Just glad to be here

[ClearHooter]

Ahhhhhhhhh......That sound is the sound of contentment. I've been looking for a board like this for.....years. A place where someone knows what a prototype is. In North Carolina USA about the last thing anyone recalls about prototypes is Hollman/Moody. And not many know they raced at LeMans. Its just good to have found this forum. I'm going to read some now.

Later y'all

[SALEEN S7R]

Welcome to the forum Hooter! Ten-tenths is the best, and the biggest forum around for GT and Sportscar racing, and one of the biggest motorsport forums around in general, I think ull like it here. I cant speak for anyone else here but its almost like a home to me, hence the number of posts lol. Welcome.

[MulsanneMike]

Originally Posted by ClearHooter

Ahhhhhhhhh......That sound is the sound of contentment. I've been looking for a board like this for.....years. A place where someone knows what a prototype is. In North Carolina USA about the last thing anyone recalls about prototypes is Hollman/Moody. And not many know they raced at LeMans. Its just good to have found this forum. I'm going to read some now.

Later y'all

I guess it depends on where you are in NC...but Penske will be running the LMP2 Porsche out of their new 400,000+ square foot Mooresville digs (same place the NASCAR teams are located). You ought to stop in and say hello!

[Fab]

Welcome onboard ClearHooter !

For your own comfort, pay a visit to the FAQ, it will help you to enjoy the forum even more...

Your profile could be edited to ad your location/flag, and an avatar if you wish...

Have a good one !

[Aysedasi]

Yes, welcome indeed. This is the best place to talk about sportscars......

[kdr]

Welcome ClearHooter...you're certainly going to enjoy this board over the next couple of weeks, a great time to start!

[FIRE]

Welcome With only a fews days to go for the start of the "Greatest race in the World" (IMO) it's the right time to join this forum.

[Jack Man]

Welcome ClearHooter The people on this board are great and can answer any questions you might have as they have mine. Gotta go the 6hr race from the Glen is coming on. GO MILKA GO Again welcome to the boards. We need peeps in the Nascar board aswell. See ya around.

[skycafe]

Welcome to another Yank! This is an amazing place, with people from all over the world sharing their vast experiences and knowledge of sports prototype racing! Let's hope that next years Le Mans grid has an American Chassis or two, not only on the grid but in the front at both the start and the finish! (after they win at Sebring )

robert

[ClearHooter]

The reason I stumbled across this board was I was looking for info on LeMans and who was going to broadcast it in the USA. Its not like I haven't punched in the same search info, a number of times over the last several years. How long's this board been running?

Don't get me wrong about NC. I'm a "Tar Heel" native and bred. But where I live, NASCAR is KING! Don't get me wrong about that either, I like "round & rounds, probably'll watch one today.....If it don't get rained out....I always thought that was why they made rain tires and wipers. But big oval racing vs road racing is like interstate driving vs South Carolina secondary roads. The latter will wear out a driver and car in much less time. Speaking of cow paths, anyone here ever privy to the first rite of spring in NC, that we used to have, called "The Chimney Rock Hill Climb?" That was a fun party. It was an SCCA event. From my understanding one of the only two hill climbs in the USA at that time. They quit it about 8 years ago. Miss it alot.

I've worked on sports cars over 35 years now as well as some "domestics." In the last year or so I've been modifying 1/64 die-cast LeMans, protos, CanAms and F1's to specific race specs in preperation for an art project I'm working on. Hopefully this board may be able to provide some information I may need that I don't have. If there is any interest in seeing some of the modded work let me know where to post it.

Looking forward to sharing info and knowledge and the sport

[skycafe]

Le Mans will have coverage on Speed TV. You should really log into Radio Le Mans over the internet as well, which has now become a standard part of my Le Mans armchair enjoyment. Somebody will post a link if it hasn't already been done.
The postings and chat that will take place on TT will be fascinating to watch and particpate in as well.

There is a forum on TT called Armchair enthusiasts which has a lot of modelers participating.

You aren't overly far from Road Atlanta, are you likely to go to Petit Le Mans this year, at one of this country's greatest road racing tracks?

Chimney Rock's passing is a shame, there are still some hill climbs run in Pennsylvania and I think Vermont. There should be info on SCCA website or the ever popular google search.

robert

[ClearHooter]

Yeah we might try and make it this year. I've got some friends near there. We used to go for the Run Offs. Lost the rite of spring and the rite of fall about the same time. Sometimes you just have bad years running. Thanks for the info on Radio LeMans. Next week-ends going to be fun.

