Year: 2015

Rain in the forecast midweek has not slowed this week of racing. The clouds did throw a shot over the bow at Bristol as they started their racing with the Camping World Series Trucks and the UNOH 200.

The Wednesday night race had Cole Custer up front and minutes before the rain came a lapped driver spun in front of him giving him no place to go. With a damaged truck and the added frustration of the rain, Custer could do little but soak it up. After the delay and the track went green it was Ryan Blaney who came back to win with the #29 on a green-white-checkered finish.

The rain is on tap for today (Thursday 8/20) as well but for the most part should be out for Friday and the weekend. Xfinity and Sprint Cup racing should be fast under fair skies at Bristol.

Weather should not play a big role across the border and a bit to the east as the IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship takes center stage in southside Virginia. Even so, the drivers set to take multiple classes of exotics and sports cars to speed at Virginia International Raceway are equipped to run with the rain. They don’t like it, but they can do it. This showcase event is eye candy for auto and speed enthusiasts and weekend weather looks more like sunscreen than umbrellas.

The following week stock cars and the NASCAR K&N Series roll through VIR. If you love watching the big guns race at Watkins Glen then this is your local fix for NASCAR sanctioned stock car racing on this scenic road course.

Don’t pack up the your race gear just yet. Still to come for Virginia race fans is Richmond International Raceway the weekend of September 12. The final shot at the CHASE is on the line as the lights come on and the green flag drops at Richmond.

October has the CHASE full on and on the historic oval at Martinsville. The folks there are busy lining up a lot of specials and fan experience activities to live up to the history.

Racing is on. Virginia has the speed and all you need is a calendar to mark your races. While your at it, you might as well check the locals at tracks like South Boston, Motor Mile and others to fill out that calendar.

Go racing!

Weekends are racing everywhere. As an example, a lot of eyes were on the wheels of NASCAR in New York at Watkins Glen. Sprint Cup stock car racing on a road course. As it was, amidst the twists and turns of The Glen, Joey Logano won the day as Kevin Harvick ran the tank dry.

Jump a bit south and another race on another road course was crossing the checkers as they were going green in New York. The differences between these races are many but the game is the same. Drive, go fast, pass who you can, get up front and try to stay there. The racing is often close, cars break and drivers push too hard and it either pays off or they go off. Racing is racing and the price tag is a matter of details.

Twenty-Four hour racing is not new but events like Daytona and Le Mans are full of big teams with big sponsors and international, seasoned professional drivers on the top of their series. The cars they race are on the razor’s edge of technology with the absolute best engineering and testing. It’s a little different when they race 24 hours at Virginia International Raceway.

At VIR the Optima Batteries ChumpCar Series take on the full course with cars and drivers from the daily grind. The same course that hosts the world class speeds of the TUDOR United Sports Car Championship drops the green flag on “every man” racing with cars that were built on a shoe string. Safety is the only real consideration for modifications with seats and harnesses, roll cages and other requirements to protect the drivers. The cars themselves are limited in the way in which performance enhancements can be made. The focus is on giving an opportunity to anyone who wants to go racing without having to spend a lottery fortune on the latest tech, power and engineering. The cars can be found anywhere and it will cost a bit to add the safety spec but it is quite affordable as far as racing goes.

Virginia International Raceway hosts the Chumps and the 24 hour endurance test of drivers and their machines. To see it is to believe it. Some of these cars look pretty nice and except for the numbers and some stickers you likely wouldn’t give them a second glance on the highway. Many look a bit like something you might find 17th down in the third row at the local salvage yard. It’s possible that is where some of them came from. It’s a fair bet a big bunch of them have parts from there.

ChumpCar racing is the essence of “run what ya brung”. The pit crew is your family or friends and the car is what you could find for a few hundred dollars. The performance is essentially what the car was when it was a “car”. It’s obviously a fun thing to say you are a “race car driver” and have the thrill of racing. It’s also quite fun to watch. Check the schedule at Virginia International Raceway and the ChumpCar World Series websites. The Chumps are scheduled to return for racing in December. Grab a jacket or grab a car and come join in the fun.

Optima Batteries ChumpCar World Series website

Virginia International Raceway website

Photos from Saturday at Virginia International Raceway with the Optima Batteries ChumpCar Red Line Oil 24 Hour Classic, including the big rigs of the ChampTruck series earlier in the day.

