Elva 50th Anniv Updates

The SVRA Vintage Races at Sebring March 12-15, 2008, will honor the 50th Anniversary of Elva sports racers at Sebring. There has been a $100.00 reduction for all US based Elva entries, and complementary entries for non US Elva entries. There is no requirement for FIA paperwork or special licenses. For those travelling extra long distances, do keep in mind that there are additional racing opportunities both before and after the Elva event and details are available from the organising groups HSR and SVRA websites. There is also the Amelia Island Concours the previous weekend.

Accommodation is at a premium as already announced on this website so do get something booked soonest. It could be worth considering an RV to avoid too much driving and possible traffic delays. There will be special Elva events within the Sebring meeting and all details will be advised over the coming weeks. Race schedules will be confirmed in early January, but again do PLEASE make contact with the SVRA to help them plan this event to best advantage.

Some contact info:
www.elva.com
www.svra.com
www.sebringraceway.com
www.hsrrace.com
www.ameliaconcours.org
www.uShip.com/vehicles

and for UK shipping email Gordon Palmer on GordonNPalmer@aol.com or David of Autofreight on Autofreight@aol.com

[ Read more ] ::

Elva 50th Anniv at Sebring

This is an open invitation to all ELVA owners to participate in this wonderful SVRA event. The SVRA Vintage Races at Sebring 2008 will honour the 50th Anniversary of Elva sports racers and those who drove in the 1958 meeting which included 'Doc' Wyllie, Chuck Dietrich, Burdette Martin, 'Rip' Ripley, Bill Milliken, Cameron Argentsinger, John Bentley and Frank Baptista all of whom entered Elva Mk.II and Mk.III sports racers in the 12-hour race.

However for 2008 all Elva sports racers, Couriers and the Formula Juniors are invited to attend and race on the world famous 4-mile track. The SVRA are known for well organised and spectacular events and this will be a meeting NOT to be missed! There will be a special Elva paddock, displays and reception party plus a chance to be part of an escorted drive to downtown Sebring for selected cars.

A full 3-day HSR meeting will be held at Sebring the first week in March, and the SVRA will have additional events before and after the main Sebring vintage race. In all a great start to the season and a great opportunity to attend a fabulous and historic race circuit. Elva entries from overseas will be granted free entries and the Entry Forms will be available soon at www.svra.com

There will be regular updates on this official Elva website. More detailed information available from Bob Engberg who has been instrumental in setting this particular ball rolling (thank you Bob) via bobengberg@aim.com or from Roger Dunbar at Elva via www.elva.com/elva-contact.php regarding UK/European entries. Grateful thanks to Jack Woerle at the SVRA for his input and enthusiasm, so now let's make it happen and I look forward to seeing you there!

For more information and updates, see
[ www.elva.com ]

[ Read more ] ::

Reno Historics To Feature H-Mod Reunion

The Reno Historic Races will honor the H-Modified racing class, the longest-lived internationally sanctioned racing class in existence, at this year's event. The fourth annual Reno Historic Races will take place May 4 through 6 at the Reno-Fernley Raceway, located at 1855 Hwy 95A, 30 minutes east of Reno, Nevada.

The Reno Historic Races delivers an exciting blend of historic production and special purpose-built racecars. The world-class historic cars are divided into groups according to make, age and horsepower. A typical representation includes racecars from prestigious manufacturers such as Ferrari, Jaguar, Porsche and Corvette that were raced in great series such as Formula One, Can-Am, and Winston Cup stock cars. One of the more notable features of the event is its "open paddock," which allows spectators the opportunity to walk right up to the valued vehicles and interact with the driver and crew.

Out of an entry list of more than 100 esteemed historic race cars will be a score of H-Mod cars. Better known today as the DSR class, these smaller, lighter, and lower displacement cars originally came from Italian and French factories in the early 1950s to meet the demand for increased sophistication in handling and style for race cars. Enthusiasts caught on, and quickly built even more limited production specials that used available production running components in highly innovative and modified lightweight bodies. H-Mod cars have made significant contributions to motor sports in terms of technological innovation and driver development.

