. But designated teams with either new drivers or "pro-ams" - for whom driving is a second career - get an extra set, and thus more track time.

“’It's not really exciting when you spend all this money and all this effort on the track and on the cars, and you're sitting in the pit lane (unable to practice),’ Taylor said. ‘I'm just sick of it. Really, it's just ridiculous.’”

“’It makes no sense whatsoever. It is just absurd. And I just don't know how much more one can go and sell something when before you get to the racetrack you know you can't even get out to run.’”

REALLY, THEY AIN”T DUMMIES

Beyond the once high-octane world in which they live, Max Angelelli and Wayne Taylor are enmeshed in business ventures throughout the world, driver management (Penske Racing’s Ryan Briscoe among those represented) and are a closely knit “family” all but lacking common “bloodlines.”

For the most part, Angelelli has been Ricky and Jordan Taylor’s mentor, both having access to the thoughts and talents of not just one “great,” but two when father Wayne Taylor is considered.

It’s little wonder the two already are forces with which to be reckoned.

IS BREAKING UP HARD TO DO . . .

. . . or just appears so?

For months rumors have swirled that Taylor , who has denied such, would take his SunTrust sponsorship and undertake IndyCar racing, which Taylor Racing already has to some extent, having embraced the Indy “Light” series.

So, then, like lovers having seen different lights at the end of their tunnel of love, Taylor and Angelelli have actually addressed the same subject, they’ve just taken different tacks.

It’s kind of interesting to note, however, that for all of Angelelli’s criticism of Grand-Am’s David Spitzer, he could likewise have criticized his business partner, as well as hisownself, for Spitzer being there in the first place.

Yes, Spitzer is qualified, but who hasn’t seen qualified people – from race car drivers to engineers – otherwise lack a job largely owed to who they don’t know?

Taylor, Angelelli and Spitzer were first an item when they teamed on the Cadillac prototype program, where Spitzer served in a variety of functions, all upper-management level. They evidently liked him just fine, then, and afterward, when Spitzer scored the Grand-Am job after Taylor put his name in nomination.

Yet, by the end of Spitzer’s first season that support was fast dwindling.

Where and how this’ll all play out isn’t now known, of course.

Later,

CHILL, MAN, CHILL

2011-07-22T12:32:00.001-04:00

THE PITS . . .

. . . Which, in this case, the meaning is more akin to “bad news” or “at a low point” than that stretch of asphalt on which are found defined areas for servicing a race cars temporarily at rest.

Never before has this scribe climbed aboard two airplanes in which race car drivers have been more bummed.

From Daytona Beach and it’s infamous northerly “transfer station to everywhere,” Atlanta’s Hartsfield Jackson International - where still more grumbling sorts were added – drivers are bummed that their weekend was to be spent in Millville, New Jersey’s New Jersey Motorsports Park. (Below image courtesy of NJMP)

Surprisingly, especially given past hassles at the track, the drivers’ attitude had more to do with being in a car at NJMP rather than being at the track, itself.

Mostly centered on “heat issues” – National Weather Service temperature predictions say the thermometer’s ambient readings will reach 100 degrees Saturday and Sunday – drivers predicted cockpit temperatures would easily climb into the 140-degree range.

At Lime Rock Park, GAINSCO Auto Insurance’s Alex Gurney (at left, with Jon Fogarty in hat, at Miller Motorsports Park in 2009) all but poured forth from his No. 99 Chevrolet-Riley Daytona Prototype, so exhausted was he after a fourth-place finish.

Dehydrated far more than even he realized (which is a commonly occurring aspect of the condition) the two-time Daytona Prototype championship-winning driver, most recently victorious at Laguna Seca (with capable assists in all above categories from Fogarty, of course) was on the tail-end of his recovery when he arrived in Watkins Glen for the Sahlen’s 6 Hours at The Glen three days later.

It was a relatively hot Lime Rock Park race for everyone – especially given the humidity readings after morning storms drenched the area – but at Lime Rock it was Gurney’s cool suit that delivered the knockout blow.

“As a whole, I’m concerned for my drivers,” GAINSCO’s “brains’ on the pit stand Kyle Brannan (left) said Thursday in the NJMP paddock between tweaking the “Red Dragon’s” settings for Friday’s first Rolex Series practice.

Brannan suggests one principal improvement: “Move the radiator from in front of the drivers.”

Failing such, for years an evidently intractable position within the series, “then allow us more air channeling” within the driver’s compartment, Brannan insisted.

While Gurney’s coolsuit failure can be blamed for aggravating the situation, then would it have been needed at all had Lime Rock’s temperatures been far lower? (The coolsuit shown below is offered by FAST Racing Products, long a leader in offering driver-safety products. It was not the coolsuit worn by Gurney, by the way).

“Yeah, in the 30’s, maybe,” one driver sarcastically offered.

“I’m not interested in playing follow-the-leader with anyone in anything,” said a race-winning Rolex Series’ GT driver, who like many drivers quoted herein wasn’t interested in repercussions possibly arising from “shaking the tree,” and thus shall remain anonymous.

“But the series needs to adopt a policy of assuring cars run cooler in the cockpit. They’re gonna have a serious accident that’s attributable to either heat (exhaustion) or (too-high) carbon dioxide levels – if they haven’t already,” the driver continued, hinting that Gunter Schaldach’s Road America flight of the No. 07 CoolTV Chevrolet Camaro might’ve been carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide related.

Another driver, separate from the above discussion, spoke of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) having mandated maximum in-cockpit temperature readings and that Chevrolet has for years been working on a now-successful race-car air conditioning system. The ACO rule requires all closed-cockpit cars, prototype to touring, be fitted with air conditioning systems which maintain a temperature of no more than 32-degrees centigrade (89.6-degrees Fahrenheit).

“If we could just get better airflow through the car, maybe that’d help,” said still another driver whose race car is well known for hitting the highest of the upper-level heat ranges in the Rolex Series.

“Right now, I’m jumping into a sauna that gets hotter than the one I’ve got at home,” he said.

“The biggest problem for transportation of any sort is the efficiencies that are lost to throwing a mass at an atmosphere. And the faster you attempt to travel, the more exponentially significant air-mass resistance becomes.

“The way we’ve overcome that condition, to only a given extent though, is through aerodynamics. A more aerodynamically efficient car allows for greater top-end speeds and fewer BTUs expended in getting there.

“The downside is that aerodynamic efficiency quickly channels air around and away from the car. Make a car more aerodynamic and the car consequently also becomes hotter because airflow into a car creates drag, which creates a whole new set of circumstances to overcome insofar as a race car is concerned.”

While a cool suit failure can be blamed for what has happened to Gurney and others, if interior car temperatures were a tad more bearable no one would have to wear cool suits that too often fail when a failure of just once in a racing car could lead to a conflagration of considerable proportion.

In an ESPN.com report, a 23-year-old Motocross rider died earlier this month after suffering a heat stroke during the RedBug National in Buchanan, Michigan.

According to the story, Bill Lichtle, older brother of the deceased rider, Josh Lichtle, said, "He got overheated, basically, and by the last laps he was practically passing out on the bike. He just wouldn't quit."

Rushed to Saint Joseph’s Medical Center just across the state line in Mishawaka, Indiana, Josh Lichtle was placed in an induced coma in an attempt to reduce his core body temperature and save vital organs subject to failure when overheated. Nevertheless, the rider was pronounced dead early the following morning.

The high temperature recorded at nearby South Bend Regional Airport on the day Lichtle died?

93 degrees.

That’s at least seven-degrees cooler than the predicted ambient temperature for this weekend’s Rolex Series and Continental Tire races.

It was Josh Licktle’s “wouldn’t quit” attitude that so closely reminds one of Gurney – and just about every top driver ever seen.

Perhaps one can make the argument that such is a common but undesirable trait; maybe it’s the difference between a champion and a loser.

How about an argument that these types of drivers are needed, both in terms of entertainment (“door-to-door, wheel-to-wheel racing excitement!”) and marketing the series (“poster children”) and that they, in having such importance, should actively be preserved?

It seems, then, not killing-off drivers as a result of too much heat is of as great importance as any HANS device, fire extinguisher or five-point seatbelt harness.

Later,

MOVING ON UP, QUICKLY

2011-07-13T17:58:00.001-04:00

Leh Keen and Andrew Davis, driving the No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche GT3 scored their second win in three races Saturday at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, in the process posting a 10-point lead over second place in the Rolex Sports Car Series GT-driving championship.

In arrears by four championship points to the No. 88 Autohaus Chevrolet Camaro’s Bill Lester and Jordan Taylor as the series arrived on the Left Coast, Keen and Davis had a veritable Sunday drive when the Autohaus Camaro was “ticketed” for malfunctioning brake lights and sent to the pits for a repair – and a lap deficit when the dust settled. Taylor, more or less, was left to manually signal his use of brakes. Really.

One wonders the big deal. Had everyone just followed one car length for every10 mph in speed, all would’ve been well. Then again, that particular mandate is in the Florida Drivers Handbook and, perhaps owed to its lack of funds, perhaps California opted to leave it out of their counterpart so as to save some ink costs. Ink money gets big when one talks tens-of-millions of books.

Still in the championship’s top-3 is Turner Motorsports’ Paul Dalla Lana, now alone in third place after Bill Auberlen went elsewhere to race elsewhere.

Raphael Matos was tabbed to render assistance to Dalla Lana in Auberlen’s absence but a needed strong run eluded the team, whose No. 94 BMW M3 finished eighth.

The really bad news is that Auberlen, who raced at Lime Rock Park, is fourth in the ALMS’ GT championship, having about half-as-many points as does first place (Joey Hand, Dirk Mueller) in the ALMS GT championship hunt.

Dropping like a rock in the Rolex Series GT championship points – wherein the team stood in first just four races ago – in one Saturday race absence, Auberlen went from equal standing with Dalla Lana to ninth in the points.

It’s a decent bet that contractual obligations and all that goes with such (primarily: hand tying) caused Auberlen’s “no-win” scenario.

Too bad; Auberlen’s a helluva driver well worthy of gaining even more driving-championship crowns and one suspects he’s wearing a long face about now. So, too, Turner Motorsports, who also is a quality outfit.

Meanwhile, reversed are the long faces worn earlier this season by the boys in the red, white and blue No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche.

Extra credit is given for their tenacity, too.

WHAT GOES UP . . .

Falling steadily over in the Daytona Prototype championship points chase are the dual-Action Express Racing (sorry, couldn’t help myself with the hyphen’s use) cars of Darren Law and David Donohue, in the No. 5 AER Porsche-Riley, and the No. 9 AER Porsche-Riley driven by J.C. France, Terry Borcheller and Joao Barbosa.

A look at the latest Rolex Series points chart shows the teams as being among the more consistent in the series, the biggest problem being theirs is on the lower rungs of the “top-performing” teams ladder.

As unabashedly stated earlier this season by this observer, the winning of a championship by any other than one of the AER teams would be on a road on which cars would have to first pass through AER.

Donohue and Law have pretty well stayed in the standing’s fourth and fifth-place vicinity after a ninth-place Rolex 24 at Daytona season-opening start – their worst finish to date in 2011! A win would have and may yet still bolster the team in the championship fight, but it needs to come soon.

So, too, must the No. 9 AER car pick up its performance, which has gone from offering a credible fight for the championship’s top rung to slipping one below their fellow drivers’ fourth-place standing.

Scoring a win, two podiums and three top-5’s at season’s start, the No. 9 AER team has since slowly spiraled downward, posting one sixth, two sevenths and an eighth-place finish in the last four races.

And the drive-through team?

The same team which in 2005 arrived at their first Laguna Seca Daytona Prototype race with a borrowed red Shelton Ferrari hauler.

“Finally,” one journalist thought to himself, having nearly countless times seen Shelton cars at IMSA v. 1.0 races, “Ferrari has arrived!”

Nope.

Then a “Gurney” was mentioned.

“Dan?”

Nope.

“With a Ferrari Red hauler, Riley DP and shirts, okay then, what’s the deal with this Blackhawk Racing operation?”

While Jon Fogarty had yet to don a black-and-red firesuit, Alex Gurney, Bob Stallings, Terry Wilbert and the rest of the No. 99 GAINSCO team had arrived.

Stallings – largely unrecognized as having thrown the gas on a simmering DP “pro-driving-duo” fire – would soon learn he needed to replace himself with a pro (Fogarty) to drastically improve the odds.

Of course, after scoring championships in 2007, 2009 and fighting like heck for a 2010 repeat, this year fans, and even those disinclined of such, wondered, “What the heck happened to GAINSCO?”

(Oh, to be of such recognition that only two syllables are needed for speaker and listener to know of what is meant; the first to be known as simply as is GAINSCO and TELMEX today was “Red Bull,” a.k.a., the No. 59 Fabcar-Porsche of drivers David Donohue and Mike Borkowski, the latter giving way in 2004 to a former Picchio DP-driving Darren Law.)

Well, it’s about time the GAINSCO guys really showed up (coinciding with Mrs. Stallings’ return, too, BTW).

For the Red Dragon team the Grand-Am Daytona Prototype racing season didn’t exactly start well, in four races tallying only one second-place (some teams would love to have one podium; just one) along with an eighth, a 10th and 12th-place finishes.

Compiling an ordinal a 4-3-2-1 finishing streak over the last four races, “They’re ba-ack!”

But it might be too la-ate.

Nevertheless, having finally punched their way out of whatever bag had previously contained them, one just knows the team is again having fun and everything’s better when it’s fun.

VIR CANCELS AMA PRO RACE

What’s a motorcycle race story doing in Cold Pit?

Below (in part) is a 2 + 2 story, because no matter how you add it, the final tally looks to be the same.

“DAYTONA BEACH, FL (July 11, 2011) - It is with deep regret that AMA Pro Racing is forced to announce VIR's cancellation of the Suzuki White Lightening Nationals, Round 8 on the AMA Pro Road Racing season calendar. Despite AMA Pro Racing's efforts to preserve the originally scheduled August 12-14 event, VIR staff notified AMA Pro Racing late Monday, July 11, of its final decision not to host or promote the race weekend.”

Answer: A 2012 Rolex Series Race at VIR just became improbable, no matter how you add it. Think about it.

Later,

CORPORATE SPEAK

2011-07-12T14:54:00.000-04:00

DAYTONA BEACH – Now back on hallowed ground – well, at least in the same neighborhood, give or take – just about the only thing remaining to churn is rumor and innuendo, not that Ol’ DC would resort to conveying either, of course.

BETTER WATCH OUT

Ah, life in, around and near the corporate world is what many embrace and some disdain.

It’s got some positives, assuredly, and especially for those willing to sacrifice or consciously stifle that unique human quality of creativity, living on the edge or, put yet another way, “thinking outside of the box.”

Mostly, it’s a culture of fear that quashes the latter, ultimately leading one to speak or do what he thinks the boss wants to hear or believes the boss wishes to do – thus caught in a self-constructed crossfire of confusion that causes one to hold a tongue or, even, refrain from even seeking a boss’ opinion, rote’s mediocrity then reigns.

