We Are Racers Thread................

[juanbenae]

PAL motocross in like 74-75 as 8 or 9 year old.im #3 on a 4 stroke XR 75 getting smoked by 2 cycle YZ 80's



at 14 I was able to get my AMA and District 36 cards and started racing enduros on a PE 175 suzuki. collecting my gold-plated 1st in class shovel at the 49er enduro. earned my 3 trophies to mobe from the C group to the B class in like 4-5 event. I was crap at keeping time so i was most effective at the more difficult event where everyone was "late" from jump and I could throw the time keeping and math out the window and simply ride as fast as i could for a 100 miles or so.




when I was last a racer. PRC spec911 I built and raced for 5 seasons. best finish was a 3rd place. was a better racer than qualifier. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7I6HCCKrVQ watching my SP911 videos still gives me sweaty feet, armpits and an increased heartbeat

[asphaltgambler]

Hard core drag racer, both track and street. The Nova was circa '82, just barely street legal. The Impala circa '84, street / strip

[jgreen]

Had more but limited to 10

[jgreen]

[David]

[manbridge 74]

First picture leading C Superstock expert at the now defunct Texas World Speedway. I finished 3rd at the WERA finals at Road Atlanta that year, 1992.




Below as a novice with first gen Hurricane, I’m 2nd here. Also on an extinct track, in east Texas, Oak Hill Raceway. Circa 1989.

[rockfan4]

Originally Posted by jgreen

Here's an off the wall ask - do you have a good hi-res photo of the side of your car, or better yet any of the old contingency decals used in the early firehawk series?

Looking for the ET Mags decal, maybe others.

My racing? Started autocrossing in 86 or 87, starting racing improved touring in 88, quit in the mid nineties. Also ice raced, actually put on the race in La Crosse a couple of years. Started working for a World Challenge team around 2003, 2004, did that for about 10 years, never a whole season, privateer driver that only ran 3 - 5 races a year. Tried racing again in 2012 with NASA 944spec, then they readjusted the regions and there's only 1 or two close races so I quit again.

Might try it again this year, but struggling to get everything lined up. Latest issue is I got fat since 2012 and my suit doesn't fit, nor does any off the rack and I don't want to spend the cash on a made to measure suit. Thinking of just buying a larger size and having the arms and legs shortened. Going back to improved touring with the 944, changing some things from 944 spec to make it legal, but not exactly fast.

The decal ask above is because I own one of the 944s used by Carlsen Porsche to win the inaugural Firehawk season. Hoping to get it restored soon, but you know how Porsche projects drag on.

[David]

Originally Posted by manbridge 74

Below as a novice with first gen Hurricane, I’m 2nd here. Also on an extinct track, in east Texas, Oak Hill Raceway. Circa 1989.

My karting pics above were also at Oak Hill. I loved that track!

I also did a little motorcycle racing there on an FZR400 but I never got good enough to do much more than drag my knee. I was on the track with Colin Edwards and the Hayden kids so that was pretty cool.

[manbridge 74]

Originally Posted by David

My karting pics above were also at Oak Hill. I loved that track!

I also did a little motorcycle racing there on an FZR400 but I never got good enough to do much more than drag my knee. I was on the track with Colin Edwards and the Hayden kids so that was pretty cool.

Did you ever make it out to San Angelo for the one year they used the old air strip track? It was mostly concrete, flat with hardly a reference point and fast as all get out. Edwards was a novice then but making waves that year, sometimes winning from 2nd wave in a combined race with experts. But on my best day at that airstrip, expecting him to go by, I got to the flag and looked back, nobody…. To be fair I was all dialed in from the previous days endurance race and ended with four wins, A, B, C production and C super bike.

FZR 400, a great bike if you are light guy. Kevin Rentzell (RIP) made contact with me on the warm up lap with a 600 engined one at Road Atlanta on the back straight once…. a move to psyche me out. It worked!

[Captain Ahab Jr]

You guys are making me so jealous I've turned all nostalgic so had dig about into my back catalogue of race cars I've helped create while racing behind a desk or CAD screen

Favourite Car with a Roof - 1995 McLaren F1 GTR V12 powered, World GT Champion, 1st Le Mans 24hr winner for a manufacturer winning on the 1st attempt, driven by the 1st winning Japanese driver and last production road car based racing car to win



Best Rule Loophole Race Car - 1999 Benetton B199 Renault V10 powered, extreme lightweight 12 lap qualifying only F1 car, the FIA changed the rules for the following season banning qualifying only cars



Fastest Race Car - 2006 Honda Bonneville 400 V10 land speed record car, based on a 2005 Honda RA107 V10 powered F1 car, still holds the F1 speed record and held (may still hold) the SCTA Class F Unblown Lakester record, ran 246.98mph on the Bonneville salt flats



Broke the Championship Race Car - 2016 Prema Powerteam Dallara F316 Mercedes powered, aim of the project was for Lance Stroll to have enough F1 super license points to race in F1, a small team attacked European F3 in the way we would if it was F1, the FIA changed many rules we exploited as the championship was in real danger of collapsing due to too many unhappy other billionaire dads threatening to pull out their kids



Favourite Honda Powered Race Car - 2021 Redbull RB16 Honda V6 Hybrid powered F1 car, been very lucky to have helped Honda create 18 Honda powered F1 cars but this car makes the top spot as it gave Honda their first F1 world championship in 30yrs



The above only makes up a 10th of my racing car list but these make my top 5 'favourite race cars in no particular order' list

[Chuck Miller]

Still try'n to keep younger guys with newer cars behind me....
Sometimes it works...

