Category: Corvette Racers

CorvetteRaceCars.com – Registry – Feast Yourself on Corvette Race Cars!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.15.11
Three guys with gasoline in their veins build a website that’s FOR CORVETTE RACE CAR LOVERS!
I’ll start this out with a bold statement. Had it not been for the effort of Zora Arkus-Duntov and his team of Corvette engineers making sure that Corvette racers had plenty of go-fast parts to race with, the Corvette probably never would have made it through the ‘60s. Look at what happened to the Ford Thunderbird. It takes took about three years to design and develop a new car back then, so simple arithmetic tells you that when the ‘55 T-Bird came out, Ford was already planning and working on the ‘58 4-seater Thunderbird. That’s how committed Ford was to their sports car – NOT.

Fortunately over at Chevrolet, passion, sex drive, and “gasoline in the veins” had the upper hand and today, beautifully restored Corvette race cars command tremendous amounts of cash when they go on the block. “PASSION” is what the website, “Registry of Corvette Race Cars is all about. If you love open headers and the smell of rubber being laid down thanks to horsepower and torque, you’ll be like a “pig-in-poo” at this website.

www.RegistryOfCorvetteRaceCars.com is the place to go if you enjoy looking over Corvette race cars from the earliest days to today’s C6 Corvette racers. ROCR will be 10 years old next year. The enterprise began with two friends sharing information about Corvette race cars. Jim Gessner sent Jan Hyde a survey of C1 straight-axle Corvette racers. While info is great, how do you share it and keep it updated? A website! No one is born knowing how to make a website, so Jim and Jan had to start from scratch. Nearly 10 years later, Continue reading “CorvetteRaceCars.com – Registry – Feast Yourself on Corvette Race Cars!” →

Vette Videos: Track to Street – Corvette Racing Series – The FULL Series

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.9.11
Here’s the latest episode of “Track to Street: Corvette Racing Series.” PLUS!!! All 11 previous episodes. Time to catch up!

According to Chronology of Chevrolet Corvette website, it was sometime in 1997 that the Corvette Racing Team began developing the C5-R race car, based on a production C5 Corvette. C5-R chassis testing began in November ‘97 with the first completed C5-R race car ready in early ‘98. After nearly a year of testing and development, the C5-R’s first competition was at Daytona International Speedway on January 10, 1999. After 24 hours of competition, the C5-Rs came in 2nd and 12th in the GT2 class. Not too shabby for an all-new race car and team.

1999 was a tough year with the C5-R always contenders but not taking a first place win. The best finishes were 2nd place at the Daytona 24 hours race in January and the Laguna Seca 2 hour and 45-minute race in October. The team scooped up their first 1st place win on September 2, 2000 at Texas Motor Speedway in the ALMS series GTS class. Later that month, the team scored their second 1st place win at the 10 hours at Road Atlanta.

In the world of sports car racing, if you win at Daytona, a lot of people will notice. But if you win at Le Mans, EVERYONE sees and remembers! 2001 was the C5-R team’s break out year. Not only did they take 1st place in 8 out of 10 races, but they won 1st AND second place at Le Mans. Since 2001 the C5-R and C6.R Corvette teams have won 1st place in their class at Le Mans seven times and 2nd place at Le Mans seven times.

While that’s not “domination” (something you really DON’T want, because the sanctioning body will put heavy restrictions on your car) it does mean that Corvettes are ALWAYS a force to be reckoned with. The old days of Corvettes being considered as just unsophisticated “fast trucks” are OVER! But how did we get here? It’s the result of a factory-backed, long range R&D group team effort. This is what Chevrolet and GM should have done from the beginning, instead of cow tailing to the 1957 AMA ban on American auto manufacturer’s participation in auto racing.

So, what’s it like inside the C6.R Corvette Racing team? The series “Track to Street: Corvette Racing Series” regularly serves up short, tasty video dishes of behind the scenes action in the C6.R Corvette camp. The latest, “Episode 12” is at the top of this post. If you missed the previous 11 episodes, we’ve included 1 through 11 below for your enjoyment. Continue reading “Vette Videos: Track to Street – Corvette Racing Series – The FULL Series” →

Tough Break For Corvette Racing Team at ALMS Mid-Ohio Race

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.8.11
Excellent Car, Excellent Drivers, Excellent Team, BAD WEATHER!

Photo credit - MotorSport.com

 

Summertime weather in America is predictably unpredictable. The August 6, 2011 ALMS Mid-Ohio race started out under sunny summer weather. But 2-1/2 hours later, the heavens opened up and drenched the track snatching a victory from the Corvette Racing team after leading the GT class for the first two hours of the two-hour and 45-minute race with the No. 4 C6.R Corvette. When the wet checkered flag came down, the No. 4 Corvette came in 2nd place, with the No. 3 Corvette coming is 6th place. A very tough break for the seasoned C6.R team, but “that’s racing.”

Two hours into the race, as the storm clouds were gathering, the No. 4 Corvette pitted for rain tires. After an excellent pit Gavin was in striking distance of first place – then the rain arrived. Here’s how Oliver Gaven described his rain experiences on the Ohio track, which is notoriously bad in the rain.