Oddly, such generally results in the promotion of an ideology diametric to that which the boss desires, “the boss” having gotten where he is through innovation, quick responses to given situations and not going where today’s non-entrepreneurial corporate guy would even think to go.

And what has prompted such rant from Ol’ DC, perhaps making proud one Alisa Zinov'yevna Rosenbaum, (assuming she was still alive)?

"Kentucky Speedway regrets the traffic conditions . . ."

Such statement being issued late Sunday evening after an undetermined but evidently substantial number of fans failed to even gain entrance to Kentucky Speedway’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race before being ordered to return to from whence they came.

(What was that old adage: “Go where you want to go; do what you want to do?” Conditionally speaking, that is.)

IN A WORD

Kentucky Speedway general manager Mark Simendinger on Sunday evening issued that statement, sent through email and posted on the track’s website, in which used was the aforementioned “regret,” most likely in an attempt through nuance to appear as though he was apologizing without directly apologizing. Likely feared was that an actual “apology” most likely would’ve opened a “liability door” through which the corporate guys are loathe to pass.

Like an attempt to stand rigid on the beach against an approaching tsunami, the lack of a clear mea culpa was akin to an attempt to quell a fire with petrol.

On Monday, with flames higher than an elephant’s eye, Kentucky Speedway officials, joined by counterparts from “corporate,” Speedway Motorsports, Inc., issued actual apologies along with compensation offers.

THE RIGHT WAY

Early in the summer of 1969 a group of race car drivers gathered, among them Cale Yarbrough, Bobby Allison, David Pearson and Richard Petty, to form the Professional Drivers Association (PDA).

A “line in the sand” was to be later drawn on Sept. 14, 1969, at Alabama International Motor Speedway, known today as “Talladega.”

Seizing upon supposed tire issues on the day before a race for which 60,000 tickets had been sold and after squabbling with NASCAR head Big Bill France, a drivers-only meeting went late into the night, afterward resulting in Petty and a race-field’s worth of teams loading up their trailers, making like tires and rolling on down the road.

At the ready, William Henry Getty France instituted Plan B and the crowd had its 30-some-odd-car race, albeit empty of the drivers it expected, save one PDA member who crossed the line: eventual winner Richard Brickhouse.

Aware the fans on hand were probably disappointed, prior to the race Big Bill rolled up in a loudspeaker-equipped truck, grabbed a microphone and, standing before the crowd, acknowledged their disappointment, additionally telling them their tickets would also be honored at the following Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, as well as the next Talladega race.

“It was a gutsy thing for him to do,” the founder of IMSA, John Bishop, said to this journalist.

“It was one of the gutsiest things I’ve ever seen. Mr. France was kissing his profits goodbye. Just like Daytona (International Speedway), he’d been running on a shoestring at Talladega. He literally was depending on that money to keep the company (then “Daytona Speedway Corporation”) alive. But Mr. France was a man of immense integrity and he knew that the most important thing was the fan. I learned a lot that day.”

Bishop also learned a few days later the result of Big Bill “making good” would end direct France-family funding, if not other help, for his young International Motor Sports Association. But that’s another story for another day.

Also running deep was Big Bill’s appreciation for the drivers and teams who nevertheless participated in that 1969 Talladega race, as Richard Childress, who finished 23^rd that day, will surely attest today.

Evidently also running deep were the fans’ appreciation of how Big Bill handled the matter: quickly and using the most correct corporate speak of all: “fan first.”

Big Bill showed he really meant it, not mouthed it.

Thus coming to conclusion is today’s lesson.

Later,

2011-07-11T12:01:00.000-04:00

IN THE YEAR 2525

LAGUNA SECA, Calif. – Withthe sea fog all around and Monterey Peninsula temperatures dipping so low thatthe area was being cited among the coolest, if not “coldest” in the U.S. of A.over the July 9-10 weekend, why not delve into the 2012 schedule?

Yes, Ol’ DC’s kinda running atad late on the discussion, others having grabbed a seemingly fumbled ball. Inthe grand scheme of things and 1.5 billion years from now, though, who reallywill give a darn?

But wait, there’s “but first”. . .

HALLOWED GROUND

Anyone who has any seriousconnection to racing has heard of “Indianapolis” or, to many, just plain“Indy.”

Daytona InternationalSpeedway figures pretty doggone prominently in racing. So, too, SebringInternational Raceway, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Road Atlanta and RoadAmerica.

Whether conversationally orin print, those familiar with racing often use a shortened “Daytona,” “Laguna”or maybe even “’Bring,” and yet be understood.

(“Daytona” actually doesn’texist, by the way, “not officially” at any rate. The cities of Daytona Beach,Daytona – no beach, just mainland – and the Town of Seabreeze merged in 1926 toform Daytona Beach.)

Arguably, though, nomotorsports facility of abbreviated name will produce anything like anear-universal instant recognition like that of Indy’s mention. It, after all,doesn’t also compete with :”The World’s Most Famous Beach” (I don’t make themup folks; just repeatedly mouth that which marketers have worked to ingrain).

For decades organizationslike AAA, USAC, CART, NASCAR and IRL have at one time or another been integralin providing the fans an Indy show. Now, NASCAR’s“Grand-Am” (and Nationwide)can as well.

Whatever the reason, howeverthe end realized, the reality now is that should anyone (outside of those havingspecial connections) wish to race a sportscar on Indy’s hallowed ground, that”road” exclusively runs through Grand-Am.

Fairly easy to realize, too,is that Grand-Am, “a NASCAR Company,” likely wouldn’t have gotten its Indy datehad big-brother NASCAR not first gained a toe-hold there, starting with 1994’sThe Brickyard 400 – the first race at Indy not solely devoted to open-wheelrace cars.

The idea of conducting yetanother form of racing at The Brickyard began simply enough in a casual January2009, boardroom brain-storming session of the same nature that brought FormulaOne and MotoGP racing to IMS.

Still, the matter was madeonly more difficult when an IMS family squabble broke into the public domainand altogether shifted IMS’ power dynamics, albeit it since having been atleast partially reconstituted.

The deal-sealer, though, camewhen NASCAR added its Nationwide Series to the mix, allowing for near-continuousThursday-through-Sunday action at IMS (when included is the Thursday, July 26Rolex Series and Continental Tire practice day that opens the racing weekend).

The Rolex Sports Car Series,Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Nationwide and Sprint Cup’s “Brickyard400” made for a three-day race event (four when added is a Thursday practicesession) that is expected to give attendees one whale of a bang for the buck.

Thus born is the IMS-named“Super Weekend at the Brickyard.”

Perhaps one of the moreimportant aspects of the 2012 schedule is that it is being scheduled at all –at least at this time of year.

No, the Rolex Series isn’t onthe verge of going away.

Rather, Grand-Am presidentTom Bledsoe is aggressively pursuing the 2012’s schedule completion and,should last-minute curve balls absent themselvesfrom the process, it’ll be concluded sooner than any in recent memory.

More importantly – againpresuming corporate-type curveballs are held at bay – it’ll be a an upgradedschedule in which Indy, while still a standout, will be among rarely seen venues,at least on this side of the sports car fence.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING

Thus, if released earlierthan has been the past case, team owners will have new, exciting venues topitch and a reasonable timeframe in which to present that package to potentialsponsors.

Corporate-year budgetsgenerally run from October 1^st of a given year and thus are largely “closed”by mid-September of any given year.

Implementation of a corporatebudget and past late releases of Grand-Am schedules has made it tough for team ownersjust to make a pitch to potential sponsors, much less endure a process that cantake weeks, if not months, from the time of the first pitch to inking acontract full of particulars that at times seem only to be quibbling fodder forgleeful attorneys.

Though certainly not the onlykey in opening sponsorship doors, it’s a big one for team owners - if not the series, too, as a result.

THE UPGRADE

Treasured in the world offrequent flyers is being on the receiving end of a “bump.”

Having nothing to do withbeing physically jostled, it instead means the difference between flying instyle – “up front” in a commercial air carrier’s first-class “cabin” – or“riding in the back of the bus” along with the chickens, pigs and various otherfarm animals.

Usually excitedly discussedamong small groups of allied corporate types who gather in little groups facinga nearby flat screen, “The Bump” is a highly desired “ticket to paradise” –especially for transcontinental flights.

Supposedly among an airline’smeans of “thanking” its most devoted, well-traveled pigeons, er, passengers(generally a corporate type), The Bump also provides the means by which toincrease revenue in moving one passenger to the front and then selling hisformer, more affordable seat yet another passenger.

A cheap, cheap, cheap Ol’ DC, disinclined of needlessly spendingmoney for anything short of a Porsche, books trips well in advance of hisactual travel date so as to (hopefully) score two things: a “poor-man’s firstclass” seat (exit-row) at an inexpensive, non-refundable price.

Though Ol’ DC quite strongly startseach “new flying year” with many bumps to first, such ground is quickly lost ashis more expensively ticketed brethren start racking up their points withlater-bought tickets.

But by a season’s midpointthis frequent flyer usually is just one or two below the coveted cut line.

While girding for thecustomary gate-scrum ritual for a recent flight, Ol’ DC found himself at line’srear and alongside James Guè, of Patrick Dempsey Racing driving fame.

“I’m surprised you’re not upfront” Ol’ DC said to Guè, who easily compiles more frequent-flyer miles in aweek than does yours truly in a month.

“I was, but I wanted a seatnext to my girlfriend,” said Guè. “So I gave mine up” and thus was self-sentencedto the bus’ rear. To add “rearness” to his self-inflicted injury, Guè placedhimself directly between the MD-88’s two engines where any “sweet-nothings” conversationbecomes a shouting match by necessity. Nice guy, he, still the same.

Having advanced to the line’shead, the ticket-scanning machine whirred, its lights flashed and bellssounded: Ol’ DC’s ticket had hit the “The Delta Lotto!” and spewing forth was alast-moment reprieve from the chicken-carrying section.

Onward to the aircraft and walkingthe plank (oh, the gangway nowadays has been given all manner of “nice” names,but flying on Delta of late seems ever more like a potential date with CaptainBligh or, rather, a flight-attendant wannabe), Ol’ DC wondered aloud as to theseat Guè had sacrificed for love, surrendering a sometimes provided pre-flightbeverage service (a “chance” being better than “no way”).

“1-D,” Guè answered.

One and the same “winningnumber” Ol’ DC carried – with great appreciation.

Later,

2011-07-08T21:56:00.000-04:00

MIXED BOWL

SALINAS, California – Calledhereabouts as “The World’s Salad Bowl” it doesn’t take much of a drive outsideof Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca to understand that about which the chamber ofcommerce speaks.

RINGIING THE BELL

Shout Joe Foster’s name frombehind him in the Laguna paddock and he’ll whirl 180-degrees on one of his shoeheels because turning his head really isn’t a option right now.

“It’s pretty stiff,” Foster said,while doing nothing physically to belie his words.

While Gunter Schaldach wasable to stroll up the hill on the outside of Road America’s Turn 1 after helaunched from atop the gravel pit (he darn sure wasn’t actually IN it), Fosterand his No. 40 VisitFlorida.com Mazda RX-8 was left to writhe in pain whileawaiting rescue.

Well, maybe not “writhe.”

“I don’t remember a thing betweenthe time I was hit and my first memory afterward, which was in the helicopteron the way to the hospital,” Foster said.

“I really had my bell rung.”

The recorded data (derivedfrom a technology that Grand-Am cars aren’t supposed to have, by the way)showed Schaldach’s No. 07 CoolTV/Mobil 1 Chevrolet Camaro plowed into the rearof Foster’s Mazda having a 52-mph speed differential.

“There was nothing wrong withthe front of the car. It was the rear clip that was just flattened,” he said.

I didn’t get the stiff neckfrom hitting the barrier. It came from getting hit in the rear, before I leftthe track.”

Foster’s so-called “stiffneck” is owed to a dislocated vertebra, one hopefully returned to the order inwhich it had long maintained until the wreck.

“All that you see me doing inthe in-car (post-wreck) video, moving around; talking to the corner workers, Idon’t remember a thing about it.”

Foster said the car’s remainsalready are undertaking repair at the Riley Technologies’ Mooresville, N.C.shop.

“Pretty much the entire rearwill be new,” Foster said. “It’ll get over the hurt before I will.”

HERE TO ETERNITY

“Four tenths-of-a-second is prettymuch an eternity,” No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Chevrolet-Riley driver andsecond-fast qualifier Jon Fogarty said after another race in which theresurgent Dragón Rojo is fast enough to stake a front-row claim, but still fellshort of a total field domination (it’s kinda like “world domination,” Mark) ofthe kind it has enjoyed previously, especially in 2007.

So, who and what dominated?

“I’m not overstating it whenI say that the Dallara makes me look good,” SunTrust Racing’s Ricky Taylorseriously said after claiming his – not just the Dallara’s – fourth straightpole in the No. 10 Chevrolet-powered Daytona Prototype.

Uh-huh, but seriously, folks. . .

TOP DOG, AGAIN

Wayne Nonnamaker did itagain: a front row.

Too bad Wayne ain’t “Joe.”

Though once performing wellin the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series, the team has languished bycomparison after stepping up a couple of seasons ago into the Rolex Series’ GrandTouring category.

Now hitting on all cylin . .. um, rotors, Nonnamaker cited changes made to the team’s personnel structureas being key to Sahlen’s return to rarified air.

“Jay Chapman is our teammanager, who really worked at getting the team organized and put together,”Nonnamaker said after his topmost qualifying run Friday at Laguna Seca, poweredby Mazda.

“Then we’ve got Kate(Kathryn) Crawford Wallace, who is our engineer and who has done just a superbjob in getting us a very driveable car, improving what is already a great Mazdaplatform.

“I think the last piece wehad to put into place was John Edwards. He and I are a perfect fit, in terms ofwhat we do for set-up, how we drive.”

ROAD AMERICA, ELKHART LAKE, WISC.

2011-06-26T00:56:00.001-04:00

SANDBAGGING?

The world of racing is such an odd one.

When the boys in white-and-blue, otherwise known as the No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley (by the way, Carlos, we know you’re still in your honeymoon phase and all, but, gee, when is your bride gonna let you come to the track again?) ran the fist-of-year Rolex Series’ pool table, people started raising such a ruckus that the car was ordered to NASCAR’s research center and subjected to a cavity search that’d make the folks at TSA proud while, just like most TSA searches, illegal devices were absent from the TELMEX car, too.

Then, just when everyone had accepted that the TELMEX car would simply win the rest of the 2011 race schedule without challenge, the team produces seventh and second-place finishes, respectively compiled at Lime Rock Park and Sahlen’s Six Hours At The Glen.

So, what’d folks say?

“Sandbagging!”

Well, TELMEX team manager (is he a “director” yet?) Tim Keene then just suddenly breaks with TELMEX’s two-race “tradition” and oversees a win at Road America.