The Reno Historic Races is pleased to have as its special guest Reno resident Tony Settember, one of only a handful of American drivers to have ever participated in Formula One racing. Settember competed in seven grand prix during his racing career: his best result was second place in the non-title 1963 Austrian Grand Prix on the Zeltweg aerodrome, behind Jack Brabham. In addition to Settember's European exploits, he competed in what is regarded as the highest level of sports car racing in North America: the Can-Am Series and the United States Road Racing Championship, driving a Webster, a Genie, and a Lola. Settember will be signing autographs at the event.

The Reno Historic Races run daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets cost $15 for the three-day event. Tickets are available at the Reno-Fernley Raceway; at the National Automobile Museum, 10 S. Lake St. in Reno; and at Dynamic Motorsports, 9728 S. Virginia St. #C in Reno.

The event is a fund raiser for The National Automobile Museum (The Harrah Collection), located in downtown Reno. The National Automobile Museum is an internationally recognized museum and a nonprofit organization whose mission is to collect and preserve the automobile for future generations, and to tell the story of the impact of the automobile on American society. The 105,000 square foot museum features changing exhibits, four period street scenes, and more than 200 antique, vintage, classic and special interest vehicles ranging from 1892 to present.

The Reno Historic Races are produced and sanctioned by the Historic Motor Sports Association (HMSA). Established in 1977, HMSA is an organization specializing in race events that feature historic cars through 1972. HMSA emphasizes the preservation and proper use of historic race cars.

For more information about H Modified and the history leading up to DSR, see the
[ Vintage Page ]

For discussion about H Modified, including participation in the Reno Historic Races, visit the
[ H Modified Yahoo Group ]

For more information about the Reno Historic Races, call 818-249-3515 or visit
[ www.renohistorics.com ]

[ Read more ] ::

Bandini Article in Autoweek

Nick Kurczewski has written about the history of Bandini production and described Marc Richelsoph's featured 1957 Bandini Sport International “Saponetta”. The car now sports a 750-cc dohc four-cylinder Crosley engine with Bandini aluminum heads and red cam covers.

Excerpts include ...

“Interest in America surged when Bandini Siluros—with their screaming 750-cc engines and wildly flared front fenders—won SCCA class championships in 1955 and 1957.”

“The car’s doors barely reach knee-level, the tops of the rear fenders are only 27 inches from the ground. Once in, nothing is far from reach—including the street below! Nonetheless, the vintage wood-rimmed steering wheel, exposed chassis tubes and painted-metal dash look and feel sublime. Under the hood is a 750-cc (45.8-cubic inch) dohc four-cylinder Crosley engine. Red cam covers, Bandini aluminum heads and lots of polished alloy give the American engine a mini-Ferrari look. Output is only 68 hp, but with a rev limit of 8500 rpm and the Saponetta’s scant 900-pound curb weight, performance is pretty spicy.”

“A four-speed transmission (from a Fiat Topolino) sends horsepower to the rear wheels. Mounted on a sparkling set of 15-inch Borrani wire wheels, the tires themselves are only 2.75 inches wide. The sum of all these parts equals a rare race car that its owner loves to use. 'You point it and it just goes,' Richelsoph says. 'It’s simply an amazing little car to drive.'”

[ 1957 Bandini Sport International, Autoweek article ]

[ Read more ] ::

Huge H Mod Gathering in Early 2007

Pass the word and drag those old cars out of the garage. Plans are underway for the largest H Mod event in history, to occur during the spring of 2007 at a West Coast race track.

Marty Stein, who is coordinating the race group, has been working with the Historic Motor Sports Association (HMSA) to secure a dedicated race group for small displacement sports racers. The location will most likely be Laguna Seca, and will take place in the April time frame. Marty says “This thing is really snowballing. I'm sure not everyone who is interested will actually enter, but we have over 30 potential entries with 24 already expressing interest.”

