DRIVER BLOG // CHRISTODOULOU @ BOSCH ENGINEERING 250

It’s been a busy week, and following a huge struggle with planes to America, I finally managed to reach the Virginia International Raceway in time for the race. It took a total of 36 hours to get to my destination; and required six trains, from Lichfield to London, then Brussels, then Amsterdam followed by two flights to Minneapolis and onto Raleigh/Durham to reach the track. It was set to be a 2 hour 45 minute race at Virginia International Raceway, not too far from New York... [read more]

After all the successes we have had in the Mazda RX8 this year, we had been given a weight ballast to be added the cars this week; an extra 70lb. I had already been to the track during the season last year, but a major difference now is that many of the corners had been made a lot harder. Virginia is extremely quick, with a lot of high speed flowing turns. From the tuned aerodynamics of last year, to a higher concentration on power and speed (but therefore less grip) this year, it proved to be tricky. There were parts of the track that I had never had to think about before, and now I was fighting with the steering to keep it going in the right direction.

Qualifying was tough. I scooped 6th on my second lap but then had a huge wheel lock-up and flat-spotted my front tyres. I couldn’t complete any more laps. Luckily my time was good enough to stay in 6th, but I was annoyed with myself as I knew I could have been quick enough to break into the top five.

I started the race. I was fighting for 5th the majority of the time, but even after I eventually made my way past the guy in front I had to take a pitstop for more fuel.

I was back in 6th, then dropped to 7th. It was getting close to the two hour mark, and my engineer was on the radio to me telling me to keep on pushing.

There were only a few minutes before our last pitstop, and suddenly the safety car was out. This changed a lot of things, but not in our favour. Everyone was bunched up; all the cars pitted for the final time and we made a driver change (I passed the car onto John Edwards). We made a tyre change and refuelled, but our pit stop wasn’t the quickest andwe lost a few more places. By this time we were now in 10th position.

During the last hour there were another three safety cars, and this didn’t help as it was using up our time to take those positions back. Five laps from the end we realised we couldn’t gain any more places, and then on the last corner on the last lap, John became snared up behind a slightly slower car, allowing the 11th place car to power past just before the finish line.

Had the safety car had been deployed 4 or 5 minutes after our pitstop it would have played beautifully in our favour, but that just wasn’t how this race was destined to play out. It was just a case of unfortunate timing.

We’re now off to Lime Rock for testing in preparation for the next race on May 31st, in around a month’s time.

Photo: Curtis Creager
Editorial: Adam Christodoulou

BTCC NEWS // NEXT STOP BRANDS HATCH

The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship heads to the iconic Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit this weekend for the next instalment of Britain’s favourite motor racing series. The UK's most revered circuit with its fast flowing corners and steep undulations plays host once more to the BTCC which last visited back in October 2009... [read more]

After taking a pair of race wins last time out at Rockingham two time BTCC champion Matt Neal and Team Honda will be looking to carry on with the fine form they showed last weekend. Neal was victorious in both the first and the last races at Rockingham and in fact led both encounters with ease. Race two however did see the Civic struggle to remain competitive when laden with success ballast but with Brands having fewer slow corners this could well be less of a problem at the Kent venue.

Team WSR driver Rob Collard certainly believes that the Hondas should show well, telling BTCC.net “Overall, that Honda is the best car on the grid at this moment as a complete package. At Thruxton and Rockingham in every session and every race it is right up there whereas everyone else is a bit up and down. “It’s got good straight line speed, good handling, good durability and is very strongly built.

"He had one difficult race in race two at Rockingham when he took on success ballast but I’m not so sure that was all down to the extra weight as he’d had pretty much the same at Thruxton and was still flying".

Current Championship leader Jason Plato who took the first ever BTCC victory for the Chevrolet Cruze last weekend in race two thinks the GP circuit will suit his new charge but remains very sceptical as to whether he can show the kind of domination he achieved at last seasons finale (also on the GP circuit), where he claimed three race victories in one day.