So there!

Then again, traveling a little farther down the “untouchable” path was the an apparent end of a budding end-of-year, three-team championship thrash – a la the 2007 Miller Motorsports Park race – at the EMCO Gears Classic at the new and now constantly improving Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

It’s pretty clear the EMCO folks would dread a year-ending September 16-17 Mid-Ohio show devoid of championship-chase thrills – just like the rest of us.

THE BEAT GOES ON

The late Sonny Bono for years looked like a guy who just couldn’t ever believe he’d actually been lucky enough to “score” Cher.

Sonny actually later proved a little deeper – eventually becoming a member of the U.S. House of Representatives as well as being an astute businessman – but over the roughly 13 years they were an “item” Sonny looked nothing less than stunned.

Well, Ol’ DC probably would’ve been stunned, too. In fact, Cher’s still stunning just from “here.”

Unlike Sonny, Jon Fogarty and Alex Gurney looked fairly satisfied (engineer, race-strategist Kyle Brannan being the stunned one) the podium is beginning to feel like home again for their Bob Stallings’ No. 99 GAINSCO Chevrolet-Riley after Saturday’s second-place Road America VisitFlorida.com race finish.

For “The Dragon” the last three races now have produced a 4-3-2 countdown to “one” – and where better than “home” in fewer than two weeks (Saturday, June 9) at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca?

For Fogarty and Gurney, the “secret” to their improvement has been the ability to test, evidently absent for the better part of the season’s first half.

PROOF POSITIVE

Motorsports journalist John Dagys got one of the season’s best, um, “aftermath” photographs of Gunter Schaldach’s motionless CoolTV Camaro, which at Road America made like an Ornimegalonyx and succeeded. Well, after it tried to air it out, that is.

In the last 35-minutes, Ol’ DC has seen the otherwise “flightless” Camaro no fewer than nine times – count ‘em; nine times.

IT JUST MADE SENSE

“The cars were at such a good price, it just made sense” not to add insult or injury, staying instead with the engines they brung, insisted DP team owner Peter Baron in explaining how one of his two cars went from a deep-throated Ford to emitting a slightly higher pitch with a flat-six Porsche in the No. 2 Starworks’ Avior Riley engine bay of Venezuelan drivers Alex Popow and Enzo Potolicchio.

Satisfied with taking receipt of two finely maintained Penske Racing Daytona Prototypes which, during the 2009 season, were the object of gunshots at the feet (metaphorically speaking, folks) – both self-aimed and found squarely in the crosshairs of others – Baron said it’d cost in the neighborhood of $45,000 each to modify the two former Penske chassis for the Ford engine still carried by the No. 8 of Mike Forest and Ryan Dalziel’s No. 8 Grout Shield Ford Riley, which finished fourth Saturday at Road America’s VisitFlorida.com Rolex Series race.

The No. 2 Starworks Porsche-Riley finished eighth.

FOSTER RELEASED

With little additional news than hearing the concern for Joe Foster’s physical health had more to do with neck, shoulder and/or collar bone injuries than ribs, the No. 40 Patrick Dempsey Racing VisitFlorida.com driver/owner nevertheless was released from Milwaukee’s Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital after being flown there following the Turn 1 row with Gunter Schaldach’s CoolTV Camaro, referenced earlier – and an additional dozen-or-so times on TV since the first mention made above.

Whew, there’s nothing like getting the media churning than an everyday racing crash, huh?

Later,

JUST SKATING ALONG

2011-06-25T14:47:00.001-04:00

“I hit the tires and I thought, ‘Gee, that wasn’t so bad,’” Gunter Schaldach said after skating across the Turn 1 gravel trap like a stone skipping across a pond before hitting a tire and fence barrier no was expected to hit, much less bore through it.

“Then I realized I still had some motion, but it was kinda quiet.”

It was just about a millisecond later when Schaldach’s No. 07 Banner Racing CoolTV Camaro GT.R (the remains of which pictured at left) performed what was described as a “couple of rolls” before settling upright somewhere on a Road America hillside no one had previously traversed – at least, not as had Schaldach.

That which launched Schaldach hasn’t exactly been determined, though the driver noted some “long travel” in the brake pedal before the run-in with Joe Foster’s No. 40 Fresh From Florida Mazda RX-8’s rear bumper.

“I had a really long pedal before I even hit him,” Schaldach said. “I pumped it but it didn’t respond.”

Expectations of Schaldach’s health fell about as quickly as did his car sail from view but concerns were soon reversed as Schaldach climbed atop the hillside and strolled through the hole his car had just created.

Attention then focused on Foster, whose Mazda had been contained by the barrier and was thought to have borne far less of the crash burden than did Schaldach.

Soon, though, Foster’s roof was peeled rearward and the driver, complaining of a shortage of breath, presumed to have been caused by a rib injury, was extricated by the Road America safety crew.

Soon afterward Foster was flown to Milwaukee’s Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital for further evaluation.

More as it becomes available.

Later,

RECOGNIZING POTENTIAL

2011-06-24T12:42:00.001-04:00

Racing media and public relations expert Barbara Burns has been around for awhile.

Um, no, a poor choice of words to say about any woman but, then again, Ol DC seems to be on a recent roll of ill-advised expressions.

Nevertheless, racing-media and public-relations expert Barbara Burns’ DNA (oxyribonucleic acid minus a little oxygen, thus the “De”) has been around the sport for a long enough period that there’s little she can’t or won’t do, given legal and moral limitations, of course.

Indeed, Burns was born into racing. Among the residences her family claimed as “home” was a rural race track just up the road from a town once owned by a movie star (and native Georgian) Kim Bassinger.

More than one or two more interesting stories over the years have in some way, directly or indirectly, involved Road Atlanta’s once seriously rural environs and upon which Atlanta today is seriously encroaching.

Road Atlanta is a magical place where one could’ve seen Mark Donohue to Tom Kristensen plying its turns, never mind Calvin Fish (yes, he once drove; quite well, too).

Much like a Who’s Who of the racers – whether drivers or teams or cars – who’ve traversed Road Atlanta’s hillside course, a perusal of Road Atlanta’s real estate title abstract likely would produce similar interesting results, as well as finding names appearing on both lists.

One such name: “Whittington.”

One-time Road Atlanta owners Bill and Don Whittington, along with the littlest Whittington, Dale, now deceased, were powerfully good racers in their own right.

In 1982 the Whittingtons became the only three-brother “team” to make the same Indianapolis 500 field.

Unfortunately, when life pulled one of its unexpected left, well, actually, make that “right” turns, the three brothers didn’t get much farther than a couple of pace laps before mayhem ensued and, officially, Dale Whittington didn’t officially take the race-starting green flag

The 1982 Indy 500 was a race from which emerged were famous phrases like, “This is what happens when you have children doing a man's job up front,” credited to Mario Andretti, along with this assuredly classic A.J. Foyt one-liner: “The guy had his head up his ass.”

Yesiree, full of hyperbole and metaphor, that latter thought.

No, the Andretti and Foyt comments didn’t refer to any of the Whittingtons, though one, Dale, was ultimately involved in a front-of-field melee started when Penske Racing Indy 500 rookie driver Kevin Cogan took that unexpected right turn, directly into Foyt’s side.

Cogan somehow managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, proverbially if not actually, having combined in just one race both his best and worst starts.

On a high just two weeks earlier, Cogan, who’d come to U.S. open-wheel racing by way of two years in Formula One, had on Pole Day set one- and four-lap track records of 204.638 mph (329.333 km/h) and 204.082 mph (328.438 km/h), respectively, only to have Penske teammate Rick Mears soon after wipe both, setting a then-blistering four-lap 207.004 mph (333.141 km/h) average. (By comparison, the slowest driver to make the 2011 Indy 500 grid, Brazil’s Ana Beatriz, turned a 223.879 mph/360.298 kph four-lap average.)

Wedged in the middle of a front row that on Cogan’s left had Rick Mears – whose brother, Roger Mears, also made the ’82 field – and A.J. Foyt to his right, Cogan at the very end of the final pace lap Cogan had nothing but empty race track directly before him and roughly 30 soon-to-be highly agitated racers behind.

As the race-starting green flag was unfurled, Cogan, for some still-debated reason, hung a right straight into Foyt.

Behind them, an inside-Row 2 Mario Andretti, somehow was also into someone or something and, presumably “digging deep” from his 23rd starting spot was Dale Whittington, whose momentum apparently was to be stemmed only by Andretti’s car, ending the ’82 race, before it had officially begum, for both drivers.

(See it for yourownself, including the complete pictorial starting lineup, among who was Indy 500 rookie Chip Ganassi, with hair, here.)

Gordon Johncock, who nearly always seemed to be on the wrong end of a hard-luck tale (at least from his viewpoint), won the race by 0.16 ahead of a hard-charging Rick Mears, who delivered the first real “hint” of the feats to come from one of Indy’s best, if not most storied contestants.

Now, what’s all this got to do with Burns? Not much, really; certainly not in a direct sense. Yet, it’s a great story, huh?

Among those great Whittington stories, which starts to get a little closer to “The Burns’ Road Atlanta Chapter,” is the drug-money millions buried in various places scattered around Road Atlanta’s environs.

While it’s best to allow Barbara Burns to take the lead in speaking of the many funny stories to come from that Road Atlanta era, it’s fairly safe to say Burns didn’t get any of that stash because she likely would be on permanent vacation somewhere along the French Riviera.

Still, despite his propensity for brain farts even then, in early 2006, Burns asked this reporter for a dinner-time meeting.

So, over a quiet dinner on the hardwood floors, echo-perfect walls and most excellent cuisine at a packed VIRginia International Raceway Oak Tree Tavern, Burns asked for help in educating a newly budding 16-year-old in the ways of the motorsports media.

The “kid” hadn’t raced much before earnestly undertaking the sport the previous year but, if not standing on every podium, he was winning darn near every Skip Barber and karting race he entered. Indeed, his greatest competition, like the Whittingtons, often came from a younger brother, but that’s another story for another day.

“Don’t let him slide,” Burns implored, “Ask some hardball questions. He at some point will be facing a much larger audience.”

So, it was with some measure of pride that Ol’ DC watched 21-year-old Ricky Taylor, co-driver of the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Chevrolet Dallara, handle himself so well last week while appearing “WindTunnel with Dave Despain.”

Later,

MEA CULPA

2011-06-22T19:34:00.001-04:00

In a slight departure from racing into the realm and meaning of “real” life, Ol’ DC needs to again use some space to fess up for having screwed up “in racing.”

Years ago, actually about two decades ago when given deeper thought, Ol’ DC’s father, Mr. Williams, was altogether lost when the bedrock of his life, his spouse, Ol’ DC’s mother or “Mrs. Williams,” passed into existence’s next domain.

Soon, Ol’ DC’s father joined a household that included his son’s spouse and two daughters barely out of diapers.

Ol’ DC, having the luxury of working from home, was their primary caretaker. It was a role gladly embraced, if nothing else than because Ol’ DC would provide an environment where knowledge and its acquisition was of paramount importance.

Being the functional equivalent of sponges absorbing water, learning the world around them offered lessons quickly learned, though mistakes frustratingly occurred, they being human and all.

That they later graduated summa and magna cum laude in high school and college is offered as proof that the two, now respectively undertaking graduate studies, indeed learned knowledge is “king.”

Bereft of his great love, Ol’ DC’s father, their grandfather, relished the opportunity to hang with his only grandchildren and, generational information being an important part of any family’s firm grounding, he was a welcomed part of a newly expanded household, albeit wedged in a house that hadn’t simultaneously transformed its size.

With only one wall separating the father’s room from his son’s office, father and son often and easily bantered, sometimes jokingly spurred by one having first talked only with himself or, at other times, when a television’s talking head initiated a “conversation.”

Thus it was one day when Ol’ DC heard him say, “. . . little black girl.”

Think about it enough – “little black girl” – and one can only come to the conclusion that it’s “discriminating” language that has more to do with singling out ethnicity than gender or a person’s size.

As once did I and as have others since, my spouse used to say it without actually thinking, for she claimed – and after 30-years of marriage this spouse can attest – she’s not a bigoted soul.

Yet, innocent habit or no, it had no place in ordinary, casual discourse and the expression needed to be omitted unless specificity dictated otherwise, Ol’ DC insisted.

It’s not easy for a son to dictate anything to a father, but after having heard and together logically considered the place of or, rather, the “lack of place” for “little black girl” in nearly any conversation, a father then agreed to modify his words.

The principal reason for drawing the distinction and seeking moderation was simple: exposure to bigotry is the principal reason behind its perpetration, whether the damnation of ethnicity or gender being at the root.

One day, though, Ol’ DC’s oldest daughter, Rachel, came home from public school – one considered to be among the top elementary schools in the area – and quizzically repeated to her father a word she’d learned only days shy of “graduating” to second grade.

“Have you ever heard the word ‘nih-jur,’” she struggled to say phonetically, contorting her mouth in an effort to get the word out.

Yep, it was the “n” word; “nigger.”

Ol’ DC was absolutely fit to be tied. Having expressly banned the word’s use by anyone in the household or related to it, that they’d ultimately learn of it in school didn’t seem too farfetched to expect, even if unwanted.

Yet, it was learned from a teacher, whose intention was honorable in the end but who had first used the word as means by which to insist her charges not use it. The logic didn’t catch with me, honestly, but the cat was out of the bag and, after Rachel and Camille were exposed to yet another discussion of the subject – this time at their home – the word was no longer heard around our house.

One day, with Rachel and Camille back at school and their grandfather and father still separated by that same, single wall at home, “kike!” suddenly was yelled from one side of it.

Arising from his desk, a short and quick walk placed Ol’ DC in his father’s doorway, asking “What’s up?”

“Oh, those damn Jews . . .”

His conversation interrupted at the “s” in “Jews,” a son again was at odds with the words of his father and was making such known, vociferously so.

In short, knowing the degree to which he loved his granddaughters, Ol’ DC’s father was explicitly given a choice having a very sharp, defining line: no bigotry in any manner whatsoever or no granddaughters.

It mattered not where, when or about whom. Additionally made clear to him were that no exceptions; no excuses would be accepted from that point forward.

In the following seven years that remained in his life, not once did that grandfather utter another pejorative expression regarding anyone’s ethnicity or culture.

In a recent post-qualifying Watkins Glen media center news conference Question and Answer period Ol’ DC posed a question of Max Angelelli which contained the words “. . . death-camp look . . .”

Angelelli looked a bit pekkid, a physical condition to which Ol’ DC clumsily attempted reference.

The ineptitude, if not downright stupidity of having used those words hit Ol’ DC about two-milliseconds following the words’ departure from Ol’ DC’s mouth.

Neither malice nor forethought was first undertaken in their formation, no grand plan of defamation, it was just a mind’s eye seeing one thing – a physical presence – and, in the words above, an unfortunately lame attempt at drawing a quick, verbal analogy.