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ChumpCar and ChampTruck at VIR. August 8, 2015. Hi-Res digital images suitable for print are available by request / Donations accepted. Email  sales@missedgear.net  with subject VIR CHUMP Car #

 

Luck and distractions. It is all too easy to get distracted by this or that or chasing details for life or work. Luck comes through despite those distractions. Such was the case recently at Virginia International Raceway.
VIR recently hosted the Grassroots Motorsports Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge. It was scheduled for a Friday and I had not been to the track in a while so set myself up to check it out. However, I had completely overlooked that this was also the day to preview and introduce the racing and some of the drivers for the upcoming TUDOR United Sports Car Championship series and the Oak Tree Grand Prix.
Luck played out as I arrived just in time to work my way into the proceedings and catch most of the menu for one of the showcase events at VIR.
However, I think I missed lunch…
There was plenty of time for some up close Q&A with drivers with a Porsche, a Viper, a Lamborgjini, a Maserati and the Nissan GT-R / VIR track cars as the backdrop. The racing and paddock of the Grassroots Motorsports action was also filling the air and the track.
Drivers on hand included;
Andy Lally (#44 Magnus Racing Flex-Box Porsche)
Ben Keating (#33 Riley Motorsports SRT Viper). Keating was on the winning team in the GTD class at this year’s Rolex 24.
Spencer Pumpelly (#73 Park Place Motorsports, Vitamin-D-Pro Porsche)
Corey Lewis (Monster Energy Lamborghini Super Trofeo / Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge)
Liam Dwyer (#26 Freedom Autosport / Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge). It should be noted that Dwyer served in Afghanistan and was drastically injured losing a leg to a hidden explosive. The loss has not changed his hunger for racing as he drives with a special approved system and a prosthetic leg!
With the time on hand, which included catching some fine racing on the track with drivers from all over putting their Grassroots skills to the test, there was plenty to talk about with the drivers. From the challenge to the admiration of the track at VIR to the competition in the series so far. The track here offers grand and scenic countryside views which surround tight curves and fast straights. It is an interesting mix of history, skill and speed that kept these drivers talking. That sounds pretty basic but consider the classes and multiple series which make up the upcoming Oak Tree Grand Prix.
TUDOR Championship – GT Le Mans and GT Daytona multiple classes.
Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge – GS and ST classes.
Lamborghini Super Trofeo – The world’s fastest one-make series.
Maserati Trofeo World Series – World class racing on three continents
Porsche GT3 Cup – Back to VIR after three years.
Many of these support series have additional races scheduled for VIR to make up for weather at earlier events… So BONUS!
What else do you need to know about Virginia International Raceway? It is like a big, open park with a winding strip of pavement that offers world class motor racing. With the Oak Tree Grand Prix weekend of racing you’ll see Ford, Chevy, Dodge, BMW, Porsche, Ferarri, Aston Martin, Audi, Mazda, Nissan, Lamborghini, Maserati… It’s an automotive smorgasboard! The view, the speed, the lines, the variety…
Throw in the paddock which is open to walk through and see the teams close up. Autograph sessions with the drivers and a midway of exotics and presentations offer plenty to see off the track. Kids activities and food are also on the weekend menu. On the track the racing is also a different experience with freedom to move about with no assigned seating and racing so close you feel every turn.
The Oak Tree Grand Prix is a big weekend but not the only one. Also on tap for the rest of the season is NASCAR stock car racing with the K&N series, the Heacock Gold Cup Classic, Chump Car and ChampTruck, CCS Motorcycles and more. Go to just one event and VIR will become a favorite destination.
The Oak Tree Grand Prix is August 21-23. Visit VIR online for a full schedule and all they offer from fine dining to relaxation to driving. They even have a shooting range.
Find racing, and more, at VIR.

GALLERY – TUDOR Oak Tree Preview – Grassroots Motorsports Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge

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Wow. That about sums it up.

Daytona with rain and a very late start was, from all accounts I’ve seen this morning, Dale Earnhardt, Jr.’s race from the start shortly before midnight.

His win was overshadowed (Junior himself was shaken and concerned) by the scene in his rear view. Pushing at speed and close quarter racing put the #11 of Denny Hamlin sideways on the apron as the #24 of Jeff Gordon and #3 of Austin Dillon went loose and essentially launched the #3 off the cars in front (#11 & #24) , tossed like a volleyball by the car behind (#15 Clint Bowyer),  and went high into the turbulent air over the field.

Dillon was simply along for the ride as the field went by underneath the #3. The Daytona catch fence separating the race track from the grandstands caught the #3 with a sudden stop ripping the heavy chain link and shearing much of the car into shattered debris. What was left fell back out on the speedway sliding and spinning on the top as the #2 of Brad Keselowski, in a sideways spin, caught the #3 again sending it spinning with another jolt.

