Targa Newfoundland Bound

[78targa]

Hello all!

I just wanted to drop everyone a note letting you know that I am on my way to the 2004 Targa Newfoundland Road Rally. There I will be competing in the Targa portion of the event as #601. I am proud to say that Pelican Parts will be leading the way for me!!!


Wayne and Tom have been absolutely exceptional in helping me get prepared for this race. It has been unbelievably complex to organize. I guess if I could do this as a full time job it would be different...

I started out deciding to sign up in March not having a navigator, or even a great way to fund my effort. This thing has grown to a crew of 5 that includes a Porsche Master mechanic and a sports writer. Bob Saville has joined on to be my navigator. I have also, thanks in part to Chris Streit, managed to get my car almost fully covered by sponsorship!


Anyhow, I'm not sure what kind of updates I will be able to give during the race. It is a 5 day event covering over 2000Km. The first race day is 14 September (next Tuesday). If anone is interested, you could look at www.targanewfoundland.com or www.exclusive-motors.com . I might be able to post an update or two here if they have internet access at the hotels I will be staying in.


Ok, you have to admit that 10" Pelican on the car looks pretty cool...right??? I think it looks great!

In addition, I would also like to recognize my other sponsors. Great products that I have had much success using in the past and will most certainly source from in the future!

Blue Ridge Business Services (payroll services)
Employer Alternatives (payroll services)
Exclusive Motors (an excellent source to find or sell the finest Porsches)
Pelican Parts (I would go nowhere else)
TRE Motorsports ( Dave, you make the best fiberglass bumpers!!!)
Stable Energies (Safety Devices has THE best cages on the market. Also a great source for all your racing safety needs)
Carolina Orthopaedic Specialists (gotta have a staff doctor just in case! These guys are top notch)
Eurowerks (If you are in NC, you know they are sought after for their mechanical skills.)
Coca-Cola (Why drink anything else?)
Belle Bags (Custom handbags made with flair...bellebags.com)
Catchitcam (did I mention I will have three in-car cameras?!?!)


OK, I gotta go. I leave in 6 hours. 1700 miles, then a 14 hour ferry ride to "the rock." Watch for me on Speed Channel!

Later.

[1973911s]

Good luck, and Targa's rule.

Michael

[obrut]

I've done five Tarmac rallies, they are awesome.

Good luck, have fun and don't crash!

[Mark sP]

Good luck in what must be a very tough event. I,ve only seen Newfoundland from the air and it looks bleak!

[GrantA]

All the very best,
Keep the shiny side up
and the wheels on the ground, (except for yumps!)
Take care, we care.

GrantA
_________________
1978 Targa (Yup Targas Rule!)

[MotoSook]

That's great Casey! Just Great! Best of luck....you may be leading to way for some of us out there

Please find a way to keep us posted....

[Carl Bauer]

Can't wait to see your car on TV. Make us NC'ers proud!

[Brillo]

Very cool. Best of luck!

[Bob's Flat-Six]

Way to go, Casey
The Targa looks Way Cool and ready.
So does the big Pelican on the fender.
Sounds like the team came together nicely.
Best of Luck.

This is the most exciting post we've had in a while

[Halm]

Go get'm Casey. Bring back lots of pictures and stories.

[azasadny]

Good luck, get to the finish line first in one piece!!

[Jim Garfield]

Good luck! That sounds like great fun, very cool that you found enough sponsors to make it possible.

[tsuter]

Don't miss getting "screeched" on George St.

[jester911]

That is great. I read about last years race and thought that would be living a dream to do something like that.

Good luck. Do the pelicans proud

[78targa]

Well,

After a tought trip we have made it to North Sidney in Nova Scotia. The ferry across to Newfoundland leaves at 4 PM this afternoon.

We left Charlotte, NC at 11 am on Friday. We had to delay or departure a bit due to the remanents of Hurricane Francis passing through. Well gess what we drove throught getting up here???? Yup. I pulled the 25" trailer for 1700 miles in Francis caused rain and winds THE ENTIRE TIME. I kid you not but for the 31 hour drive it was only the last 1 hr that it actually stopped raining. YUCK.

We drove for 15 hours for the first day and stopped in Maine at 4 am Thurday. We had driven through Francis and had gotten to the leading edge of it. Yes, there were tornado warnings along the way that we drove through as well. We also saw 3 semi's during the trip that had flipped and gone off the road due to the poor driving conditions!

So, waking up in Bangor at 9 am Thursday, we started off in the middle of Francis...dopplar radar showed yellow for the first 2 hours of our drive the second day.

We made it to the border and didn't have too much trouble getting through. Funny thing was that they were concerned about the "car parts" I was bringing along. I guess they were worried I was going to sell them. I started off by giving a VERY brief description of what I had... but he wanted a more itemized list I guess. SOoooo. I started off with the spare rocker arms, valve guides.....and the list went on and on.... Hey, he asked for it right??? His eyes glazed over eventually and I think he just wrote down car parts and let us go with a dismissing wave.

After a 12 hour drive through bleak landscape with our friend Francis, we made it to North Sidney around 1:30 am Friday.

Today has been spent with a brief recovery of rest after a long trip. Time to get our stuff together and head on down to the ferry. The ferry trip is a 14 hour crossing that should prove to be somewhat interesting. Yes....Francis is here still and should effect the crossing a bit. Looking out the window I can see the cut grass blowing back and forth due to the winds that are once again catching up with us. Radar shows that Francis will move through Newfoundland Saturday.... I have already gotten several comments that we brought the weather with us.... I am starting to believe that myself!

Anyhow, I need to get going. Hopefully we will have access to a computer while in St. John's Not sure about some of the other legs of the race in Gander and Marystown. I'll try to post a few pictures either here or at www.exclusive-motors.com .

We'll get there I'm sure. As they say on the Rock ..... "It's all good!"


Later guys and thanks for listening.

[rcm]

Can't be anything but fun, good luck.

[}{arlequin]

That sure looks like a competent ride. One day I'd like to participate in that event too. Good luck and keep us posted.

[Desert Man]

I think you will find the people up there to be super friendly. I have been to St. John's twice in the last two years because my son-in-law has played for the Maple Leafs AHL team there. The Rock is beautiful, but I bet you will end up seeing some interesting weather this time of year. It's too bad they don't have the Targa in June because you might be able to see the Icebergs floating by the entrance to St. John's harbor!

[naro914]

Hey guys!!
Thanks for all the support!!

I'll let Casey give the details, but suffice it to say, we did VERY WELL, especially for a bunch of rookies (heck, we did better than most of the veterans....) We had an awesome time. The car ran great, Casey showcased his driving skills, and the entire team did a wonderful job.

As he said, without the help of our many sponsors, this would not have been possible. Thank you everyone!!!

Hopefully he'll get on here and post our results.... not to leave everyone in suspense!!!

We'll be back....maybe with a new ride??

[naro914]

If anyone is interested in reading about our adventures, Casey wrote a great article that was printed in our local PCA newsletter. I figured I would just post it on our website to make it easily available for everyone.

go to www.exclusive-motors.com then go to News & Notes. I am still working on posting more pictures....