Sports Car Club of America Sponsors Racing Event to Raise Charity Funds

Here’s one good news that greeted me recently as I did my usual net surfing. Just wanna share it with you.

 

Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) affiliates hosted a racing event meant to raise funds for the Mothers Against Drunk Driving movement. The race was held at the Louisiana State Police Emergency Vehicle Operations Center in Zachary last Labor Day.

SCCA is a state-run association that obtained more than 60,000 members all over the country. It advocates all sorts of motor sports such as rally, road racing, and autocross. It is open to both amateur and professional racers.

 

Isn’t that good enough? Now, we can prove to the world that motor sports aficionados are more than just racers. They actually know how to advocate something worthwhile.

Driving in Uganda

Uganda is not like the United States.

There are millions of places that remain underdeveloped. There are people in remote areas living without properly constructed roads, where streets are no more than rutted lanes extending to dusty trails.

The Phantom Double Decker Bus Part II

Still, accidents of the same sort followed. Hundreds of motorists too complained of being dreadfully forced off the road by a phantom, double decker, red bus. Rumors had it that the said phantom was always seen careening round the corner from what used to be St. Mark’s Road into the Cambridge Gardens. The location was near the Ladbroke Grove underground station.

Against the Commonplace

One had to keep in mind though that, like a number of classic cars out there, machines worked over by coach builders were more than likely not to be used for everyday driving. It was simply too impractical, by half.

Despite this, the coach building business was a popular one, particularly for the lucky ones who didn’t think the asking price for a unique car was too rich for their blood. Some simply wanted cars to add to their collection of already formidable showroom supercars and were all but free as well as able to spend as much as they wanted.

The Mass Produced Part II

Still, it is worth noting that during the pre-war days, customers could choose the car’s body after picking out a chassis. A customer could opt for one from a selection provided by the company or could put forward a personal design. In the case of those who wished for the supremely unique, coach builder services were the answer.

The Mass Produced Part I

With the number of automotive manufacturing plants that have emerged in many portions of the world, cars are looking more and more alike than ever. Mass produced designs are appearing left and right on our roads. The streets are riddled with cars that sport nearly the same look, the same lines, the same body. Of course, one can hardly complain when talks turn to matters of efficiency, comfort and performance.

Vintage Cars in the 1980s

In the 1980s, sports cars weren’t the only one of automotive breeds that surged into the limelight—gaining, as they emerged, vast attention from the public. Even vintage car racing benefited from the woes and troubles of the times.

A great number of owners were understandably reluctant to drive a machine to a race track, particularly if the said machine was worth more than $54, 000—and if the cost of repairs in the event of an accident would reach the same monetary figure. In those days, $54,000 was already quite a lot of money. And not a lot of pockets had that much to spare, with the effects of the recent Depression still making lives a bit more difficult for many.

However, if that car—perhaps it was an Aston Martin, a Bentley or any of their kind—if that car’s worth happened to turn into $450,0000, one may as well drive the cars since one can hardly do enough damage that could reach the same amount. After that, those who with the blunt started filling the race tracks with glee.

Drivers opted to race their cars instead of leaving them to mold and mildew in their respective garages. A car, after all, was meant to be driven, not locked away to be admired. Keeping a vintage car in storage was a surefire way to damage rather than preserve its engine.

With thus, revival of vintage car racing was in full swing.

The Mad Scramble

As the craze for well-made cars grew, a similar feverishness with vintage sports cars, vintage cars and vintage racers developed in auction blocks all over. Vintage being used in this case to mean any number of well-structured cars—particularly fine machines of special significance–that came out before the war.

Automotive specialist departments in a great number of museums were put up. And as more and more collectors with amply-filled pockets sought out the charms of the old alongside the new, a mad scuffle among them began.

Pick-up, Glorious Pick-up

I have a pick-up. I own one. I drive one. It’s a 1995 model. Mitsubishi. Maroon. I know Toyota and Honda has got the auto market cornered but what can I say, this car has lasted me more than 10 years now. I’ve had it since 1995 and it’s now 2007. Nearly 12 years come June. Isn’t that a kick in the pants?

Observations, Again

In the 80s, well along the time that the oil scares happened, people began to demand more from a car than mere function and style. After all, by the 80s, most, if not exactly everyone, had a goodish number of car choices. The “people’s cars”–those purposely designed for individuals of the working class, had already come out. And around this time, the quality of car operations were also much improved.

Before the war, the affluent bought cars like Rolls-Royces or Hispano Suizas