Merry Christmas...so where is my racing stuff??

It seems each year "Santa" always leaves a little something in my stocking.  One of my favourite magazines is called "F1 Racing" F1 Racing Magazine .

This magazine is stuffed full of insight into the world of Formula 1 racing, with tons of pictures, interviews, technical breakdowns, etc.  Where I am, this magazine seems to be really hard to track down and at about $10.00 per issue I don't buy that many throughout the year, but the ones I do I keep in my collection dating back a number of years....so "Santa" keep them coming!!

It's also really nice to have a spouse that appreciates one of your passions...she may not be near as passionate about it, but she understands that I love this sport and when she hears the names Mika, Gerhard, and Gillies she also knows they are race car drivers as well.  A number of years ago while checking out a local collectors store in Vancouver called Wilkinson's Automobilia I came across a 1/18 scale of Mauricio Gugelmin's reynard car with custom sponsor decals on it.  I had to tell my wife about it, and low and behold...a couple of months later it appeared under the tree...what I nice gift for this race fan!!

This car was released by Action Diecast back in early 2000 and depicted a number of cars in the CART Racing Series.  In most cases when a cigarette company sponsors something like this, the cars were released with generic decals, but some hardcore guys alter them back to look as close to the real car as possible.  The guys over at Chapparrels Diecast are artists at this type of stuff...but they take it so much further...they are awesome!!!  At the Vancouver race I often tried to hunt Mauricio down, but was never able to get him to autograph the car.

ART ATTACK!!!!!

As a very young kid, I always wanted cars on my walls and it didn't matter if it was the hotwheels wallpaper I had as a kid, the cut out racing pictures from magazines, or the racing posters that friends and family would give me as gifts...I just always wanted to go to bed seeing racing cars and then wake up seeing racing cars.

A few years ago I was a regular forum contributor on a website called crapwagon.com...it was also known as champcarfanatic.com.  A great group of people that were hardcore fans of Champcar racing and everything that it entailed, plus a rather large angst/hate towards Tony George and what he did to American openwheel racing.(long story with many points of view).  On these forums I have been lucky enough to meet many many people deeply involved in autoracing...drivers. team owners, support staff, and even management.  One of these individuals was a gentleman with a job that I would love to have, but would probably takes years to fully comprehend...Jim Swintal.

Above is Jim welcoming home Paul Tracy at the Champcar race in Mexico City back in 2003.

Jim has been involve in autoracing for many years, holding various positions with many many organizations  He is currently involved in Race Control for the  IZOD IndyCar Series and also Marshalls Communicator for IMSA.

A very interesting job in itself, but he also an incredible talent with his hobby as an artist.  If you have a racing fan in your family, you may want to check out his website Jim Swintal Website, amazing stuff!!

I have been able to acquire a number of his prints over the years and one of my favourites is shown below.  Justin Wilson in his pitstop titled "The Right Service. Right Away".

Along with this print, Jim also sent me a print commemorating Dyson Racing's 25 Years of involvement in ALMS and Grand-Am Racing...now how did he know my son's name is Dyson???

As the years have gone by I have checked out his website on a regular basis, as well as his blog On Course for the inside information..and even post the odd time on his facebook wall.  A good friend with an amazing job...and an amazing talent. 

Meet & Greet

When the Vancouver Molson Indy race started in Vancouver, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. The sights and sounds were in my own back yard and no longer just on TV. Back during those years, my uncle worked for a television station and was given tickets each year, but unfortunatly or fortunately he was unable to attend.  So each year he gave the tickets to me.  What an experience!! I was usually there when the gates opened and would leave when the sweepers and cleanup crew would kick me out.  Over the many many years that I went, I would gain countless opportunities to meet some of my heros, and in some cases spend a few moments with them, and I always had this white binder with me.

This binder held all my photos and autograph cards, and throughout the years it  seemed  that I would run into someone without any warning, so I would simply have them sign the binder.

The autograph above is of one of the all time greats "Mario Andretti".  The day was coming to an end and it just started to pour rain, so I ran for cover under an awning.  I thought I was all by myself, but when I turned around Mario Andretti was trying to keep dry as well.  We chatted for a few minutes waiting for the rain to ease and asked him to sign the binder...very cool moment and a very cool guy.

