Carl,
I've had this stew on the back burner since Blackhawk, and it's a dish I'm
going to have to serve. I am prefacing these comments with the following. I
don't hold you personally responsible for what I perceive to be an
incredible mess regarding the "era correct" issue, nor do I think you are to
blame. I think our club management is responsible, and you were given the
unenviable task of trying to make this all palatable.
I too, as the Group 2 rep, have many hours invested in this discussion after
the club announced its intention to clean up its rule enforcement. Despite
any protests to the contrary, it is widely believed that the "era correct"
mandate was as a result of the horrible, mass Group 6 wreck at the BRIC a
few years ago. VSCDA took a lot of blame for a situation in which we had
little control. This generated lots of negative publicity, and combined with
some other influences, resulted in the event sanctioning going elsewhere.
Consider this letter as my rant about my own personal situation regarding
Group 2 rules. not speaking as the Group 2 rep.
As you know, I have steadfastly raced a 948 in my Bugeye Sprite. Prior to
this car, I raced a 948 in my early MKII Sprite.
As I know it, our rules allow a 5 year update in motor, which, in the case
of the 948 Bugeye, last produced in 1960, would get you into a 1098 motor,
ala a 1965 MKIII Sprite. Going to a 1275 in a Bugeye would be contrary to
our stated rules. Back the motor issue in a minute.
So, in my case, I have legal shocks, legal brakes, legal weight, a legal
motor. I have run my car with 1.25 SU's, or a Weber. I have run my car with
either a stock steel Bugeye bonnet, or a period era bonnet of unknown
origin, that was 40+ year old NOS, purchased out of Montreal. An argument
regarding the use of that bonnet can be made on either side, and I
understand both sides of the argument. It is not a sticking point to me.
SCCA would not allow that bonnet. Club racing in the UK would have (and did,
and still does). FIA would. But for the sake of argument, let's take that
out of the equation.
If I run my stock steel Bugeye bonnet, with legal brakes, legal suspension,
legal roll cage, legal ignition, legal rockers, legal weight, legal 948.
and run my Weber carb, I am placed in Mod 1?
Other cars that are in Mod 1 include Bugeyes with 1275s, 1.5 ratio roller
rockers, fiberglass Bugeye bonnets, tube shocks, fender flares, crank fired
ignition, roll cages that extend to the front suspension, and a Weber carb.
So, if we're both considered Mod 1. why should I try to stay "era correct"
with all the rest of my car?
I don't see as how all of this year long "era correct" process has resulted
in any incentive to stay legal at all. In fact, the incentive is to the
contrary.
I think the bottom line is the club made a lot of noise, wasted a lot of
time, pissed a lot of folks off, and didn't have the stomach to enforce its
own rules it's been disregarding for years. If we warned non-compliant cars
that they'd need to show up truly "era correct", we'd lose some entrants.
The unknown is how many entrants we might gain as a result of stricter rule
enforcement. In fact, we are now tacitly encouraging further modification
from "era correct".
I don't get it. It makes me angry. I've taken pride in my 15 years of racing
in that I showed up with the right motor for my car. Any arguments that 948s
or steel bonnets are hard to come by are rubbish. Is it easier to find a
1275 or a glass bonnet? Yes. Is it cheaper to run a glass bonnet and a
1275? Yes. Is it easier for VSCDA to stay lax in enforcing its own rulebook?
Apparently , yes.
Wm. Severin Thompson
~iii<O
<mailto:wsthompson@thicko.com> wsthompson@thicko.com
<http://www.thicko.com/> www.thicko.com
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