Now dropping the formality of second or third-person references:

Mine was a brain fart, pure and simple, but one at which at least one unknown other took offense and expressed such to Grand-Am.

Mine was a stupid, dumb reference behind which was absolutely no intent to offend, glibly or otherwise.

I know in my heart, and as has been exemplified in the general conduct of my life’s six decades, that injury of another with those words was completely unintended.

Furthermore, people who know me also will attest that I will unreservedly go toe-to-toe, face-to-face with anyone with whom I’ve a bone to pick – including a man who gave all that he could so that I might live – and that I do not resort to vague references as a means by which to attack, whether verbally or within the confines of writing.

Yes, such at times has caused ill feelings – ask representatives of Porsche or Chevrolet; individuals like Wayne Taylor and, even, Jim France – but at least folks know where I’m coming from, unequivocally so.

But I’m not a bigot or racist – or, at the very least, I do not wish to be.

That someone, anyone, whoever it may have been was offended by those three words was not my intent.

Yet, it now has become one of many lessons learned in a life that will end far sooner than a lust for the lessons it offers.

It’s also a lesson I ardently hope won’t again be repeated - but for the occurrence of which I nonetheless and sincerely apologize.

STIRLING WISDOM

2011-06-17T17:35:00.001-04:00

“There are two things no man will admit he cannot do well: drive and make love.” - Sir Stirling Moss OBE

In a recent television interview Sir Stirling Moss proffered his belief that modern-age racing is more likely to produce accidents than was the case during his heyday because today’s driver is better protected than at any time in the history of automobile racing.

By Moss’ line of reasoning, today’s race car driver, ensconced in web of belts tightly pressing his torso into a contoured, nearly all-enveloping seat, is disposed of taking greater risk, making the race car driver “one” with and giving life to the machine he steers.

Moss, who contested more than 500 races in his 15-year professional career, thus believes today’s better-protected driver takes greater risks than ever before, consequently producing more accidents of a kind which drivers once knew there would be little or no hope of surviving.

Agreeing with Moss that today’s race car driver clearly has more favorable odds is Scotsman Allan McNish, who survived an unreal crash Saturday in the Circuit de la Sarthe’s "La Chappelle” section, when his No. 3 Audi R18 TDI all but disintegrated. (McNish’s No. 3 Audi R18 TDI’s remains at left, thanks to “Scotland’s Newspaper,” www.dailyrecord.co.uk)

“I have to say (I) probably wouldn't have been able to talk to you right now,” had the accident occurred absent of Audi putting into play current-day technology, McNish related the following day.

Given the proximity of spectators (no, not photographers, who were plentiful but expendable, of course) more than a few observers said their mind’s eye – coming practically before the last fragment of the shattering No. 3 Audi had hit the ground – quickly wandered to the 1955 race’s tragic pit-straight Mercedes crash, in which were killed 83 spectators and No. 20 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR driver Pierre Levegh.

It was a moment in time (see British Pathé newsreel 1955 footage here) that many in racing have repeatedly cited as having nearly ended motorsports competitions everywhere.

Daimler Benz later withdrew its two sister 300 SLR cars from the race – ironically, one being co-driven by Sir Stirling Moss – and at the end of 1955, despite having won the overall championship, Mercedes announced its withdrawal from motorsports, too – one that lasted three decades. In nearby Switzerland (it’s a country, Harnisfager) the government permanently banned motor racing. Other countries enacted racing moratoriums until motorsports spectator safety standards could be dictated and enacted.

After McNish’s crash had already been replayed thousands if not millions of times worldwide, Mike Rockenfeller deftly shifted the spotlight to his No. 2 Audi R18 TDI – though some insisted NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team owner Rob Kaufman wanted, or certainly at least got that spotlight, too.

In 2010, Rockenfeller, aka “Rocky,” demonstrated his considerable racing talents when he scored one of four very exclusive Rolex timepieces after helping pilot the No. 9 Action Express Porsche-Riley to victory in the 48th Rolex 24 At Daytona, during which he punched the team’s fastest-lap (1:41.722) on Lap 581 of the 755 laps completed. (Rockenfeller is at near left in picture at right, dancing with his “mates” to the strains of “Staying Alive”)

Late Saturday, while doing roughly 300 kph (186.411358 mph, give or take a hundred-thousandth) Rockenfeller boldly decided to go where few had gone – and lived to tell of it.

Occurring just prior the course’s famed Indianapolis turn, Rockenfeller and his Audi were passing to the driver’s right of the No. 71 AF Corse Ferrari 458 (below, courtesy of Michael Waltrip Racing), driven at the time by Rob Kauffman (co-driven by Rui Aguas, along with business partner and third co-driver, two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip).

The rate of Rockenfeller’s closure on Kauffman was, well, darn quick and it spelled trouble as the Ferrari apexed at the junction of the Audi running out of road.

Suddenly an unguided rocker, the R18 turned hard left and hit the outside guard rail, providing a shower of fractured bodywork and whatever else, as seen in this video taken though a standalone camera.

Fairly remote and thus absent of race fans in close proximity, such was about the only difference between Rockenfeller and McNish’s hours-earlier crash, in that both cars were principally reduced to their respective driver compartments and, as did McNish after his crash Rockenfeller “walked,” too.

Utterly remarkable, actually.

"I’ve never had such an accident before in my career and hope I’ll never have such an experience again,” Rockenfeller said afterward.

The relatively unscathed No. 71 Ferrari 458 would later retire due to a transmission failure about 16 hours into race. The team placed 13th in the GTE Pro class and 38th overall.

Prior to Audi bad news/good news scenario at Le Mans, Sir Stirling Moss’ thoughts about safety, survival rates, faster cars and testosterone highs was recently explored with driving coach Barry Waddell (Ozz Negri being counted among a number of highly capable drivers who are coached by Waddell.)

“What about today’s street cars?” Waddell wondered aloud.

“More and more of them, straight off a dealer’s lot without any modification whatsoever, are well beyond their driver’s ability to properly control them.”

Mainly due to the lack of safety equipment “one and done” once was the operative conclusion when a racing wannabe decades ago couldn’t control an urge to control out-of-control acceleration when climbing into late-60 and early 1970 muscle cars.

Newer cars plus helicopter “life flights” (believe me, they weren’t around way back “when”) and expert trauma care keep many of today’s wannabes coming back for more when what they really need do is attend a Skip Barber School.

Later,

DRIVING THE WHEELS OFF

2011-06-07T16:53:00.001-04:00

“It was awesome, just awesome, especially going through the turns,” is how Jack Roush Jr. (at left, Hi-fiving a “big” fan) described his No. 61 Roush Performance Ford Mustang Boss 302R on the way to a Friday win at Watkins Glen International with teammate Billy Johnson.

Friday’s Grand-Am Continental Tire 150 race at The Glen was pretty doggone awesome, too. Indeed, so much so that highly recommended is a tape-delayed review of it, whether via “live tape delay” scheduled for 5 p.m. Sunday June 12 on SPEED, or by watching an even still-later, self-recorded DVD, DVR, TiVo or 4-track cassette of the live tape-delayed show – or something to that effect.

“It was pretty brutal out there but a lot of fun. We were having a blast,” Roush added after he and Johnson finished atop the podium in the door-banging 59-lap, 142-mile Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race held near the southern end of New York’s famed wine-making corridor. The pair now have recorded five-consecutive podium finishes - including two victories - after failing to finish the season-opening race at Daytona International Raceway.

Finishing in second place was the No. 9 Stevenson Motorsports Camaro GS.R of Matt Bell and Jon Edwards.

The No. 46 Fall-Line Motorsports BMW M3 of Mark Boden and Terry Borcheller finished third.

A pole-sitting (2:02.256, 100.118 mph) Joe Foster kept his No. 15 Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang Boss 302R on the race’s point for the first three laps of the 2-hour, 31-minute race before slowly starting a backward fade – the nagging issue behind which would be appropriately diagnosed during a Lap-13 pit stop.

“We’ve got a cracked exhaust header,” a dejected Foster said as mechanics scurried around the car and under its hood after he climbed from the car and handed the wheel to co-driver Scotty Maxwell (at right, ahead of the No. 80 BimmerWorld Racing BMW 328i of David White and Bill Heumann at The Glen).

“It’s not terribly bad,” Foster said, “But you can hear it and the power just doesn’t quite come on like expected. It’s just enough to mess up the engine’s overall timing and gas mileage.”

“Huh?” your intrepid, all-knowledgeable reporter responded with conviction.

“The exhaust-gas leak creates an imbalance in the engine’s atmosphere exchange, creating a vacuum leak that negatively impacts the amount of air a related valve can move (push from the engine cylinder) the exhaust gases; the impacted valves being incapable of moving, or clearing as much exhaust gas from the chamber,” Foster (far left, in his “other” racing life with Patrick Dempsey, near left) said.

“Huh?” your intrepid, all-knowledgeable reporter responded with conviction.

“The less ‘clean air’ available for combustion, the richer, or greater amount of fuel must be burnt to get the same sort of engine performance, horsepower wise. It’s not the end of the world but it’s not an ideal situation, either, otherwise the Ford guys would build ‘em that way.”

As if the team’s self-imposed, if not intended engine penalty wasn’t enough, a race penalty of the official kind came along at just about the same time and left Maxwell scratching his head even long after race end.

“I never did find out the reason for the penalty,” the 47-year-old grizzled veteran said, “and didn’t understand what was communicated to me about it.”

“You know, you can waste time arguing and fuming about it to people (race officials) who aren’t likely to change their mind or kick ‘er in gear and roll. I’ve just kinda favored the latter for awhile now,” Maxwell (at right) said.

Sent on Lap 18 to the Grand Sport-class’ 31st and final available spot, of the remaining 41 laps in the 59-lap race Maxwell’s Boss 302R crossed into the top-10 on Lap 30 and into the top-five by Lap 42. Maxwell then captured third place on Lap 55 before lapsing slightly two laps later and settled into fourth, where he’d bring the evidently not-so-ill Boss 302R home minutes later.

“Not bad for an old guy,” Maxwell later quipped. “Then again, it’s not too bad for a Mustang that most everyone thought shouldn’t have run as well.”

Nor was the first-place finish for a couple of relative youngsters in the form of Johnson and Roush

(Left: at The Glen, the No. 61 Roush Performance Mustang Boss 302R “takes flight” ahead of the No. 00 CKS Autosport Camaro of Ashley McCalmont and Eric Curran).

“Scotty and I had a really good-handling car but, I swear, it seemed like every time I looked at Billy or Jack in that (No.) 61 (Mustang Boss 302R) it seemed like they were in cruise mode; one hand on the wheel and the other draped over the back of the seat, lazily driving down the road,” Foster laughed as he demonstrated the look.

Johnson insisted Foster’s observation wasn’t far from the truth while the Roush Performance team celebrated in Victory Lane.

“I have to give all the credit in the world to our guys on the team and back in the shop,” Johnson (at right, in The Glen’s Victory Lane) said. “They gave us a really sweet-handling car.”

Evidently a “hot” one, too, according to one Grand-Am official in the know.

“After the race the car was off-camber, the left front was a little low,” observed CTSSC series director Jeff Smallwood.

“We kind of wondered what was going on so we started tearing it down.

“Well, the left front brake rotor, the hub, bearings and spindle were all but melted. It was amazing that the wheel was still on the car.

“You ever hear of that expression, ‘he drove the wheels off?’ Well that’s darn near what Roush and Johnson did to that car; for real. It was among the most incredible things I’ve ever seen in all my years in racing.”

Later,

P.S. A special “Thanks” to photographer Brian Cleary, who provided the spectacular images above, including the gratuitous “hunk-actor” shot of Dempsey, though Dempsey, not Cleary (nor Ol’ DC, for that matter) would be the one who does 200-or-more sit-ups daily so as to be that “hunk.”

“AND AWAY WE GO?”

2011-05-21T22:28:00.001-04:00

If Jackie Gleason’s The Jackie Gleason Show still is on the air, somewhere, those unfamiliar with the above phrase should tune it in, if nothing else but for fully comprehending the meaning behind the title of this blurb.

Yes, the show probably isn’t nearly as sophisticated as some of today’s reality TV programming, especially those like Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie’s The Simple Life, but the master showman, who appeared opposite of Paul Newman in The Hustler, enjoyed producing and principally performing on the show, broadcast weekly for five seasons “From Miami Beach, the sun and fun capitol of the world!”

Uttered by an arm-pumping, knee-lifting and leg-swinging Gleason exiting stage left, it immediately preceded the sure-to-follow double entendres, obfuscations, chuckles and pure bulls . . . um, horse hockey.

And so it was on May 16 when Duncan Dayton announced his Highcroft Racing had withdrawn from the 2011 24 Heures du Mans.

“I am deeply disappointed for our team at Highcroft Racing who were really looking forward to the race and for David (Brabham) and Marino (Franchitti) who are left without a ride at Le Mans at a very late stage,” Dayton said in a prepared statement released by Highcroft.

Now five days beyond the announcement (as this is written), nothing at all concerning the matter has emanated from Dayton’s most prominent 2011 partner and engine supplier, Honda Performance Development (HPD), nor from yet another but evidently somewhat quieter associate also from the Honda fold, Honda R&D Americas, Inc., the both of which this season undertook a more noticeable team role after former Highcroft sponsor Patrón Spirits took its scantily dressed women over to the solely Patrón-stocked Extreme Speed Motorsports’ bar.

Beyond expressing regret for the team’s members, Highcroft’s May 16 exit statement alluded to Japan’s Mar. 10 earthquake, tsunami and subsequent $200 billion economic impact as being a proximate cause in the matter; it somehow being causal without the team having definitively stated such.

“We certainly appreciate the massive impact the earthquake and tsunami has had on the people of Japan and the huge challenges facing Japanese business,” Dayton said in the release.

(Um, though “appreciate” actually is accurately used in the statement one might consider shying from its use in the future in similar circumstances due to the word tending toward the “positive.”)

“It appears this may have contributed to Honda’s decision and we fully respect and understand their position.” (emphasis added, additionally noting that Houdini appeared to have done a lot of things he didn’t and that President Obama may have fixed health care but it’s a good bet he didn’t).

Then again, Japan’s unfortunate situation may not have at all contributed to “Honda’s” decision.

Honda Performance Development (HPD), located in Santa Clarita, Calif., and Honda R&D Americas, Inc., (HRA) Torrance, Calif., are two subsidiaries of roughly a dozen laboring under the umbrella of American Honda Motor Company, Inc. (AHM), also headquartered in Torrance, Calif.

Since 1993 HPD has specialized in automobile racing-related products, principally engines in the North American and European racing markets, as well as more recently entering the North American retail and wholesale “tuner” market.

Honda four-wheelers (ATV), boat motors, motorcycles and just “thinking” among other stuff are principally the province of HRA, which has a large Ohio manufacturing presence and, hence, is among those who will pack the Aug. 7 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.

