I recognize the stretch of road. It's right before the main entrance.
Hard to believe that god-forsaken area is strip malls and tract
houses now. Last year I was up in Gorman where we used to ride our
dirt bikes for miles and miles all day long, and I couldn't recognize
anything. Solid houses as far as you can see.
I drove my dirt bike (a 1976 Yamaha 360MX) from Belmont Shores to the
track several times to race in the Riverside Grand Prix. I had a tail
light, a fake headlight and the license plate from my street bike. If
I got stopped I doubt I would have been able to convince a cop it was
a 1972 BMW R50/5 I didn't have a car at the time. In 1977 I seized
the top end in practice, fixed it in the paddock (freed the rings,
sanded the scuff marks off the piston and got the aluminum out of the
bore with battery acid) put it all back together and finished third.
Seized again on the way home. Fixed it again next to the road. Made
it home.
Thank God those days are over, though I wouldn't mind having that
energy level and absurd determination again. The next year I had a
real truck--I made it from a VW Squareback wagon. Cut the back end
off right behind the seats and made a flatbed out of it--we called it
"the yellow peril" which my chinese friend Barney greatly
appreciated. It was only marginally more reliable than the 360MX. Had
to take the whole bed off to change the oil. Didn't do that very often.
I'm building an Ambro, and I intend to street license it, expressly
so I can drive it to the track and race.
On Oct 14, 2007, at 6:39 PM, Kurt Oblinger wrote:
> Driving race cars to the track was quite common in the old days,
> even F1
> cars.
> http://img434.imageshack.us/img434/9475/60trintingnant9dd.jpg
>
> Some of you So. Cal. folks will recognize that piece of road as the
> stretch of 60 freeway just before the Day St. offramp that took you to
> Riverside Raceway. It's 1960 and that is Maurice Trintignant in his
> Cooper F1 on the way to the 1960 USGP. The teams used garages in the
> town of Riverside because there was nothing yet built at the track.
> Similar scenes could be seen around Le Mans and Monaco as those tracks
> had no real garage facilities in the old days.
>
> Cheers,
> Kurt Oblinger
>
> David W. Riddle wrote:
>
>> One of the guys out here in Arizona will use the Department of Motor
>> Vehicle website to obtain a temporary license tag for his race
>> prepared Porsche 911 on race weekends. The tag is good for three
>> days (weekends and Holidays don't count toward the expiration time!)
>> and costs $1.00.
>>
>> Tapes the permit that he prints out to his rear window and off he
>> heads to the track.
>>
>> At 05:19 PM 10/14/2007, Shane Ingate wrote:
>>
>>
>>> Christian Marx wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> It not only me who is absolutly nuts and driving the expensive
>>>> racing car
>>>> on
>>>> its own wheels to the track....[snip]
>>>>
>>>>
>>> I too am another one who insists on driving the car to, AND from
>>> the track.
>>> Blame it on my upbringing; my Dad raced at Phillip Island and
>>> Bathurst.
>>> He drove the MG to the track, emptied the car and pulled off the
>>> plates,
>>> went
>>> racing and if the car survived, piled all the junk back in and
>>> drove home.
>>> If not, repaired the car at the track.
>>>
>>> The only mods to the car was a rollbar and a lap belt. The
>>> Bathurst 500
>>> was done on the same set of tires.
>>>
>>> I navigated for my cousin who rallied a twin-cam Escort. Again a
>>> drive/to
>>>
>>>
>>> from the forest.
>>
>>
>>> I carried on this tradition when I raced bikes in the 70s, and
>>> the Pantera
>>> in
>>> the 90s. So it goes with Rags.
>>>
>>> Besides, I cannot afford a trailer and truck. This hobby is
>>> expensive
>>> enough as it is. :(
>>>
>>> Shane Ingate in NM.
>>>
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