The autograph above is from the Brazilian, Cristiano da Matta during his very first year in the CART Racing Series.  I was making one last pass of the trailers in the paddock area, when a small grundgy looking kid walked out of a trailer wearing baggy clothes.  Carrying a backpack and wearing a baseball cap pulled down tight, I knew it was Cristiano.  I didn't want to be the first one to approach him, so I followed him down the lane.  He would stop for a few moments at each paddock sight to take a quick look at the other teams and their preparations.  After seeing dozens and dozens of people not noticing who he was, I finally walked up to him stood beside him for a minute, then wished him good luck in the race.  He glanced at me and saw that I had the binder, a sharpie pen and a few autographies on it.  He reached over, surveyed the autographies with a smile and then signed it right beside Mario's autograph....no one else saw him do this.  He gave me back my pen and binder and then slowly continued his walk down the paddock lane...and I never saw anyone approach him until he was into the tunnel and away from the public.  That kid went on to win many races, the Champcar Championship, and eventually made his way all the way to Formula 1 with the Toyota Motorsports Team.

Other drivers that signed the binder are:
Jan Magnussun -  former Formula 1 & CART driver, currently in Lemans endurance racing
PJ Jones - former CART/Indy driver and American Lemans Endurance racing
Dario Franchetti - former Champcar & Nascar driver, and current 3-time Indycar Champion
Scott Pruett - former CART and Nascar driver, currently racing in the Grand-Am Racing Series
Gil de Ferran - 2-time Champcar Champion and Indy 500 winner, currently team owner and racing in the American Lemans Series.
Juan Pablo Montoya - former CART champion, Indy 500 winner, Formula 1 winner, and currently races in the Nascar Racing Series

And there is still more room on the binder....

Between the Covers

A famous British novelist by the name of Virgina Wolff once said, "A good essay must have this permanent quality about it; it must draw its curtain round us, but it must be a curtain that shuts us in not out."

Have you ever picked up a book and been entralled in it, so much so that time passes faster then you could ever imagine?  This seems to happen to me everytime I look into the autoracing annual called "Autocourse"  Each year a book is released that goes into every detail imaginable about the most recent year in Formula 1 racing.  It goes into the detail of the teams.

The book gives a complete break down on how the team is structured, challenges it faced, changes that it did from the previous year, and the individuals that make up each team...ohh the stories it tells.

Each annual also breaks down each and every race into so much detail, that I think most people wouldn't care or appreciate...well except for me.

Practice times, qualifing times, grid placement, lap by lap charts, chassis numbers...everything!  I often watch the pre-game shows for NFL football and listen to the sports announcers ramble on and on about endless details, stories, and stats...and I think what a waste of time...but then it hits me, if they were talking about autoracing I would be hanging on every word, and thats where these books come in.

I just recently was lucky enough to purchase 3 books from a gentlemen locally for $10.00 a book...new they are about $60.00 each and some of the real old ones are asking up to $200.00...ouch.  The collection currently stands at 10 books, with most coming from the United States or Great Britian...and I believe one from Australia.

Currently I have the following books but my goal is to someday have each book from 1982 to current.

1987-88          2000-01

1995-96          2001-02

1997-98          2002-03

1998-99          2003-04

1999-00          2005-06

So if anyone sees any of books not on this list at your local used bookstore or at a garage sale...send me an e-mail :)...I just might want to add it to my collection.

In the beginning was a little red car...

The first recollection that I have of autosports was when I was three, and pleading passionately with my Dad to get home in time to see the circle 8 races from the Calgary Raceway...that I had seen the night before on TV.  I loved the speed and the daring drivers as they pushed the limits of their car and the limits of their bravado to get through that fender crunching intersection on the track.  Each Friday it was urgent that we get home...no matter where we were.  And you guessed it, all I wanted for Christmas were cars!!

A few years pass and as was often the case, my Dad was once again working out of town.  We missed him a lot, but my brother and I knew that we would be getting  special something from him when he came home, a coloring book, maybe some lego, or a patch for our jacket...does anyone remember those??  Anyway, one evening he arrived home from a trip and he had me pick a hand that was behind his back...I choose...and this came out to greet me.

My first true racing car was a Corgi STP Patrick Eagle Racing Car (model159)...I was transfixed on this sleek, powerful, red machine of speed.  And what was even more special was that on the following weekend I was able to follow my new hero, Gordon Johncock, as he went lap after lap around the Indianapolis Speedway...searching out where that red 20 would be.  For years my hero wasn't Andretti, or Foyt, or Unser...it was Johncock...without a shadow of a doubt...as in my mind we were a team, Gordon in his red car, and me racing my red car on the carpet in front of the TV.

When the family moved from Calgary to Vancouver, I really pushed that we use "North American Van Lines" as they were the primary sponsor of Gordon back in the late 70's/early 80's.  The unfortunate thing is, that the original car went missing during the move, never to be found again.  But I just recently picked up this car again on ebay for a great deal.