And, lest they be forgotten, there are Honda’s Marysville, Ohio, Honda Accord factory workers who also have been known to make the Mid-O show much larger than might’ve otherwise been possible, given previous ownership attitudes.

Indeed, these Ohio folks work so doggone hard that high quantities of high-quality “Hondas” of various descriptions are produced and Honda ultimately ships about 15-percent of its total annual production to worldwide export markets.

Back in the States, according to Wall Street Journal reporter Mike Ramsey, Honda executives on Friday, May 20, said that Honda car dealers weren’t pushing sales hard enough.

"It's interesting to note that although our total inventory is down versus May 2010, we have more CR-Vs, Pilots and Fits in dealer inventory now than we did a year ago," American Honda Executive Vice President John Mendel said in the Wall Street Journal story.

Furthermore, according to the same story, U.S. dealers were told July 2011 vehicle deliveries were expected to grow more than 11-percent over June 2011 deliveries, with overall inventory numbers accelerating through August 2011 and continuing the trend into year’s end.

Other readily available financial sources show American Honda sales are up year over year – a growth rate that’s continued unabated from an overall 7.6-percent 2010 yearly sales increase over 2009.

So, um, where exactly might one find the supposedly soft quake-related numbers which in turn caused racing-program cuts?

More so, Marketing Daily on Thursday noted Honda’s rather considerable marketing push in conjunction with next week’s Indy 500, in the competition of which Honda (or HPD, if you prefer) has 33 engines.

Given the financial scope of Indy – and it’s plentiful, between solely sponsoring ESPN race-day cable programming; other print, TV and radio advertisements; ancillary live marketing efforts aplenty (probably at least a few of the bar girls formerly hanging at Highcroft); the personnel servicing those 33 engines; the Honda executives traveling to, staying at and eating at least one MacDonald’s meal daily in Indianapolis; and, probably, even more escaping attention herein, one can’t help but wonder why Honda hasn’t been able to squeeze out a lousy couple-million bucks for a sportscar team?

Thus, might another reason possibly be at the root of Highcroft reaching the end of its Honda road?

Let’s just suppose, for instance, that “Honda” itself decided to pull whatever “plug” it may have had at Highcroft?

Wild, ludicrous and unsubstantiated you say!?

In 2008 and 2009 the race-paddock rumor mill churned with reports of Audi being angered with the lack of ALMS prototype competition, supposedly having for years been repeatedly assured that such competition would exist.

In an Aug. 3, 2009 AutoWeek story entitled “Acura Likely to Quit American Le Mans Series LMP1 Program,” reporter Gary Watkins wrote, “Acura is understood to be unwilling to continue in LMP1 with De Ferran and Highcroft unless they have real opposition. Acura slashed the P1 development program when it became known last December (2008) that Audi would not continue in the ALMS.”

While it can be fairly said Gil De Ferran chose to “retire” from racing at the close of 2009, Adrian Fernandez reluctantly shuttered the doors on his championship-winning LMP2 Acura/HPD-assisted Lowe’s team after being told Acura was exiting stage right.

Come 2010, “HPD” replaced “Acura” in all things official as Patrón Highcroft Racing drivers David Brabham and Simon Pagenaud wrapped the team’s second championship title in as many years (Brabham was paired with Scott Sharp for the first, in 2009) and for which in 2010 HPD scored its first LMP title (exactly as the record books read, folks).

Bottom line: Despite HPD and HRA being a slightly more visible part of Highcroft’s ALMS effort, the team still needed more money from still other sources to undertake a Le Mans effort and, for that matter, the rest of the 2011 ALMS schedule.

“Le Mans is one of the greatest races in the world, but it requires significant financial and physical resources to compete at the highest levels. Whatever we do, we want to be able to do it properly and it just isn’t viable at this time without proper backing,” Duncan was quoted as saying in the team’s release.

Understanding Duncan’s disappointment – or reasoning, for that matter – isn’t difficult when one sees a dream derailed, as often happens in racing.

Understanding a probable effort on Duncan’s part to gracefully exit the series without burning bridges also shouldn’t be too difficult to grasp – it is what one must often do in business.

Yet, it remains odd that the split between Highcroft and “Honda” has yet to draw any sort of similar statement from “Honda,” HPD or HRA, as is the general practice when two parties, whether “at war” or old “friends,” make like a banana and split.

Right now, it appears Highcroft’s reasoning for the relationship’s breach may have overreached; just a tad.

Later,

VIRginia IS FOR RACERS

2011-05-10T15:12:00.000-04:00

GRATUITOUS “BABES” PIC

No, the two foreground guys, Burt and Ernie . . . um, er, Mark, ain’t that to which I’m referring.

The good news is the Gamma88 Girls will return with AIM Autosports sponsor and its two stars, Burt Frisselle (smiling, near right, in sunglasses) and Mark Wilkins (far left, wondering “Now, what’s that over there?”) to the Rolex Sports Car Series paddock’s next stop Thursday through Saturday (May 12-14) at VIRginia International Raceway.

The No. 61 Gamma88 Ford-Riley “has fourth place covered,” claimed Ian Willis after it finished fourth in March’s Miami Grand Prix at Homestead-Miami Speedway and April’s Barber Motorsports Park in Leeds, Ala.

(Yep, Ol’ DC is quite confused right this moment, because back in 2003 he learned BMP was, or is George Barber’s gift to the City of Birmingham, Alabama. Yet, most everyone’s dateline says “Leeds,” wherein located is a Hampton Inn few can afford to stay and a Bass Pro Shop, in which I virtually camp when not at the race track.)

WHEN THE LEVEE BREAKS

When “When The Levee Breaks” (funky wording in a kind of stuttering way, huh?) was published in 1929 after the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, it’s a safe bet “Kansas Joe” McCoy (far right) and “Memphis Minnie” (near right) had no clue Led Zeppelin would cover the duo’s blues song some four decades later (in fact, probably no more than Led Zeppelin knew their cover of “Levee” would be mixed with New Orleans post-Katrina footage).

Thus, “today” feels especially apocalyptic, in a 2012 kind of way, knowing people along the Mississippi River again are fleeing its floodwaters while Grand-Am, yet another group of which Kansas Joe and Memphis Minnie likely never dreamt, is in the midst of its own kind of flood, albeit written.

Shades of 2009 come to mind when only four full months and a handful of days into the 2011 season now is seen a 14-deep (including one “re-do”) combined pile of Grand-Am “Competitor Info” and “Technical Bulletin” notifications.

When “The Show” is itself important, such releases are or should be geared toward that end, alone; the theory being crowds of racing fans will ultimately be drawn to “fair” competitions.

The odd thing is, at least for now, we’re talking about North Americans (attending the races; not driving in them, Joao) and there’s little more North Americans enjoy than a good ol’ bloodied nose.

No?

Witness the ever-increasing popularity of “organized” fighting – even now or soon to be found in a city park near you, for goodness sakes.

Underway over in one of the other NASCAR series is a multi-front brouhaha involving rumors of Ryan Newman (below right, driving Stewart-Haas Racing car at Daytona) punching Juan Pablo Montoya (at near left in 2010, listening to driving suggestions made by Patrick Dempsey, at far left. Asked afterward as to why he might be offering Montoya suggestions, Dempsey said, “Oh, I was told he was John Montoya!”)

Neither driver will confirm or deny the meeting (not Dempsey and Montoya; rather, the latter and Newman), reportedly occurring at the front of the NASCAR hauler at Darlington Raceway this past weekend, during which “discussed” was a reported previous on-track altercation between the two, who cares where? There’s a buzz in the air!

Well, not by the pugilists, of course, but among whom now are included Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch, who got it on immediately after Darlington. Both were fined $25,000, put on notice and blah, blah, blah. Who cares! There’s a buzz in the air! (And people now buying tickets they wouldn’t have otherwise bought and fans planning to watch at least some of the next race, while others will listen intently to news reports to determine if a replay should be watched – whether 30-second highlighted fisticuffs or the DVR recording of an entire race. Who cares! There’s a buzz in the air!)

And here we sit, over in the dull, boring Rolex Sports Car Series, where since 2003 the Daytona Prototype race at a 17-turn, 3.27-mile track in Virginia’s backwoods has produced an overall first-place average margin of victory of 1.37 seconds and, over the last three DP races, a tighter 0.515 average MOV (restated: slightly over 1/2 of one second distance between first and second places – a three-race average!).

Well, goodness, just put me to sleep.

Yet, the Mexican Hat Stomp, having occurred in such a now-distant past that when discussed today leaves nearby children looking positively puzzled, asking fathers, “I know who ‘The Hulk’ is, Daddy, but who’s, um, Chris Bingham? And why was he dumb enough to mess around with The Hulk?”

Yessiree folks, that Stomp was a good ‘un (with thanks to Terry Lee Earwood, who loves Elvis more than anyone or anything and who went totally apoplectic, still is, in fact, when XM/Sirius rolled out its 24/7/365 Elvis channel).

“The Stomp” made all the TV “sports news” broadcasts along with a few “regular” newscasts, too, and preceded one of Grand-Am’s best attendance run-ups – in competitors as well as fans.

Heck, this reporter hours after sundown was still fielding calls about it while sitting in the infamous track-to-hotel shuttle bus, parked at the foot of the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez pedestrian bridge (and for which Ol’ DC’s still on a “monthly repayment plan” for the incurred international phone charges).

Late-night TV viewers can still catch the ad-hoc Stomp on “The World’s Greatest Road Rages – The Best of The Best” – or the reader can just click on the above Mexican Hat Stomp link to relive those former days of glory.

With all due respect to Camp Boggy Creek, to which official Grand-Am fines are channeled, the Rolex Series’ powers-that-be could pretend to fine the drivers but overlook a subsequent lack of payment. Heck, NASCAR is still awaiting Cale Yarborough and The Alabama Gang’s fine payments (true, years ago researched it myownself, eventually along with NASCAR archive and, later still, NASCAR bookkeeping staff who all came to the same conclusion: the 1979 Allison and Yarborough fines were never paid nor officially “forgiven.” Bill France certainly had his head properly screwed on. However, that being said, the precedent was set regarding the levying and payment of fines. This scribe strongly suggests that the teams and/or drivers consult with counsel on the matter and probably spend, oh, only $50,000 to $100,000 in attorney’s fees to save $25,000. Seems sensible in this day and age, no? Heck, the government does.)

Hey, here’s a compromise: have Grand-Am pay the fines, proportionate to the resulting TV coverage, allowing the driver to recapture at least some prizefighting benefit as a “charitable contribution” on his IRS Form 1040. But, please, first check with your accountant before making any tax decisions based on information contained herein. Should you need a name, here’s a good one: Bob Johnson, because any accountant having riverfront offices and a two-car race team clearly knows a thing or two about tax law, folks. You can reach him at Action Express Racing).

Still, a good ol’ dance being fun, let’s keep on rockin’.

“GONNA GIT THAT BOY”

The Beatles “Retirement Album” (also known as “The White Album”) contains one cut wherein a dissed “Rocky Raccoon” seeks to avenge the loss of his life’s love – or, perhaps that should be “love life” – to another man.

“Her name was Magill, and she called herself Lil, but everyone knew her as Nancy.”*

Even though Rocky had the drop, his opponent, Dan, “drew first and shot” and won the Old West-style shootout at the hoedown – or perhaps that should be . . . uh, never mind (we don’t want children to asking about that just yet. Know what I mean?).

A bleeding Rocky received following care from a doctor “stinking of gin” and afterward retired to his room “only to read Gideon’s Bible” – who “no doubt wished to help with good Rocky’s revival.”

(Yep, your scribe can sing every note of Rocky Raccoon, it being contained deep within Ol’ DC’s brain recesses, along with other oldies but goodies like, “They’re Coming To Take Me Away, Ha, Ha.”)

Grand-Am officials no doubt having hummed Mr. Raccoon’s story, too, as well as feeling an urgent need for creating race-ending suspense where none has existed since well into last season, felt it best to issue a $25,000 bounty on Messrs. Mike Hull, Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, Tim Keene, Kent Holden, along with the remainder of the No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley crew, including the ever-shifty Chip Ganassi and, by implication if not overtly, his infamous South of The Border Cohorts, Felix Sabates y José Sabates (the latter being the most secretive of the seven Sabates children).

(Hopefully, Grand-Am will print and distribute the posters, T-shirts and hats at VIR, too, because they’ll nearly fly off the shelves. Wait! Never is it a good time to waste great metaphoric opportunities: “The stuff will roll off the shelves).

Don’t warm and fuzzy feelings just envelope everyone in the wake of learning a sanctioning body – in fact, the very same which provides the rules, purses, level playing fields and Mark Raffauf (at right, with rare smile) – now offers a bounty for the defeat of its premier team?

Pruett, plied from the regulatory paperwork necessary to sell his wines, was actually honored.

“It all goes back to racing ‘roots,’” Pruett said, “From local bullrings on up, racing has used bounties for a long time in an effort to knock someone off the top. Heck, I’m honored.”

JUST AN OLD WINO

The 51-year-old Pruett, a guy who 20- and 30-somethings just can’t seem to best on the track (take THAT you impudent little impatient farts, always riding my rear bumper, yelling at “the Old Guy” ahead to “Move over!”) splits his time between teaching those youngin’s a thing or two and stomping something of another sort: grapes.

With just the right amount of this and that, the grapes eventually turn into wine, but such transformation isn’t the result of anything but good ol’ hard work – and a spot of brains.

Indeed, principally among California wine connoisseurs, Pruett’s wine vintages are so enjoyed they’re nearly sold out.

Pruett Vineyards has just started labeling a specially commissioned limited-edition Indy 500 wine, which can be purchased at newly opened web page at Pruett Vineyards website.

The readers of this are among the first to get a look at the Indy 500 100th Anniversary wine bottle, pictured at right.

(A direct link follows for the now-activated Pruett Vineyards order form should you wish to skip all the pretty pictures and go straight for the scoring of a soon-to-be-gone Indy 500 100th anniversary wine. And, yes, Ol’ DC ordered his before putting this up on ColdPit, too.)

“The Indy 500 chose our Pruett Vineyards Cab (“cabernet”) from the many who wanted to be a part of this special Indy 500 bottling,” the 1989 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year said.

“I’m really proud of it. They could’ve chosen others but the people involved in this at Indy (“Indianapolis”) chose ours.”

Pruett additionally noted that labels for “any alcoholic product in the U.S.” must first be approved by the federal government’s Department of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. No doubt California likely has a similar counterpart, too. (Doesn’t anyone find it curious that wine is one of humankind’s oldest alcoholic concoctions and yet now someone must ask “daddy” for permission to produce it? Shades of the Whiskey Rebellion!)

“It took nearly six weeks to get the paperwork through and we got it, just in the nick of time (last week),” he said.

(Hmmm, one now wonders if the same ATF guy who samples all the liquor is the same guy who test-fires all the weapons? Man, that’s gotta be fun to watch, huh, Kevin?)