C6.R Corvette Racing team driver, Oliver Gavin

“Those last four or five laps were absolutely insane,” Gavin said. “I was driving down the straight with the steering wheel at full opposite lock, with the car just gliding and aquaplaning. Somehow my car straightened up and Pat Long’s car went off into a gravel trap. When Wolf Henzler drove by me, I had no answer for him; he certainly had a good rain setup. I was relieved when they brought out the red flag because it was really tough. “

Racing “rain tires” are only marginally better that the dry slicks that are normally used. It’s hard to imagine what it must be like to be driving a lightweight, high-powered, race car in the wet. DEFINITELY not for the faint of heart. For full details of the race, CLICK HERE.

http://www.corvetteracing.com/history/2011releases/midohio/midohio3.shtml

On the up side, for the second race in a row, the Corvette Racing Team won the Michelin Green X Challenge as the fastest, cleanest, and most efficient entry in the GT class. This speaks volumes for the Corvette Racing Team. WAY TO GO, guys! Continue reading “Tough Break For Corvette Racing Team at ALMS Mid-Ohio Race” →

Vette Polls: Was There a 6th 1963 Grand Sport Corvette? Cast Your Vote!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.5.11
Corvette Odd-Ball: A Juicy Story, Indeed, But Some Documentation Would Sure Help!

Special thanks to Dave Friedman for the basic photo of the above art. if you love Grand Sport Corvettes, you should get a copy of "Corvette Grand Sport" by Lowell C. Paddock, with photos by Dave Friedman.

Read the below post and let us know what you think in our informal poll. Do you think there was a 6th 1963 grand Sport Corvette?

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The Corvette hobby has grown so wide and deep you could spend all day, day-after-day, and probably not be able to keep up with everything. So I didn’t beat myself up for not discovering this sooner. While poking about for some background on another project, I stumbled upon a post talking about a story from Autoweek writer, William Jeanes that addressed the notion that there was a SIXTH Grand Sport Corvette. If you’ve been into the Corvette hobby for a while, you’re familiar with the GS Corvette story: Five lightweight Grand Sport Corvette race cars were secretly built by Zora Arkus-Duntov as a counter punch against the Shelby Cobras. The cars showed potential, but GM’s president, Frederick Donner, order that Chevrolet MUST comply with the official GM policy that “we DO NOT race cars.”

Duntov and Chevrolet’s general manager, Simon “Bunkie” Knudsen, were ordered to stop what they were doing. The cars were not ordered to be destroyed, so Duntov loaned the cars out and eventually, they were sold. From there, the GS Corvettes were raced, hammered on, became outdated, sold, resold, and at one point in the early ‘70s were nearly lost. Eventually, all five cars were found and have been lovingly restored. Today, they are very valuable pieces of Corvette history.

While the prospect of a 6th GS is an intriguing story, it’s got “modern urban legend” smell all over it. Unfortunately, it’s all based on anecdotal stories. Here are the key points:

1. Texas oil man John Mecom claims that he bought 6 GS Corvettes.

2. Road & Track artist and Mecom pal, Bill Neale claims that his friend, John Mecom, had a photo in his trophy room showing 6 GS Corvettes in his shop.

3. Retired GM employee, Jim Champlin worked at the GM Milford proving Grounds claims that he was personally charged with destroying the 6th GS in late ‘64 or early ‘65. He says that after the car was returned from the Bahamas, he was told to “make it disappear.” So, he put two tires in the car, doused it with gasoline and BURNED IT. Champlin also says that his supervisor, Bob Cameron witnessed the destruction. Continue reading “Vette Polls: Was There a 6th 1963 Grand Sport Corvette? Cast Your Vote!” →

Corvette Timeline Tales: Happy 94th Birthday, John Fitch!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.4.11
A Birthday Salute to One of the First Corvette Hot Shoe Drivers, John Fitch

Fitch behind the wheel of one of the three specially prepared Corvettes built for speed runs on the sands of Daytona Beach in January 1956.

Racing and Corvettes are completely inseparable. John Fitch was already a hot shoe when Zora Arkus-Duntov hired him to drive one of the three specially prepared ‘56 265-CID Corvettes for a speed record run on the sands of Daytona Beach, Florida in January 1956. Were it not for those exciting early racing experiences, the tone and attitude of the Corvette would have been closer to a passenger car rather than a scrapper race car. And John Fitch was part of the first wave of Corvette drivers.

After serving in WW II as a fighter pilot, Fitch got his degree in engineering and went to postwar Europe to race sports cars. Fitch was one of the first American engineer/drivers that set the template for future engineer/drivers, such as Mark Donohue and others. A thorough understanding of how things mechanically function has proven to be an incalculable asset to a successful racing enterprise.

The SS Corvette was a beauty, but the light weight magnesium body transfered enormous amounts of heat into the cockpit, making driving conditions near unbearable!