[TheNewBob]

One of the reasons I find this forum great is that if someone's missing a desired piece of knowledge, there's always someone else with that info who is happy to help, with so many different people from many different backgrounds - it hadn't really occured to me just how different the same sets of cars and regulations can be in different continents - as in I'd almost taken it for granted that Le Mans was just a skip away over the English Channel (even though as a kind-of comparative newbie I've, ashamedly, not yet managed to make the journey there) - but for some it's a whole ocean away, and championship races are such long distances apart - but everyone's brought together to enjoy it all in one website forum - and they said the internet was a waste of time!

The likelyhood is that, sadly, I'll never manage to make it to an ALMS round, the distances and costs are too much for me, but it's still easy to keep up with and follow news and action and stories on here - in what is by far, in my view, the greatest style of motorsport on the planet - that's my sort-of welcome for people newer than myself on this forum - I'd say newbies but in comparison I'm still a newbie too!

Wish I was going to La Sarthe this year, but I'll be sat on this forum with RLM in the background with just as much interest!

Your models project sounds interesting - I haven't seen much in the way of models for sportscar racing - I'm not a collector, nor do I want to be, but it would be nice to have a look if any info could be shed on the subject!

[skycafe]

Originally Posted by TheNewBob

The likelyhood is that, sadly, I'll never manage to make it to an ALMS round, the distances and costs are too much for me

Put aside something every week, and soon you are there !!!

I have never been to Le Mans, and that has been a dream of mine since I was eight (Forty years ago!!!), and dang it, this is going on schedule for next year. The hobbies of reserecting busted up motorcycle bits to some semblance of (temporary) running, and various other things can go on hold. The children are mostly on their own. I can cut down on food and beer and save some money, should improve wasteline too!!!

Oddly, I will miss most of the Speed Coverage and Radio Le Mans this year as I am making a trip north to see friends, but there will be cars involved, as I am going to see two Ferrari Testa Rossas and a GTO Series 1, and some other cool stuff.

robert

[ClearHooter]

If I ever get the opportunity to make it across "the pond" again, I'd make it a point to go during LeMans. I'd go mainly to see some of the old airbase spots in England and go to Normandy. I get a lump in my throat and well up everytime I see that place. Its a place I'd be compelled to visit if the opportunity ever arises. Over the last 15 years I've been working on a WWII aviation art project. The trip would further that endevor by being able to meet some of the RAF airmen to work with on some British aircraft. The 1st criteria for my work is to have an airman to be able to tell me a story to depict. As they are now becoming less and less available I'm deversifying my endevors towards 50's 60's and early 70's road racing. I grew up with these cars and they seem to encompass what, to me, are the best years of racing. The trip could be taken as a tax deduction but would take almost a whole year to recoupe the investment.

[thebear]

Y'all come back now, y'heah?

[theracegypsy]

Hi CH and welcome to the forum.

I understasnd your comments about Normandy, my father was in the Canadian air force, and many of his friends lie there still.

I will be driving through wednesday on my way down to LM, and I usually take a 10 min stop to just reflect.

See you at the Petit

[ClearHooter]

"The bear's" signature struck a note. I went to a local Memorial Celebration with some of my aviation art several weeks ago. I made the comment to a young Marine ROTC about the reason I've done this art work is "kids his age aren't tought about WWII the reasons and consequences etc." He replied, Oh! He was (being tought) since he was in the program he was in. Then he looked at a rendering of "The Memphis Belle" that I'd done. Pointing towards the blue disc and white star on her wing he said, "That's a 'Jap' Plane." It would have been funny if it weren't so sad. "Forgive....But NEVER forget."

[TheNewBob]

Originally Posted by ClearHooter

I'd go mainly to see some of the old airbase spots in England and go to Normandy.

I'd say if you'd go to England for memorial purposes then try a couple of motorsports museums whilst your here. I'm yet to find time to make a visit purposely for most of these, but I did see the Donington collection about 7 years ago which is pretty impressive.

--

Originally Posted by skycafe

I have never been to Le Mans, and that has been a dream of mine since I was eight (Forty years ago!!!), and dang it, this is going on schedule for next year. The hobbies of reserecting busted up motorcycle bits to some semblance of (temporary) running, and various other things can go on hold. The children are mostly on their own. I can cut down on food and beer and save some money, should improve wasteline too!!!