Pruett shared his 1989 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year (ROY) honors with Bernard Jourdain after a post-race tie vote by the on-hand news media, who could’ve voted for any first-year Indy 500 contender having no single baseline criterion demanded beyond that of the competitor having actually started the race.

Though a tie is rare, Pruett and Jourdain’s selection as 1986’s top rookies nevertheless wasn’t a first or last in the press’ annual poll.

There’s was one of five such instances since 1952, when ROY honors were first bestowed on the best of first-time Indy competitors. The eight other tied ROY drivers: Bobby Marshman and Parnelli Jones, 1961; Larry Rice and Rick Mears, 1978; Roberto Guerrero and Michael Andretti, 1984; Alex Barron and Tomas Scheckter, 2002.

(By the way, Warren Scheckter, Tomas Scheckter’s first cousin, is a prominent, trusted member of the SunTrust No. 10 Chevrolet-Dallara team. Observers won’t see Warren Scheckter clothed in the blue/orange firesuits like those worn by the Family Menego (three of ‘em!), uniforms once being black with a spot of yellow. Have you noticed, or is it just me, that the SunTrust team just hasn’t been the same, since changing to blue/orange/yellow, red, white, silver? And did you notice me deftly moving way the heck off the original subject, having very little tangential quality?

(No, the slim, funny sounding South African, handsome and yet debonair Warren Scheckter wears impossibly impeccable white shirts having just the proper amount of starch and perfectly pressed creases in each.

(On account of Americans evidently having considerable difficulty with tongues other than their own, especially insisting someone’s name be pronounced the way we wish and not the manner he or she wishes, it’s unclear as to whether Warren changed the pronunciation of his first name, as did Tomas (toeMAS to TOMus), who probably should’ve just gone with “Tommy.”

BLAST FROM THE PAST

Grand-Am Press Release from VIRginia International Raceway, 2003

ALTON, Va. (October 05, 2003) -- Bell Motorsports has been in search of the Daytona Prototype points lead all season long, and the team finally moved to the front of the class with its victory in the VIR 400 at Virginia International Raceway on Sunday. Andy Pilgrim (far left) started the No. 54 Chevy Doran JE4 Daytona Prototype on the pole and Terry Borcheller (near left) captured the checkered flag 400 kilometers and 77 laps later.

The No. 54 Chevy's boost into the points lead was due in part to the troubles suffered by the No. 58 Red Bull Porsche FABCAR Daytona Prototype of Brumos Racing. The Porsche fell victim to suspension damage early in the race, which dropped it several laps behind, and had its fate sealed when it was involved in a multi-car pile up with only 15 laps remaining in the race.

The Brumos Racing No. 59 Porsche had been leading the race prior to the pile-up, but ducked into the pits for a splash of fuel and a new front right tire, giving the lead over to Borcheller in the No. 54 Chevy. Only three turns later Borcheller was able to maneuver the No. 54 machine around the three-car collision to smooth sailing to the checkered flag.

Haywood was able to hold onto second place overall, despite a serious threat from Darren Law in the G&W Motorsports No. 8 BMW Picchio DP. Law pressured Haywood throughout the final laps but could never get around the No. 59 Porsche and took home third-place honors.

IN THE ROAD, AGAIN

Yes, no it hasn’t a thing to do with Willie Nelson. (Ain’t English just wonderful!?)

Seeing as we’re in the “neighborhood,” it seems only appropriate that another song from the Beatle’s Retirement Album should get mentioned herein: “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road?”

A new BMW 6-Series television commercial, the subject of which being an engine-growling convertible repeatedly seen with apparent, poorly fitting body work in the bonnet’s leading left-side area, makes a lot of noise in, um, on the road – engine noise – that one just has a hard time believing would be made anywhere outside of a dynamometer room – or this weekend at the front of the VIRginia International Raceway’s Bosch 250 field (whether the No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley or the No. 61 Gamma88 BMW-Riley, it’s a reasonable bet both will be in that immediate neighborhood).

While a Dinan BMW can be a tad pricey for some, a “regular” BMW owner nonetheless can occasionally catch no-charge Dinan modifications, given good timing skills. Click here to learn how.

Anyone got a spare 135i they can lend a worthy motorsports writer? No? How about a nice M5? Or a new 6 series . . . a Yugo?

Later,

OF DREAMS THAT COULD’VE BEEN AND WERE

2011-05-05T17:17:00.001-04:00

THE RAFA SHOW THAT ISN’T

A very talented Raphael Matos only a few months ago seemed bound for a Daytona Prototype ride but, with money in short supply everywhere, most DP teams weren’t terribly interested.

Seems contradictory, huh?

As the late, great Paul Harvey would say, “Here’s the rest of the story.”

Fans of Daytona Prototype racing will remember when a third-shift Matos co-drove, with (pictured at left and far right with Ian James, left, and John Pew, center) a Michael Shank Racing Ford-Riley straight into the 2008 SunRichGourmet.com 1000 Victory Lane at Miller Motorsports Park.

As the end of the nearly 7-hour race approached, Matos was pulling away from the field in a car that had no telemetry, no dashboard information and, at best, spotty radio performance – all the while dealing with desert rain storms. His was among the smoothest drives ever seen, many observers afterward opined.

Arising following this year’s Rolex 24 At Daytona, where Matos co-drove the No. 95 Level 5 BMW-Riley to an 11th-place finish, the driver’s prospective Daytona Prototype ride negotiations soon shifted from DP to the IRL IndyCar Series as the latter’s March 27 opening 2011 St. Petersburg drew ever closer.

Bringing a sponsor and decent money (reportedly about $1.5 million) along for the ride, the list of interested DP teams were quickly whittled to two (one such based east of a certain Ohio metropolis, the name of which begins with a “C” – the metropolis, Gary, not the race team) before the whole DP ride idea withered on the vine.

The biggest reported problem was the number of interjected mouths believing they, too, should feed at the sponsor’s trough, therefore whittling the available cash to less than enough for a team to comfortably complete a DP season without it resorting to another “sponsored” driver, despite the Rolex Series’ schedule having already concluded its costliest annual race.

“You know I’ll do anything, anything at all for the series!” is a refrain often heard but rendered forevermore meaningless when a “cut” for just “being there” is sought.

A REAL HOOT, IT WAS

Having recently contemplated F1’s articulating rear wing and seeing grandiose comments concerning its “originality,” those thoughts quickly yielded to the mind’s eye in which pictured was Jim Hall’s 1967 Chaparral 2F.

Beyond being a bold breakthrough design, Hall’s wing, accorded its innovation and design totality, flat-out blows away any wing used in racing today.

The Chaparral was one this observer’s two hands-down, overall racing favorites, indeed, decades ago prompting him to buy a first-ever logo T-shirt direct from Chaparral Cars in Midland, Texas – the anticipated arrival of which went well beyond “Ralphie’s” Little Orphan Annie Ovaltine super secret decoder ring.

At what is today’s Rolex 24 At Daytona and in a following (now) Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring race, primary drivers Mike Spence, Phil Hill and owner/driver Hall drove the car at various times, the power for which was supplied by a 427-cubic-inch Chevrolet engine at times tweaked by another Texan, Harold Lozano, later growing into Joe, Ben (often seen at Rolex Sports Car Series races) and Mike’s Lozano Brothers Porting (LBP).

Still into building racing engines of all ilks, LBP provides the Porsche Cayenne-based V8 used in the Nos. 5 and 9 Action Express Racing Daytona Prototypes – though LBP has since relocated down the road a mite in New Braunfels, Texas.

Even though the Chaparral 2F qualified second behind Dan Gurney and A.J. Foyt’s Ford MkII, the all-white car clearly was the faster machine after the race was undertaken.

At 3.81-miles long, Daytona International Speedway’s 1967 track was about 1,300 feet longer than today’s (3.56-mile) track, most of the surface’s change a result of shortening the asphalt leading into and out of the original “East Horseshoe” turn, which extended about a football field’s length farther east of today’s (Pedro Rodriguez) International Turn (3).

Though the Chaparral’s 427 aluminum-block Chevy engine certainly had tons of grunt and a comparatively excellent top-end, the Chaparral 2F was the class of the field when it came to the track’s turns, its rear-mounted wing’s plane controlled by a driver-compartment foot pedal that, when released, tilted the wing into a full-on wind wall.

Can you say “instant brake?”

When tilted fully downward, this “wall of resistance” transferred energy from the wing‘s surface, through the vertical mounts (struts) and along a path that ultimately passed through the suspension and increased the friction between the Chaparral’s two rear tires and pavement below.

After watching that wing do its thing, one got the impression that somewhere on Earth’s other side two tire-sized imprints bulged from the ground, whizzing past astonished onlookers.

(Oh! One feels a National Enquirer story coming on . . .)

Coming out of the East Horseshoe and into the following straight the 2F leveled its wing as would a mad cat its ears and the Chaparral scatted, big time, as its 427 V8 Chevrolet throatily powered through each gear change, all of ‘em: one – unless included also is Reverse to Forward.

Yep, the 2-speed Chevrolet Hydramatic was at work in the Chaparral – just like the Hydramatic found in your scribe’s former 1957 Chevy BelAir 4-door hardtop. Yes sir, the Chaparral’s Hydramatic surely was just like the street version, such idea being what all manufacturers wish us to believe about race cars, anyway.

Later sold for the princely sum of $1 to a friend who possessed access to and an ability to install a spare Hydramatic found in his back yard, the Chaparral too found its Hydramatic breaking when least desired, though it not coming from someone, assuredly on the shorter end of his age spectrum, who one too many times put petal fully to metal before dropping the gearshift lever into “F.”

It was a fascinating sound, hearing that 427 aluminium (ask an Englishman) engine spool up, down and then upward again as the gears, um, as first gear transitioned into second. The Hydramatic, even in a ‘57 Chevy with holes purposefully, craftily inserted (cut) in the muffler to make its 265’s two-barreled engine sound far meaner, was a wholly interesting gearbox “experience.”

Nearing the top-end of whatever the mated 427/Hydramatic could produce, a barely discernable rapid flick of the Chaparral 2F’s wing caught just enough air just long enough to enable a continued full-throttle push through The Kink (Turn 4), followed shortly after with a full-on application as it hit the West Horseshoe’s turn-in mark.

Far more quickly seen than could the sound of its engine be heard, standing above all other cars around was the Chaparral 2F’s wing, its movements often telegraphing the car’s attack through traffic, if not the driver’s intent even if only after such had been undertaken.

When approaching slower traffic, the Chaparral 2F sometimes glided around and between fellow competitors, at other times the wing would suddenly be thrown into the wind when a formerly open gap too suddenly closed. It wasn’t necessary to see the car; just follow the wing.

It’s effectiveness well beyond doubt, the entire motorsports world soon had taken note of the Chaparral 2F (and open-cockpit 2E in Can-Am). It wasn’t long before F1 cars – shoot, every kind of race car – were sprouting similar wings.

With knowledge of aerodynamics hardly into its adolescence, in 1968 sportscar wings like that of the Chaparral 2F were banned by the Federation Internationale de L’Automobile (FIA).

Only in a short window of time would barely a relative few see the Chaparral’s magic wing at work in true anger.

It was wonderful, too.

Later,

THE ODDITY OF “FREEDOM”

2011-04-29T10:04:00.001-04:00

Time expired last week for this country’s “Average Joe” to provide “dad” an annual reconciliation of the previous year’s pursuit of life, liberty and happiness.

On April 12th, the week prior to last (“la semana antes de la semana pasada,” Memo; creo que), “Tax Freedom Day” was noted in the United States – though it most likely passed with complete indifference rather than the celebratory indulgences of a sort comparable to July 4th, the annual recognition of the latter ostensibly celebrating that day when New World colonists officially began a movement which seven years later, with September 1783’s Treaty of Paris, cast aside their government and its onerous tax system (should you wish to see how we nearly didn’t become a United States, click here.)

Too funny or, perhaps, too sad is when one realizes today more than 30 percent of those who labor and nearly 50-percent of households (they’re not the same, necessarily) in the U.S. annually pay no federal income tax at all, while just 10-percent of those who actually worked rendered unto Caesar 70-percent of the country’s federal income tax proceeds.

Furthermore, among that top-10, Internal Revenue Service figures show the topmost one percent (1%) of taxpayers in 2008 alone covered close to 40-percent of collected income taxes (the preceding provided to make clearer some previously published information seen under this byline).

The Tax Foundation’s Tax Freedom Day is a 24-hour period within when the average U.S. wage earner becomes unencumbered of a “voluntary obligation” to support others, given a simple description that most collected taxes go to other people (and, yes, this writer being an oxygen-breathing moron is unabashedly expert in the use of the oxymoronic phrase, further cautioning the reader that other such phrases, clauses and even entire sentences may, probably will follow).

Now, where were we?

Oh! It just occurred that some readers at this point may wonder about that which Ol’ DC is rambling or, perhaps, offer that such is best reserved for a place and time unrelated to sportscar racing.

Ignoring all who complain and possibly losing some, Ol’ DC nevertheless chooses to blaze onward, beseeching those who have remained to hang in there.

Last week’s Monday, April 18 and not Friday, April the 15th (no, it isn’t as scary as “Friday The 13th,” but should be) was this year’s absolutely, unavoidably final allowable day, give or take a couple of years, when an upstanding, hardworking U.S. citizen – presumably the reader of this being among such – was to provide Unca Sam a complete, line-by-line reckoning of his 2010 individual income and expenditures, the procedure being demanded in a society which supposedly relishes private and individualistic freedoms but which simultaneously exacts a charge designed, in part, to facilitate that freedom from the very same type of governmental encumbrances.

Thus, the “daddy” referenced long ago above is not that person who provided 50-percent of a successor’s assembled genes (along with a certain person contributing the other 50-percent; creo que hay, “su madre,” Memo), and is not he from whom we each gleefully “escaped” at the moment of our emancipations (the exact year and degree of which, for many, having coincided with various Vietnam War phases).

Nope, the above “dad” metaphorically speaks of The Tax Man, whose negative impact upon sportscar racing could be considerable if the guys who pay most of the taxes – among them “gentleman” racers like Chris Dyson, Duncan Dayton, Mark Patterson, Gunter Schaldach and John “300” Pew – get nailed with a substantial tax increase like that being presently sought by those who presumptuously decide “fair” is something other than the same “rules of play” being applied to everyone, regardless of “team.”

It’s nowhere close to extreme to say that hundreds, if not thousands of sportscar-racing jobs and the families in turn depending on them may be negatively impacted should the proposed “tax the rich” increases go through.

How so?

Having watched nearly each rocket ship sent aloft from Cape Canaveral and Cape Kennedy, this native Central Floridian has long wondered how those who complain about the cost of space exploration – the chief refrain being something along the lines of, “its enormous expenditures would be better directed to people here on Earth” – somehow entirely missed the point that millions of people, having families on Earth, not Mars, Venus or anywhere else, have been the beneficiaries of that money. They, however, actually worked for it.