Perhaps the most consistent driver apart from Matt Neal at Rockingham was Team Airwaves BMW pilot Steven Kane. The Irishman showed great race craft to come away from the venue with a points tally of 26, which took him to third place in the overall drivers championship table just a couple of points behind Matt Neal. "I am in confident mood for Brands said the Irishman, "But you should never get complacent, as the BTCC has an abundance of talented drivers and teams". He added "Consistency is the key to success so I shall keep trying to rack up the points and if race wins come along so much the better".

Team Aon endured yet more frustration last time out after Tom Chilton had promised so much with pole position. For Brands The LPG Fords will be fitted with new softer suspension which Chilton believes should mean that the Focus will be quicker over a full race distance rather than just one lap.

The man from Poole in Dorset told btcc.net " “I’m sure that Brands and Oulton Park which follows will be our best two circuits because they have a number of uphill sections and our engine is producing a lot of torque– I know what Jason was enjoying when he drove that turbo-diesel SEAT in 2008!

"I’m 14th in the points now but, provided the softer suspension does what we think it will do, I’m aiming to come out of Oulton in third – it might sound like a near-impossible goal but we have to go for it. I’ll have to start carrying success ballast in my car if I do start winning, but hopefully the LPG-turbo engine can help overcome that.

Hereford's Lea Wood (pictured above) is set to start his first ever BTCC race at the Kent circuit after missing both Thruxton and Rockingham. 25 year old Wood who attended the season launch at Brands back in March will be competing for his family run team Wood Racing in a BTCC spec Honda Integra. Team manager Greg Wood feels the run up to Lea's debut in the ultra competitive series has been just right "Lea has had a lot of preparation and, with the funding in place, we are looking forward to the weekend. It’s going to be a very exciting season ahead.”

Wood's previous racing experience includes karting and Hot Rod oval racing before he competed in the 2008 Renault Clio UK Cup.

Racing kicks off at 10.10am on Sunday and full information regarding ticket prices and grandstand seats can be found here

Brands Hatch GP Circuit BTCC Statistics:

Length/2.30 miles
Number of laps/15 laps
Distance/34.50 miles
Lap Records:

Photo/Editorial: Neil Tozer

EYE CANDY // THE CHAPARRAL 2G

Designed, built and driven by Jim Hall, the Chaparral 2G was entered into a number of Can-Am events during the 1967 season. Powered by a 525hp 7.0-liter V8, Hall managed to win two Can-Am races with the 2G, however an accident in November of 1967 ended Hall's racing career, as well as that of his Chaparral 2G. This bit of Eye Candy comes to us courtesy of Spirited Drive // [comment]

NEWS // BMW MOTORSPORT PARTS AVAILABLE IN THE U.S.

According to our friends at Autoblog, BMW Motorsport parts are now available here in the United States. The catalog, which includes parts for the 2008 Z4, 1995-2010 M3, and the 3 Series sedan from 2006 onward, is available online or at one of four BMW centers: Laurel BMW in Westmont, IL, Global Imports in Atlanta, GA, BMW of Stratham in Stratham, NH, and BMW of Cleveland in Solon, OH // [comment]

VIDEO // BMW TARMAC RALLY ACTION (W/PURE ENGINE SOUNDS)

In hopes of further stoking Sean Jay's Bavarian rally car fire, enjoy three minutes and eighteen seconds of tarmac rally action filmed during the 2001 and 2002 French Rally Championship. The video, which comes to us courtesy of The Rally Channel, features pure engine sounds and both the BMW 318ti and 320i // [comment]

PHOTO GALLERY // THE ROSE CITY OPENER @ PIR

Last weekend the International Conference of Sports Car Clubs (ICSCC) held their first race of the 2010 season, the Rose City Opener XIX at the Portland International Raceway. ColdTrackDays correspondent, Camden Thrasher, being a native of nearby Vancouver (Washington), decided to drive down to PIR to shoot the event and has since provided us with a handful of absolutely stunning images.