Teams from several cars ran out to the wreck. The seconds passed with molasses but one by one the thumbs were up signalling, amazingly… stunningly… thankfully…, that Austin Dillon was not only alive but seemingly OK and responsive.

Dillon was checked over at the infield medical center and released with a bruised tailbone and arm. Other bruises will likely reveal themselves over this week. The next race at Kentucky might be just a little uncomfortable…

Other drivers expressed their relief, and thankful amazement, that Dillon was OK. Some praised the safety advances that NASCAR and tracks have made. Some others mentioned concerns over the speeds in these situations in which airflow and circumstance can still lift a car.

All were concerned for the fans. No major injuries were reported from the grandstands but five were treated in the infield while one was was treated and released from an offtrack hospital.

The question remains for NASCAR… Where is the line that separates a fan-inspiring show from driver and fan safety? It is a difficult equation. For Austin Dillon, the other drivers and a dozen fans at Daytona, the sum of that equation, thankfully for now, came out OK. The variables remain and, hopefully, safety will always be the constant.

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Dale Earnhardt, Jr. won the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona. Austin Dillon, however, won the standing ovation as he raised both arms outside of the shattered #3…

Racing steps it up on Memorial Day Weekend. Many Americans take the weekend to honor those who have served, and are serving, their country by making a trip to some of the biggest races of the year. NASCAR is running in Charlotte with the Coca-Cola 600. The spectacle of the Indianapolis 500 is on as well. The two races are even mixing a bit as Jeff Gordon is set to drive the pace car at Indy and then flying back to drive the #24 at Charlotte.

If that isn’t enough racing to fill your day, Formula 1 is running the famous streets of the Monaco Grand Prix. So far this season it has been a run for Lewis Hamilton with team mate Nico Rosberg hot on his heals.

F1 Monaco Grand Prix: NBC @ 7:30am

Indy 500: ABC @ noon

Coca-Cola 600: FOX @ 6:00pm

Talladega – Clean air out front at the finish with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Mid-field turbulence tore up some others…

The #88 of Dale, Jr. was out front and holding position while team mate Johnson in the #48 was chasing but not really catching. Others made moves including Denny Hamlin but really just opened the train to multiple lanes crossing the finish.

Talladega also saw the challenge of close racing at speed as air pressure pulled and pushed the field. Early on it was Trevor Bayne going loose with Menard on the outside and Kurt Busch on the inside. The air went rough and the tail of Bayne’s Ford went wild triggering a spin in the field that put quite a few either out or down with repairs.

For Earnhardt, it was a sweet and emotional win as he spoke somewhat softly in Victory Lane. Excited, yes, but also reserved while expressing his view on his team, his personal life and how it is all coming together with his racing and feeling really thankful. Talladega notches his first points win of the season and puts The CHASE in view for the #88.

Top 5 across the line at Talladega: Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Paul Menard, Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex, Jr.

Dale Jr. moves into the the #5 spot in points with Kevin Harvick still on top. Martin Truex, Jr. is second in points with solid finishes but the only driver in the top 5 with no wins in 2015. Jimmie Johnson and Joey Logano fill up spots three and four.

Next up: Kansas

Richmond saw racing and a lot more. Toyota, with track and race sponsorships (ToyotaCare 250 / Toyota Owners 400), owned Xfinity race day with a pole and a 100th series win from Toyota driver Denny Hamlin. Sunday, the day started with Joey Logano’s Ford and ended with Kurt Busch’s Chevy.

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We also saw tributes on the Pace Car, during driver introductions and reminders through the weekend and the race on the loss of NASCAR sports broadcaster Steve Byrnes. His insights and character enhanced the sport, the fans and everyone in the garage and the shops.

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We met the new Miss Coors Light at the Pole Winner presentations. Rachel Rupert has been in the Coors Light suit since 2010 and at Richmond we met former Miss Kentucky (2012) Amanda Mertz. She is outgoing, smiley and pretty and likes the sport. Good luck Rachel – We’ll miss you. Hello Amanda – Welcome.

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There was an extra day thanks to April showers. The schedule for Saturday was essentially down the drain. Fans, however, still made the best of it. They listened to the band at the Miller Lite Party Tent, they shopped for their favorite driver merch and they toured the infield and braved the weather the same as teams did going through the pre-race inspections.

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I’m guessing… But it is quite possible the local economy was boosted a bit with liquid sales on Saturday just a bit beyond normal…

All in all, rain and all, the welcome of the new and the farewell of the familiar, Richmond brought the races and the memories that the sport thrives on.