[porsche tech]

Capt Ahab, did your “desk job” include getting to attend all the races? Sounds like a fun career!

[David]

Originally Posted by manbridge 74

Did you ever make it out to San Angelo for the one year they used the old air strip track? It was mostly concrete, flat with hardly a reference point and fast as all get out. Edwards was a novice then but making waves that year, sometimes winning from 2nd wave in a combined race with experts. But on my best day at that airstrip, expecting him to go by, I got to the flag and looked back, nobody…. To be fair I was all dialed in from the previous days endurance race and ended with four wins, A, B, C production and C super bike.

FZR 400, a great bike if you are light guy. Kevin Rentzell (RIP) made contact with me on the warm up lap with a 600 engined one at Road Atlanta on the back straight once…. a move to psyche me out. It worked!

I was there with the FZR. I think I was working for Moto Liberty at the time.

[unclebilly]

Originally Posted by RonDent

Does this count?

Absolutely. None of the rest of it happens without some level of this ^^^ .

Thank you for volunteering.

[GH85Carrera]

Back in 1976 when I started autocrossing my 74 914 2.0 I got really into it. I was autocrossing almost every other weekend and having to drive 90 to 100 miles to get to the site.

I had a set of extra sticky tires I towed behind my 914 in a custom made trailer. Changing wheels is a chore with no pit crew.

I started chatting up the guys with tow vehicles and more race oriented, not street cars and the costs of doing that. I got one guy to be honest with me on what he was spending, and I was stunned and all he was ever going to get in return was fun.

At one track day at Road Atlanta in about 1977, I got me first ride in a nice "old race car" a genuine 911 RSR and I was stunned at how much faster it was than my wimpy little 95 HP street 914. He had to pay 21 grand for the RSR, and he had more than that in the "tow pig" and an enclose trailer, and he had a large shop at home to store it all in.

Then I let him drive my 914 to show me the best lines. I had done a few 20 minute sessions so I thought I was fast. He took 4 seconds off of my best time with me in the passenger seat. I realized then, I was never going to be a race car driver. I managed to get within 3/4 of a second of his best time. I decided then that I can't afford that level of racing, and I just stuck with autocross and having fun.

Now I drive my slow old pure analog street 911 in autocrosses and I know I have done over 150 of them in my 911.


I have driven on Hallett, OK track many times, Texas World (now gone) as well as Charlotte Superspeedway, Roebling Rd outside of Savannah, GA, Laguna Secca near Monterey, CA, Indianapolis track, and Eagles, Canyon in Texas. All just for fun, in a DE, no real racing at all.

At Roebling Road I had an instructor and he kept telling me to clip the apex, and hit the curbs to make a better time. I said NO, in a firm tone. I explained I will be driving this car home on the same tires, with my wife in the car back home to Oklahoma. It is not a
"track whore" car, it is just my toy and I don't care one iota about shaving a few seconds off my time and risking hurting my car. He understood.

[IROC]

Some additional "cars" I've raced (an S10 truck, another E36 and a Celica!):

[Captain Ahab Jr]

Originally Posted by porsche tech

Capt Ahab, did your “desk job” include getting to attend all the races? Sounds like a fun career!

Always been a desk/factory based racer

F1 teams are so big now and they're limits on trackside people but count myself as being very lucky to have been to Imola, Monaco, Bahrain, Malaysia, Suzuka F1 races and Silverstone, Barcelona, Jerez F1 tests with different teams

A lot of the time working back at base makes the racing feel remote. 3 of the above cars I've sadly never even heard or seen move in the flesh

Fun is one word that could be used occasionally but most of the time it's just relentless

Really enjoying seeing some of the race cars on here

[ted]

Driving on track is only a small part of the entire racing experience.

When stuff breaks fixing race cars and finding parts at the track can be fun too.
Everyone is very helpful at the track.
Found a 3/4 x 2 inch bolt on a Sunday morning in Robby Gordon's Super Trucks support trailer at a San Diego race.
Found a small pipe thread 90 degree to dash 6 fitting in Bruce Canepa's huge hauler at Laguna Seca too.

When your transmission strips a gear first session and your friend has everything you need to rebuild your trans in his trailer at the track.




Home on the chassis dolly, everything ready, just waiting for the new engine.

[GH85Carrera]

Originally Posted by Captain Ahab Jr

Always been a desk/factory based racer

F1 teams are so big now and they're limits on trackside people but count myself as being very lucky to have been to Imola, Monaco, Bahrain, Malaysia, Suzuka F1 races and Silverstone, Barcelona, Jerez F1 tests with different teams

A lot of the time working back at base makes the racing feel remote. 3 of the above cars I've sadly never even heard or seen move in the flesh

Fun is one word that could be used occasionally but most of the time it's just relentless

Really enjoying seeing some of the race cars on here

I suspect that is true of any job. It might be fun on occasion, but doing a task over and over under pressure to get it perfect, has to be a chore. I worked in photography all my life. No doubt many of the tasks I did I could have found hobbyist willing to pay me to participate in the production as if it was seminar. We did often stand back when done and say, damn that is looks cool.