Car eligibility is per HMSA's normal classes:
Class B-2: 1947-1955 Sports Racing cars under 1500cc
Class C-1: 1955-1960 Sports Racing cars under 2000cc
Class D: 1959-1965 Sports Racing cars

Car preparation will be to HMSA car prep rules, which are pretty straightforward and should not be a problem for anyone with vintage club affiliation. If you have any questions about car eligability or tire requirements, contact Marty Stein.

Driver eligibility is also per HMSA driver prep rules. All vintage clubs belong to the Vintage Motorsports Council (VMC), and thus any recognized club affiliation will suffice. VMC or other licenses are NOT required. Neither is HMSA membership ... only payment of the entry fee.

The tentative entry list already includes:

Aardvark-Panhard

• Don Racine

Beach Mk IVB

• John Rankin

Berkeley

• Jamie Pfiefer
• Rich Campbell

Brand X-Saab

• Charles Christ

Crosley Hotshot

• Marylou Robson

Devin-Panhard

• Mark Brinker

Dubury-Sabb

• Stephan Booth

Fiat-Crosley Special

• Bill McCann
• David Lambert
  

Jabro MkI-Crosley

• Lou Pavesi

Kangaroo MkI-Fiat

• Fred and Annie Plotkin

LeGrand MkII-Fiat

• AA "Gus" Chofre

Miller-Crosley

• Franklin Rudolph

Nardi Frua-Crosley

• Don Baldocchi

Nichols Fairchild-Panhard

• Don Racine

Shannon-Crosley

• Lee Osborn

Siata 300BC

• -Fiat: Gary Winiger
• -Crosley: Marylou Robson
• -Crosley: Marty Stein

Tanner

• T-5: Gene Leasure

Thorgeirson-Fiat

• J.F. Boone

Thundermug (Dale Tholen's)

• Chuck Wood

Voigt-Crosley

• Rich Campbell

Contact
If you are interesting in participating in this race group, either
join the H Mod Yahoo discussion group, or contact Marty Stein via email at tessmar06@yahoo.com .

Historic Motor Sports Association is one of the most respected historic racing organizations in the United States, producing world class events across the country. HMSA members own, restore, preserve and race the most historic and valuable sports and racing cars in the world.
HMSA events feature historic production cars built through 1966 and purpose built Formula, Sports Racing and IMSA cars built through 1984.

HMSA was created in 1977 to serve as the sanctioning body for premiere historic racing events such as the world famous Monterey Historic Automobile Races and mandates that the cars race as they were and not what they could have been (historically correct within time period the car originally raced).

[ HMSA ]

[ Read more ] ::

H-Mods Win Accolades in CA Wine Country

Two H Modified cars earned the Best Presentation and Performance Cup for their race groups at the 20th annual Jaguar Wine Country Vintage Car Races. Every year a cup is presented to one owner/driver in each race group at this vintage racing event at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California.

Leland Osborn of San Miguel, CA, (pictured above) took the Group 2 cup with his 1955 783cc Shannon-Crosley Special. Fellow racers in Group 2 ran cars included Allard, Aardvark, Austin-Healey, Cleary Special, Cooper Bobtail, Corvette, Devin Panhard, Fiat Crosley, HRG, Jaguar, Miller-Crosley, Nardi Crosley, Nash Healey-Cadillac, Nichols Special, Porsche, Schaghtocoke Manning, Siata, Triumph, and Warrior Bristol.



Marty Stein of Jackson, CA, (pictured immediately above in Turn 2 and below next to his #56 in the paddock) won the Group 1 honors with his 1952 750cc Siata 300BC. Other cars in this group included Alfa-Romeo, Austin, Bugatti, Crosley, ERA, Ford, Ford Barber-Warnock, Ford-Miller, Frazer Nash, Jowett Jupiter, Maserati, MG, Morgan, National, Porsche, Rigante Chrysler Indy, Riley-Ford, Vauxhall, and Winfield-Ford.

[ Read more ] ::