Those who received space exploration-related paychecks – as well as the completely unassociated, unrelated yet still connected hundreds of others who were involved in the manufacture, transport and selling of the actual payroll-check paper, ink, envelopes and stamps, even your friendly mail-handling USPS union members – each have family who likewise need food, clothing, housing and educations.

Think deeply enough and one can derive any number of space-program benefits exacted worldwide that extend well beyond the oft stated “calculator” example.

In short: the space program had everything to do with feeding, clothing and housing millions of otherwise seemingly unrelated people.

So, too, does motorsports – from UPS employees accepting packages at EMCO Gears’ shipping department and its clerks to SunTrust’s smiling bank tellers accepting a paycheck for deposit.

Thus, the proposed income tax increases have much to do with sportscar racing, too, if one only takes time to ponder.

Many of those seeking the increases are somehow of the mind that the money they would exact from “Scrooges” like Dyson is otherwise just sitting around in some Swiss vault, a closeted shoebox or, perhaps in Pew’s case, acting as ballast in a Riley Technologies Daytona Prototype.

That one can write a single check in the millions of dollars, and have that check actually clear, is nothing less than mindboggling to this writer – for he darn sure can’t do such.

Yet motorsports and, most particularly sportscars, from its earliest days tied its very operational roots to those who can do such a thing, whether on a whim – as might’ve been the case for Briggs Cunningham and John Mecom Jr. in the 1950s and 1960s, or today’s Jim Michaelian and Henri Richard – or to fulfill the desire of entrepreneurial pursuit and reward, as have Roger Penske or Kevin Buckler, today.

While Pew races purely to challenge himself, the guys of Michael Shank Racing – the ones who co-drive, build, house, maintain, transport and repair Pew’s No. 60 Crown Royal Ford-Riley Daytona Prototype (sorry, John, maybe I should’ve used “Mark Patterson” on the “repair” side of the equation) – see the food, clothing, housing and educational side a resultant paycheck covers.

Take away the check that Pew cuts and someone like the lovable truck-driving Ralph Lohr hits the street because he in turn loses his paycheck.

“Oh, he’s highly skilled and he’ll find another truck-driving job,” quickly comes the retort from those who insist everyone should “play fairly.”

Um, maybe, but isn’t “going where you want to go; doing what you want to do” supposed to be among the first of those unalienable rights sought for this country’s citizens? That right certainly trumping a government handing money to those who’ve not worked for it, whether they be king or pauper.

Having rode “shotgun” thousands of miles with Lohr – essentially on a lark, but professionally doing what this writer wanted to do and going where he wanted to go – the reader can be assured that Lohr really, really enjoys his job with Mike Shank – including passing gas (it’s a double entendre, but a good one in Ralph’s case).

Meanwhile, Shank – whose actual “dad” put him in a race-car driver’s seat as a youth in a long ago, faraway time – no longer drives professionally but does, with a dozen full and part-time employees, maintain and field cars for those like Pew who wish to undertake that challenge.

Who among you are going to tell Shank to go find another job – after putting his employees on the dole, too – should The Tax Man suddenly instead demand the means which allows Pew to cut a check? After all, Pew no more has an inexhaustible supply of money than does the Federal government because everyone, every entity must spend intelligently, responsibly or none will have any chance whatsoever in even possibly doing what they’d best like to do, whatever such may be.

The above people – all of them, including this writer – are hardworking, concerned and family orientated taxpaying types who haven’t been on the largesse side of the tax system yet face such, and involuntarily so, largely because those already on that side and their advocates want still more.

Doesn’t such prospect seem terribly odd to others, too?

What a strange thing, “fair.”

Later,

A HARD RAIN’S GONNA FALL

2011-04-09T12:55:00.001-04:00

(An Ol’ DC Note: you might want to grab a beer or two, a sandwich and other such provisions because the following is not a short-attention-span story.)

“Mud, blood and beer” (thanks to Shel Silverstein’s A Boy Named Sue and not a similarly named neo musical group) is how this observer tends to characterize Gary Nelson and his “stock car generation’s” contemporaries.

Nelson, team manager at Action Express Racing for the time being, is kinda toward the junior end of his generational age scale, which among its more senior members are included driving greats David Pearson, Bobby Allison, Donnie Allison and Caleb Yarborough; reciprocating-engine geniuses like Robert Yates; and, a cast of unmentioned thousands.

Though relatively young as compared to many of the others of his motorsports-racing generation, Nelson has lived and aim’s still to live a life of accomplishment.

Nelson almost exactly split his roughly 30 years in stock car racing between first being a race-car team member and, in the second half, an integral part of NASCAR’s administrative team.

From floor-sweeping to heading teams, sometimes at the same time, Nelson’s posted some notable achievements: 1982 and 1986 Daytona 500 wins; winning at least once at every NASCAR track then scheduled; and, oversaw 1983 NASCAR Sprint (Winston) Cup champion Bobby Allison and, on the sportscar side, led Brumos Racing to its most recent Rolex 24 At Daytona overall win (2009) and, in what likely was the dark-horse racing win of the decade, Action Express Racing’s 2010 Rolex 24 victory.

If size be a requisite for topmost accomplishment, Nelson’s done that, too, in NASCAR’s Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C., which opened in 2003.

Built across the street from the Concord (N.C.) Regional Airport, when new the facility’s 61,000 square feet dwarfed its nearby neighbors -- after going awry was a simple-enough purchase of a partially developed but financially stressed 16-acre site.

Initially having an unfinished edifice, Nelson believed it could be converted to NASCAR’s needs but company architects nixed that idea and decreed the existing steel structure worthless, subsequently ordering its removal and whereupon Nelson proceeded to turn some of the resulting scrap metal into a crash-test sled, among other “recycled” things still being used.

The mere mention of the R&D Center, today, and often integral to sentences such as, “Your car has been impounded and you’re instructed to take it to …”, often spooks drivers, team managers and team owners across four NASCAR series, including Grand-Am.

In Nelson’s racing life, among that competing for top honors in Nelson’s most “unusual” category is the 1985 Pepsi Firecracker 400, for which he was crew chief of a plain-Jane No. 10 Chevrolet devoid of sponsorship.

Like the bettor who would’ve scored a cool $50k on a $100 bet had Virginia Commonwealth advanced to and won the recent NCAA basketball championship (in which UConn beat Butler) someone would’ve scored big, too, had they possessed the temerity to place a wager on Nelson’s car, with driver Greg Sacks at the wheel, to win that 1985 race, so improbable was such seen beforehand.

“We even had to borrow the pit crew from other teams (while the race was underway),” Nelson recalled.

Steadfastly claiming to be at Daytona International Speedway only for the purposes of “data collection,” the plan was to head home after a first full fuel load had run its course.

However, the car ran so strongly among the leaders that team co-owner Bill Gardner (the “Gard” part of DiGard Racing; fellow co-owner Mike DiProspero being the “Di”) made a mid-race call to keep it on the track.

The repercussions of that call, along with Sacks’ eventual win, would trigger a ripple effect that lasted for the remainder of the ’85 season and perhaps even Di-Gard’s bankruptcy the following year because lead DiGard driver Bobby Allison, who’d won the championship just two seasons previous in 1983, was driving a Buick.

Allison didn’t see the Chevrolet as anything but an abdication of the team’s commitment to Buick, even though Chevrolet was and still is a part of the same parent company, General Motors.

Others saw Bobby Allison’s ire as being little more than sour grapes after a veritable pick-up shined a bit brighter than did he.

No matter: Two weeks later Allison moved on; Sacks went from an all-but-broke, off-the-radar driver to fulfilling Allison’s remaining 1985 driving duties with a top-rated team.

By the end of 1986, though, DiGard was gone and Nelson was all over the job boards in the following years, even being among the groundbreaking first of TV’s “insider” race commentators before taking the NASCAR “technical director” job.

In racing, an ability to “scramble” is a favorable attribute for any participant, whether on the track battling for position or collecting a paycheck with one team one week and yet another paycheck at another team a following week.

It is a world in which diffidence reigns, real certainty often only comes when a checkered flag falls or a paycheck clears – which then starts the cycle anew.

Having faced his fair share of uncertainty, Nelson sees “scrambling” as something to be defeated as much as any opponent on the track and characterizes it with five syllables: “Wasted resources,” Nelson says.

As would “Professor Roy Hinkley” (Russell Johnson) while on “Gilligan’s Island,” Nelson takes great joy in accomplishing much with very little, usually precipitated with a brainstorm.

“I’ve been working in racing since 1969 and I haven’t seen perfection, yet,” Nelson said.

“There’s always more to be done. You can get all the poles and win every race but then you’d still be looking at ‘did we have the best pit stop’ and ‘how can we improve that?’”

The four-wheeled, motorsports-wide carryall “war wagon” found in your favorite pit box came into existence as a result of Nelson once sending a crewmember on a 10-minute, mid-race errand for a replacement drive-shaft.

“He didn’t have to go to the parts store; just the hauler. I figured it out and he ran something like one mile, round trip. I just figured there had to be a better way,” Nelson said.

Ultimately, Radio Flyer wagons (yep) years later came out on the short end of that deal after Nelson’s idea became de rigueur – though more so by the hand of Ernie Irvan’s father, Vic, than Nelson – because up until then the “Little Red Wagon” was a NASCAR garage-to-pits-and-back transport mainstay.

In a following war-wagon developmental brainstorm, Nelson added a seat so he’d “have someplace to sit during the race and see the pit stops better.”

According to some, it was Nelson’s practical side which caused NASCAR to take notice and put him to work.

“When Bill France and I first talked about coming to NASCAR, he said, ‘We need some help in the technical inspection side, come on over for a year and see if you like it,’” Nelson recalled.

Held responsible while a crew chief for some if not most of NASCAR’s most famous (or infamous) “technical innovations” (Darrel Waltrip’s Daytona 500 fall-a-way bumper being among this author’s favorites) many in the racing community believe NASCAR was simply resigned to hiring Nelson as the best, simplest and least expensive means to keep him in check.

Mention those supposed innovations today, or even speculate as to the reason behind his switch from being behind a pit wall to lording over its entire length, and Nelson, with twinkling eyes set over a broad smile, will say only “no comment.”

Not long afterward named “Cup Director, Nelson began examining everything that had anything to do with an on-track wreck, including personal inspections of accident sites and whatever remained in the metal-twisting aftermath, even having an accident’s inert remains, video footage and any other “evidence,” bundled and shipped to a site – eventually the NASCAR R&D Center –so as to minutely dissect cause and effect.

“I was on a mission,” Nelson said.

“I’d just seen too many people I know tore up in the years I’ve been around racing. I felt there were things we could do from our standpoint to help protect them better.”

Though Nelson can point to many individual driver safety improvements as having originated in NASCAR’s shops – the implementation of which many times crossed into other racing series – they later were wrapped into a single package that came to be known as NASCAR’s “Car Of Tomorrow.”

A name which probably too neatly characterized the project, Nelson didn’t particularly favor “COT,” but another catchy title wasn’t immediately available and it stuck.

Like it or not – and many clearly didn’t – the COT project, whether piecemeal or wholly, nonetheless achieved its primary purpose: Since Dale Earnhardt’s death in February 2001 at the season-opening Daytona 500, no fatalities have been recorded in NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide or Craftsman Truck series competitions.

“Accidents can’t be prevented and they are a big part of racing,” Nelson said. “But deaths and serious injuries as a result of those accidents is another deal altogether.”

Time and again, Nelson would face one challenge, conquer it and turn to another arising from the first.

“No one project really ended because there was always an overlap from one project to the next and that's the way I like things,” Nelson said.

“Fixing problems kept my brain working and, before I knew it, fifteen years had gone by – with no contract, mind you, just a verbal agreement between Bill and me for my work at NASCAR.

“One day I just looked at it all – kind of like taking a look in a rearview mirror at all the stuff you passed – and it was just time for me to be on my own.

“For as long as I could remember all I wanted to do was work for myself. I'd never done that. I didn't want a complicated career, like owning a car or a team; I just wanted to be in racing somehow. And that's where the consultant idea kicked in.

“After pretty well finishing up the Car of Tomorrow we were just getting started on the engine of tomorrow (presently used in NASCAR's weekly and regional series racing; supplied by Nelson) so I took the COT through the summer (his final months at NASCAR) and took on the engine program in my consulting practice.

“Brian (France) and I talked about it and first thing you know NASCAR was my first customer. But I've got others, one of which is Brumos Racing,” Nelson said.

In the summer of 2006 – at the same time Nelson was winding down his NASCAR day job and ramping up his consulting practice, Brumos Racing was approaching another season’s end still absent of a Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype win – a dubious record stretching to Sep. 21, 2003, at Mont Tremblant, Quebec (David Donohue, Mike Borkowski; “Red Bull” No. 58 Porsche-FABCAR).

Facing a 2007 season with near dread after failing a full-on, two-year attempt at fixing what ailed it – including a fall 2005 evaluation of a complete Fabcar FDSC/03 at Porsche’s Weissach, Germany, facility – failed to return Brumos Racing to the winner’s circle for the first time since the 2003 12-race DP season, during which its four drivers, Borkowski and Donohue, in the No. 58 Red Bull, along with J.C. France and Hurley Haywood, in the No. 59 “Brumos,” claimed a combined five wins (three and two, respectively) in the inaugural season’s 12 races.

(NOTE: Before certain naysayers regularly disposed of denigrating the Rolex Series’ DP commence yapping about the degree to which drivers participated in that series at the time: More drivers (six) competed in all 12 of the Rolex Series’ 2003 DP races than did the number of drivers (five) competing in nine 2010 ALMS LMP races. Just for the heck of it: total 2003 DP drivers vs. total ALMS’ 2010 LMP drivers = 44 to 25, respectively.)

Having made a gut-wrenching midseason-2006 decision to change from its near-iconic Fabcar to a, well, now-iconic Riley Mk XI, Donohue and co-driver Darren Law (replaced Borkowski beginning in 2004) introduced Brumos’ first Porsche-Riley chassis (No. 029) on July 30, 2006, at Barber Motorsports Park.

A second Riley Mk XI (No. 030) followed at Infineon Raceway on Aug. 30, 2006, replacing Hurley Haywood and J.C. France’s No. 59 Brumos-liveried Porsche-Fabcar (FDSC/06) – the pair having scored the series’ historic March 2003 first-overall DP win in a Fabcar FDSC/01 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Despite great expectations, the late-2006 Fabcar-to-Riley change produced only moderate gains in race results. Brumos Racing’s Donohue and Law scored only a team best sixth-place effort at the Aug. 11 Crown Royal 200 sprint race at Watkins Glen International; the two-car team combining for an almost confirming 13th-place average finish.

The race-car exchange (Fabcar to Riley) having only moderately improved the team’s results, Brumos Racing’s great, late leader Bob Snodgrass in the fall of 2006 sought the input of Nelson – who by then had departed NASCAR and established his North Carolina-based racing consultancy, Nelson and Associates.