Before driving for Chevrolet, Fitch won the very first SCCA national championship and was the only American to drive for the Mercedes-Benz factory team. In 1957 Fitch was hired by Chevrolet to prepare and manage a team of stock and semi-modified Corvettes for competition. That same year, Duntov literally put Fitch’s feet to the fire driving the obscenely hot (temperature wise) SS Corvette.

Besides racing Corvettes, John won the 1951 Argentine Grand Prix, the 1955 Mille Miglia production class, and John competed at Le Mans six times, finishing as high as 3rd place. He was the first general manager at Lime Rock Park race track, developed the yellow “Fitch Barriers” crash barrels, and started the first advanced driving school. Being an innovator must have been in Fitch’s DNA, as his ancestor, also named John Fitch, was a clock maker, silversmith, and built the first functioning steamboat in 1787. Continue reading “Corvette Timeline Tales: Happy 94th Birthday, John Fitch!” →

Is This The Future of Car Magazines?

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.27.11
Could digital magazines, like the RM Auctions Monterey’s 562-page event catalog, be the salvation of the magazine business?


This is a screen shot of the online version of the RM Auction Monterey event catalog.

If car magazines were digital, viewable on a PC, laptop, Kindle, iPad, etc, and cost just $12.00 for a one-year subscription, how would you feel about it?

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I got a really neat email from Kevin Mackay of Corvette  Repair this morning with an interesting link. I’m sure that most of you have heard that the John Greenwood 1969 ZL-1 Corvette race car is going on the block at the RM Auctions Monterey event, August 13 and 14. It’ll be interesting to watch this one because they are expecting between $750,000 and $950,000 for the car. So, we’ll see how hungry the market is for a beautifully restored piece of Corvette racing history. Kevin is also closely following this because he did the restoration work on the car.

So, if you go HERE, you can see what Kevin sent me. (The link to the left will open a new window) Kevin knows I’m a big fan of the early Corvette race cars and especially the Greenwood cars. So, enjoy the images, they’re beautifully photographed, But that’s not what this post is about.

When you go to the page, look in the middle of the page towards the bottom. See the gray forward and backwards arrows? In the middle it says, “110-11/562.” That means you’re looking at pages 110 and 111, of a 562-page document. What you have is the entire 562-page catalog of the cars that are up for auction August 19 and 20. Continue reading “Is This The Future of Car Magazines?” →

Corvette Timeline Tales: July 23, 1936 – Happy Birthday to Corvette Racer, Dave MacDonald

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.23.11
Dave MacDonald – “The Master of Oversteer”

“I think Dave had more raw talent probably than any race driver I ever saw.” – Carroll Shelby

The original Grand Sport Corvette is considered by many to be the ultimate “could have been” Corvette. Well, when it comes to drivers that raced and loved Corvettes, El Monte, California race car driver, Dave MacDonald is arguably the greatest “could have been” Corvette race car driver. That’s not just my opinion – that’s what I learned from researching Dave MacDonald’s racing career, from his contemporaries. Many drivers and team owners from Dave’s day are on record stating that had Dave’s life not been cut short at the ‘64 Indy 500, he would have likely been one of the greats. MacDonald’s shining star was about to go super nova!


Here’s the signature-style MacDonald rear-wheel-drift.

While I was familiar with Dave MacDonald from books in my Corvette library, it wasn’t until I started researching Dave’s background while working on a story for VETTE Magazine that I learned what a terrific guy he was. If you look in your Corvette books that have chapters covering the early ‘60s road racing scene, look for the “00” Corvette with the tail hanging out. That’s Dave “The Master of Oversteer” MacDonald. Continue reading “Corvette Timeline Tales: July 23, 1936 – Happy Birthday to Corvette Racer, Dave MacDonald” →

March 1 & 2, 1990: 1990 ZR-1 Corvette Shatters 50-Year Speed Record!!!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.20.11
Try to imagine driving a loaded for bear, 1990 ZR-1 Corvette for 24-hours at an AVERAGE speed of 175.885-mph!

Racing Corvettes used to have a long history of durability issues. There are many accounts of Corvette racers setting track records and winning pole positions, only to have parts breakage put their cars out of the race. The success of the Showroom Stock and the Corvette Challenge cars proved that the new C4s had what it took to win long races. So it was only a matter of time before someone tested the new ZR-1 under racing conditions. Enter Morrison Motorsports.

On March 1 and 2, 1990, the Morrison Motorsports prepared ZR-1 Corvette shattered the 50-year old, 24-hour speed record with an astonishing average speed of 175.885-mph with a “near-stock” ZR-1 Corvette! The details of the ZR-1 speed machine are a genuine testimonial to the quality of the new ZR-1.

In 1940, David, “Ab” Jenkins set the 24-hour speed record with his “Mormon Meteor III” racer. The huge 5,000-pound machine was designed by Augie Duesenberg and used a 850-hp, 27.5-litre aircraft engine! In 1940 Ab nailed the record with an average 24-hour speed of 161.18-mph. The record stood for 50 years. Many attempted to break the record, and all failed… until the ZR-1 arrived. Continue reading “March 1 & 2, 1990: 1990 ZR-1 Corvette Shatters 50-Year Speed Record!!!” →