Wednesday, June 19th, 2013

For some racers, the only reason to race is for the win. And while most winners are worthy and gracious, some aren’t. Even in amateur racing, some racers will lie and cheat for the win because that is all that matters to them. Racing can certainly bring out the best, and the worst, in a [...]

Most Vintage racing organizations require D.O.T. (Dept. of Transportation) approved racing tires to be used. DOT approved tires are treaded instead of being slicks, and are therefore street legal. The reasons for the rule are twofold: 1) these tires keep to the theme of vintage production car racing by imitating what was used “back in the day”, and 2) [...]

For the casual or first time observer, there doesn’t seem to be much difference between Vintage and Historic racing, it’s just a bunch of cool old cars having fun at the race track. But for race organizations and their competitors, the difference is very important. Lets first compare definitions:Vintage – objects representing high quality from a past time. Historic – [...]

One of the great things about racing is that you learn something every time out. Sometimes you learn something about your car, like the chatter I was experincing in a high-speed corner got worst when I increased rebound dampening when I expected the opposite (the shocks were packing up, not pogo-ing). Sometimes you learn something [...]

After fifteen years of trailering my race cars and bikes with open trailers, it was finally within my budget to get an enclosed trailer. The additional security and weather protection will be greatly enjoyed, and the Sunday night unloadings can now be delayed a day or two as neccesary. However, you must truly be ready for the extra [...]

The Vintage Automobile Racing Association has announced the schedule for it’s annual High Performance Driving School called VARA-U. It is held at the beginning of every race season as an opportunity to either get your provisional vintage racing license or enjoy a weekend of track-based instruction. Some drivers come every year for a fun and affordable weekend, [...]

VARA, the Vintage Automobile Racing Assocation, has added a new class to its vintage racing format. Seeking to expand their reach, they now have a ‘Club Racer’ class for modern race cars. Some club members had a modern race car they wanted to bring along as well, and some late model racers wanted to come [...]

Trail braking is an advanced driving technique that all racers must eventually master, like ‘driving the line’ and ‘heel-n-toe shifting’. Trail braking is when the brakes are continued to be applied beyond the corner turn-in point and gradually released up to the point of apex, as opposed to the normally taught practice of releasing the brakes before starting the turn-in. This [...]