Cut down on beer? Crikey, that IS keen! I did attend the Silverstone FIA GT race with a hangover, never a good idea, particularly with the headache I got after the race! We'd drunk so much that a friend I was supposed to have with me couldn't move by the time morning came, so he had to miss it - He was gutted, he's new to sportscar racing and had been absolutely desperate to see the Saleens for the last 10 months! However, there was no chance of me missing it so I braved it...

[skycafe]

Originally Posted by TheNewBob

Cut down on beer? Crikey, that IS keen!

Understand, Never the quality, but perhaps be a better judge of quantity

I am a little concerned with the idea of going to France for a race; will they make me eat snails and wash them down with wine, or is it possible to snag a good old hot dog and a nice cold beer to wash it down?

I may want to affliate myself with those Dutch fellas at Drinking for Holland, I may have met a few years ago when the World Cup qualifiers came here and they beat Ireland. That was eleven years ago, and I can say this, the hangover wore off last week, finally!!!!

robert

[ClearHooter]

Talk about racing parties. The Chimney Rock Hill Climb (formentioned) was a four day blow-out! I saw things there that did happen and I only thought happened. One of the funniest that did, was back in 1977. The streakin' fad had hit the USA big time. We were sitting at our regular spot on turn "fourive." All of a sudden coming down the hill around turn five like a bat out of Hades, in a little red Radio Flyer wagon was this drunk DA...Butt naked! I know he was drunk because though he'd figured out Newtons law of gravity. He'd neglected another about "bodies in motion tend to stay in motion until acted upon by an outside force." Turn four provided that. You've never seen a road rash until you see one on a naked idiot whose just spilled out of a Radio Flyer doing about 15mph. The wagon incident inspried an odd race involving homemade carts with "a #2 washtub attached as a seat and or cockpit....." Now, I've jumped out of perfectly good airplanes. I've played music in low dive bars that, if there wasn't at least one good fight a night, it was a bad evening. I've raced F/P's at Charlotte and Road Atlanta and I've flown hot air ballons in huge rallies; so that when your looking for a place to put down there were none. But the stupidist thing I've ever done was to try and go down that hill in a #2 washtub racer. I have the dubious distinction of being the first DNF in that first Chimney Rock Hill Fall. I was smart enough, however, NOT to participate in any more of them.

Some of the "Outlaws" motorcycle "club" used to park their bikes on the inside apex of turn "fourive." We'd always look forward to the afternoon when they made their departure. They'd more or less roll down the bank; leaving their rides until the next day. You could always mark their progress by the saplings shaking as they went down the mountain. Oddly enough no one ever ran into those bikes. And of course no one ever tried to rip them off.

We saw some great racing over the 20 + years we went. Jack Baumgardner's Mini Cooper was always great to watch. I'll always remember the red white & blue Vette that NEVER made it up the hill without losing some piece of fiber glass. I've watched everything from home builts to a Lola T70 make their way up that mountain and was even a mechanic on a few cars. It leaves a big hole when they quit somthing like that.

[Aysedasi]

Originally Posted by skycafe

I am a little concerned with the idea of going to France for a race; will they make me eat snails and wash them down with wine, or is it possible to snag a good old hot dog and a nice cold beer to wash it down?

I've never indulged in snails - just one step too far for me, although I have had frogs legs and (as everyone says), they (altogether) "taste quite like chicken".

Forget the hot dogs though and make sure you have at least one sandwich merguez during the weekend. With loads of moutarde. Wonderful.

[ClearHooter]

The snails I did try tasted awfully briney. If you like sardeens, snails may be down your alley. If I ever make it to France the food will probably break me financially. What I've tried here in the states is great....Less the snails.

[thebear]

Originally Posted by skycafe

. . . or is it possible to snag a good old hot dog and a nice cold beer to wash it down?

Don't look for a beer at the concessions on Friday - they only sell the low/no alcohol stuff As far as hot dogs go they used to sell saussiçhon which tasted a lot better than the the stuff at most sports events in the US - no beef, mostly pork. PM for more details.

[skycafe]

Originally Posted by Aysedasi

had frogs legs and (as everyone says), they (altogether) "taste quite like chicken".

So does alligator, I assume because they eat both frogs and turtles. Well, they eat poodle dogs too, so I assume poodle may taste like chicken....

appologies offered to all!!!

I have had escargot, loved the garlic. I assume they were prepared correctly, but then that was a french resturant in Florida, so who knows?

robert