“In the fall I started checking out different things and first thing I know I was talking with the Brumos folks to be an advisor and help them,” Nelson said. “But I wouldn't commit to anything long term until I had a chance to see where they were at.”

“I went to the Homestead test in December and I liked those guys. I already knew the Grand-Am officials and so I just felt like I was at home between the both of them.”.

Of course, only Snodgrass would know for sure whether he believed or wondered whether Nelson would be the deciding aspect in the team winning the 2009 Rolex 24 At Daytona (No. 58 Brumos Racing Porsche-Riley; Donohue, Law, Antonio Garcia and Buddy Rice) and, the team having mostly morphed into Action Express Racing, the following year’s race, as well (No. 9 Action Express Racing Porsche Cayenne V8-Riley; Joao Barbosa, Terry Borcheller, Mike Rockenfeller, Ryan Dalziel).

“Most of the talent was already there,” Nelson said, “and I believed we’d eventually do good after we ironed out some of the wrinkles but I would’ve never imagined what we faced in 2009 and 2010.”

So convincing were those 2009 and 2010 Daytona ‘round-the-clock wins that the cars’ across-the-board results produced record-book statistical assaults of such quality that the two Nelson-led Rolex 24 victories now occupy top-5 spots (third and fifth) in the history books.

Unfortunately, the teams’ “highs” didn’t last and the first-place Rolex Series DP championship points standings for each wouldn’t last for essentially opposite reasons.

Unwinding as their respective seasons advanced, in 2009 the No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche-Riley of Donohue and Law was dismantled by Grand-Am officials almost as would Josef Mengele a dental patient – methodically, excruciatingly.

From engine revs and added weight to transmission gears, the Porsche flat-six and, thus, Brumos’ Donohue and Law were throttled right out of what likely would’ve been a championship run.

While Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix (y José) Sabates’ No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley has made winning look easy, very few ordinarily reach a championship-capable level of performance so the 2009 situation was especially frustrating for Donohue and Law.

“Other than complain, there’s nothing I can do about what they (Grand-Am) do so there’s no point in talking about that one (2009), but it was tough. It is what it is,” Nelson said in resignation.

To the extent 2009 went wrong through external factors, 2010’s Action Express Racing’s post-Rolex 24 victory fall-off for Joao Barbosa, Terry Borcheller, Rocky Rockenfeller and Ryan Dalziel’s was an” inside job,” noted Nelson.

“In 2010 it just seemed like we couldn’t catch a break for ourselves. I can’t tell you how many nights I was laying in bed trying to sleep but thinking about what or how we could do better than we were. 2010 was a big let down because we were mostly in control of our own fate and we didn’t do a very good job of it.”

“There were just too many guys in there who took the team’s operation too lightly. I don’t want to disparage them, though. It was more a matter where some of the guys had day jobs, and good ones, elsewhere. They could mess up in the pits and it wouldn’t affect their day jobs. We needed guys whose jobs depended on what they did here. The motivation is entirely different in that circumstance.”

On the heels of a10th-place finish at Watkins Glen – the fourth in five races, a string broken only by an 11th-place at New Jersey Motorsports Park – the No. 9 AER team’s hard fall from first to 13th-place in the championship, along with Donohue and Law’s No. 5 AER car’s fall to eighth (from which it’d rally to finish sixth in points with two remaining races), Nelson knew the two-car operation was likely to experience little beyond fading hopes for 2010.

With the 2011 season on the horizon Nelson started building toward it, trying to fit together the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle pieces and personnel here and there as though completing a jigsaw puzzle.

For two of those pieces, Nelson reached into the NASCAR ranks for Iain Watt and Elton Sawyer.

Watt was easy: he took the FABCAR-turned-Coyote and started a body changing massage that corrected some deficiencies and made it a car in which Christian Fittipaldi could and did briefly challenge the No. 99 GAINSCO Chevrolet-Riley in that team’s 2007 championship run. Unfortunately for Cheever Racing and Fittipaldi, Gillett Evernham Motorsports learned of Watt’s talents and made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

As Gillett Evernham started morphing by name and melting down otherwise, Watt exited and after a couple of jobs in NASCAR Sprint Cup, including crew chief for Robby Gordon, Nelson snatched the Scotsman at the end of 2010, the net effect having a positive impact on the team.

The next to come on board in the off-season was NASCAR veteran Elton Sawyer.

Although the native Virginian competed in both Nationwide (in which he won) and Sprint Cup series, Nelson sees Sawyer as a likely successor on the pit box.

“First of all, my role here is not to be a general manager,” Nelson said.

“My role is a consultant. My goal is to find and fix a problem and then move on to the next project. I suppose, in a manner of speaking, my primary job is not to have one job at one place forever. I need to keep thinking and challenging myself with new situations.

“Well, when I get to that point with Action Express I just can’t leave them in a vacuum. And that’s where Elton will hopefully come in.

“I was impressed with what he did to get Red Bull’s NASCAR operation started. He did a heckuva job in developing the team’s structure and business plan, getting that team off the ground on solid footing that’s paid of for them. When I heard he was available I couldn’t pass up the chance to see how he’d work out over here.”

“My goal is to make this into a great racing team.”

Though a third-consecutive Rolex 24 At Daytona win wasn’t in the cards for Nelson this year, AER’s two Porsche Cayenne V8-powered Rileys nevertheless scored a third-place podium finish with Barbosa, Borcheller, France, Christian Fittipaldi and Max Papis.

The No 5 AER team of Donohue, Borcheller, Buddy Rice and Burt Frisselle, which ran in the top-5 running order through much of the race, finished ninth.

At Homestead-Miami Speedway the two AER cars followed with second (No. 5, Donohue, Law) and fifth-place (No. 9, Barbosa, Borcheller, France) finishes.

After having driven their No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley to consecutive firsts, the familiar faces of Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas currently occupy the topmost position on the Rolex Series’ DP championship scoring pylon.

Beneath numero uno, however, are seven drivers occupying a tight second and third-place points fight - five of those drivers wearing the Action Express colors (the other two being Ricky Taylor and Max Angelelli of SunTrust Racing).

“We were a little disappointed that we were one spot farther back than where we thought we should’ve been with the (No. 5, Donohue, Law) car and thought the No. 9, Barbosa, Borcheller and France) car would’ve finished higher, too, but it’d come from a lap down earlier in the race after being penalized for running over an air hose.”

At the Homestead-Miami Speedway and in the wake of that penalty, Nelson was asked for his thoughts, during the expression of which he didn’t indicate any negative behavior.

Nelson didn’t direct anger at the air hose, the guy who handled it, the Grand-Am official who saw the infraction nor the person in the control tower handing down the penalty.

Surprised at Nelson’s lack of negativity or, more so, his refusal to initiate play of the ever popular “Blame Game,” the questioner inquired as to why.

“We wrote a mission statement for this team, we’ve got places where everyone sees it every day, and the last line says, ‘We will have a positive working environment that promotes teamwork, innovation and continuous improvement,’” Nelson read from the statement itself, adding, “and ‘continuous improvement’ is underlined.”

“That mistake with the air hose at Homestead is a part of this team’s building process.”

“The foundation here is solid, the walls are up and strong, we’re at the point where the rafters are going in and the team’s trend line is upward.”

DC’s bold prediction: if the TELMEX team is to be displaced this year, it’ll be Action Express Racing which does it.

Later,

No 2011 One and Done

2011-03-23T14:06:00.001-04:00

The 2010 Rolex Sports Car Series season for the Action Express Racing team can be succinctly described: “One and Done.”

So miserable was AER’s season after coming off its 2010 Rolex 24 at Daytona win, established by regulars Joao Barbosa (left) and Terry Borcheller (with one-race assists by Ryan Dalziel and Mike Rockenfeller), that in just two 2011-season races the team’s already surpassed where it was the same time last year, having covered two of two possible top-five finishes.

Barbosa, Borcheller and J.C. France – who during the 2010-2011off-season honed its driver exchange to likely the quickest seen on pit road at Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS) – the No. 9 AER Porsche-Riley (below right at HMS) this year has finished third and fourth in two races.

Yet, even with three drivers where only two are supposed to be the “ideal,” Barbosa, Borcheller and France might well have finished even better if not for a pit-stop oversight.

“Joao was pulling out and a tire ran over an air hose by about, maybe, two inches,” a frustrated France said after Grand-Am officials directed the No. 9 Porsche-Riley to take a 30-second break from last-hour track action – a one-lap loss when pit-in and pit-out drive times are taken into consideration, dropping the team from fifth to 10th-place in the process.

“We struggled a little bit early but we could run with anybody out there,” Barbosa said. “The results are starting to show and hopefully we can keep fighting for podium positions.”

While former NASCAR Sprint Cup official-turned-sportscar team manager Gary Nelson believes the team’s benefitted from an off-season demeanor change, an in-race slip often is the difference between standing tall at the top of a podium or falling somewhere short of it.

“The biggest disappointment was the black flag because it was such a minor slip on our part,” Nelson said. “We felt like both cars were competitive but we have a little more work to do to fight for first place.”

Meanwhile, the No. 5 AER Porsche-Riley, coming off a ninth-place finish in January at Daytona International Speedway (at left), David Donohue and Darren Law’s second, second-place finish at HMS in as many Rolex Series races there now have helped this year’s clearly obvious two-car team (in 2010: part AER; part Brumos) cover the four possible top-10 finishes thus far available to the team.

The effort also shows up in the Daytona Prototype driver points, too, where the five drivers jointly occupy second and third-places – separated by two points, 56 to 54 – though Barbosa, Borcheller and France are tied in second place with Max Angelelli and Ricky Taylor, drivers of the No. 10 SunTrust Chevrolet-Dallara (right).

As have the AER drivers, the SunTrust pair already is off to a far better season as compared to 2010, having started 2011 with fifth and third-place finishes at DIS and HMS, respectively. (“Started” with “finishes.” Don’t ya just love English!?)

After their 2010 win at Daytona, Barbosa and Borcheller were the worst of the DP lot at the following HMS race and immediately fell from Sitting On Top Of The World to sixth in the DP driving championship.

Likewise at first struggling last year but eventually rallying to an end of year second-place 2010 DP Rolex Series championship finish, Angelelli and R. Taylor (below, celebrating their 3rd-place HMS podium) also were well down the points list in eighth place after the HMS race, one point behind the AER duo.

(“Ah, um,” the reader says to himself at this point, “Grand-Am doesn’t fractionalize its points system. How could sixth- and eighth-places be separated by but one point yet be two-places distant in the championship hunt?”

(The short answer: “Scott Tucker” occupied seventh place.

(A somewhat longer answer because the short answer doesn’t at all address the “how”: Tucker, Level 5 Motorsports team owner/driver, who presumably sought seat time for himself and fellow team drivers as well as gaining valuable “quality time” for tuning Level 5’s pit, logistics and shop crews, hung for but two 2010 Rolex Series races before making like a Continental Tire and rolling down the road.

(In those first two races – there would not be a third 2010 Rolex Series race for Tucker –he respectively posting third and 11th-place finishes at Daytona International Speedway and HMS, while Angelelli and R. Taylor posted back-to-back sixth-place finishes.

(Given an equal “50” championship-points subtotal ((a full season constituting a championship-points “total”)) a tiebreaker based on “best comparative finish” thus thrust Tucker ahead by one place in the standings relative to Angelelli and R. Taylor.

(The above – whether Ol DC’s four paragraphs or someone else’s one paragraph – demonstrates at least one reason journalists and editors are averse to midseason points nitpicking, instead preferring the nice and somewhat neater ordinal scoring thus far thankfully seen in 2011.

(Put another, final way: allowing even a five-driver, second-place logjam to be resolved at season’s end is far better than blowing tight print space having to explain nuance while, probably, boring to death the reader. “Just saying ‘no’” to any coverage all too often is an editor’s immediate response.)

Now, where were we?

Ah, yes . . .

There should be little doubt drivers Scott Pruett, Memo Rojas, team director Tim “Too Sly” Keene (at left with a Paul Smith Guitar award after 2010 Miller Motorsports Park win) and the whole of the Chip Ganassi Racing w/ Felix (y José) Sabates sportscar team is a darn-capable outfit.

Remember, so determined were Grand-Am officials to ascertain the TELMEX team’s “secret of success” that disassembled and, in at least one case dismembered, was the car which first received the 2011 Rolex 24 At Daytona’s checkered flag – nothing “illegal” having been found at the processes’ completion.

(So microscopically was the No. 01 BMW-Riley examined that the team later privately claimed the exercise – unsubstantiated but believable – cost upward of $100,000 in damages, never mind related costs of having on-hand five mechanics, a truck driver and, probably, Keene.)

Nowhere in history have nor will the future bring anyone or anything that endlessly will be “Sitting On Top of the World”

Some team at some unknown time will successfully wrestle the dominance of the Rolex Series from the TELMEX (the No. 01 TELMEX BMW-Riley passing the No. 99 GAINSCO Chevrolet-Riley at HMS, below right) team’s grasp, such not so much reflecting any desire on this writer’s part as much as a recognition of history; any history.

Whether the 2011 season will produce another champion is plainly debatable and not something easily wrestled from a team to which winning is nearly a birthright.

Yet, one gets the feeling a reprise of 2007 may be afoot, a season during which a pitched battle for the DP championship’s topmost honors (in GT, as well) ensued throughout, ultimately determined in a final, knockdown drag-out race at the end of which first-through-fourth DP Rolex Championship places were separated by a mere 27 points.

Though certainly not on the scale nor importance of, say, World War II’s Pacific campaign, this year’s championship fight is one which might well be of epic proportions relative to racing, and it’s one of those which people will wish to have personally witnessed.

Later,

Cold Pit

MORE POST-24 NOISE

TAKING IT TO THE LIMIT

A GOOD GUY WINS

ROLEX 24 BACKGROUND NOISE

JUST THE FACTS, JACK

FALSIES II

FALSIES

IT’S TIME

AIN’T NO WAY!

ALL(MENDINGER) OF THE STORY

SPEED, WHAT SPEED?

CHANGING THE GAME

FEAR AND LOATHING

Somewhere Over The Good Ol' US of A –

ON THE TRACK AGAIN

DEMPSEY GONE?

DAN WHELDON, RIP

LOVE AND HATE

EIGHT MID-O's DOWN; ONE TO GO

“CAN YOU SAY, ‘ADIEU, OH CANADA?’”

POST NJMP, PRE-WGI-2

NIGHT SONG GONE

WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?

CHILL, MAN, CHILL

MOVING ON UP, QUICKLY

CORPORATE SPEAK

ROAD AMERICA, ELKHART LAKE, WISC.

JUST SKATING ALONG

RECOGNIZING POTENTIAL

MEA CULPA

STIRLING WISDOM

DRIVING THE WHEELS OFF

“AND AWAY WE GO?”

VIRginia IS FOR RACERS

OF DREAMS THAT COULD’VE BEEN AND WERE

THE ODDITY OF “FREEDOM”

A HARD RAIN’S GONNA FALL

No 2011 One and Done