Follow the link for a look... [read more]











If you, or anyone you know, is interested in purchasing photos from last weekends Rose City Opener XIX, please contact Camden Thrasher for further information.

Photo: Camden Thrasher
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

EVENT // ASIA PACIFIC RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP - ROUND 1

Last weekend the Asia Pacific Rally Championship held their first round of competition in Johor, Malaysia. ColdTrackDays corespondent, Anas Zakaria, was on hand all weekend to capture the action and has provided us with a handful of images. Follow the link for a look... [read more]














Photo: Anas Zakaria
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

HISTORY // GREEN FLAG @ THE 1967 24 HOURS OF DAYTONA

Courtesy of Nigel Smuckatelli and the Ford Archieves, check out this shot from the start of the 1967 24 Hours of Daytona. First in line is the Shelby American Ford Mk II of A.J. Foyt and Dan Gurney, while Jim Hall and Phil Hill's Chaparral 2F is second. Unfortunately, neither car finished the race, as a faulty connecting rod took the ford out of competion, while the Chaparral was forced to retire early due to suspension damage.

Ferrari would go on to win the race, sweeping the podium as Lorenzo Bandini and Chris Amon finished first in the #23 Ferrari 330 P3/4, followed by Mike Parkes and Ludovico Scarfiotti's #24 P4 and then the #26 Ferrari 412P of Pedro Rodriguez and Jean Guichet // [comment]

NEWS // BMW WILL RETURN TO DTM IN 2012?

We just received word that "the BMW board has made a positive decision of general principle regarding a BMW involvement in DTM from the 2012 season." According to our source, BMWs involment in the series hinges on the new DTM regulations that are currently being developed by DMSB (German Motor Sport Association) in cooperation with DTM rights holder and promoter ITR e.V. Additionally, the development of the new regulations was supported by the engineers of Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, and are supposed to also allow the usage of the DTM cars in other international motorsport series. Assuming all goes according to plan, BMW will enter the DTM series in 2012 using their M3 as the basis for their entry.

Follow the link for a bit of vintage DTM footage featuring BMWs ever popular E30 M3... [read more]







Image and Info: DTM
Video: VFMC Media
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

THREE SERIES THURSDAY // M POWER INDEED

Courtesy of ColdTrackDays correspondent, Camden Thrasher, those of you in the PNW may be familiar with this weeks ThreeSeriesThursday feature, as it races in both ICSCC and SCCA events here in the Northwest. By far one of our favorite Bavarians, this E46 M3 has been transformed from mild mannered track car to purpose built race car, and most recently competed in last weekends Rose City Opener // [comment]

VIDEO // HANS-JOACHIM STUCK LAPS THE RING

Thank god for social networking sites. Anthony Solomon, a fan of ColdTrackDays on Facebook, posted this video to our wall late last night. Featuring nearly ten minutes of on-board footage, watch (and listen) as Hans-Joachim Stuck laps the Nurburgring's F1 circuit in a BMW M3 CSL // [comment]

DOMESTIC INDULGENCE // Z06 @ PACIFIC GRAND PRIX

Once a week, the Northwest's newest karting facility, Pacific Grand Prix, allows a handful of street driven cars to lap their 0.82 mile circuit. Amongst those that turned out for yesterday's lapping session was this Corvette Z06. Like an auto-x course on steroids, we can only imaging the noise this thing made as it worked its way around the 15 turns that make up PGP's street course.

Image comes courtesy of Chris Mason. Click here for more info on PGP // [comment]

NEWS // PAFFETT LEADS 1-2-3-4 FOR MERCEDES

Gary Paffett led a Mercedes sweep of the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters season opener at Hockenheim last Sunday. When the British racing driver crossed the finish line, he was followed by fellow Mercedes drivers Bruno Spengler, Jamie Green and Paul di Resta, making it a 1-2-3-4 for Mercedes... [read more]

Taking the lead on lap 11 after Audi driver Martin Tomczyk (above) spun due to a left rear puncture, Paffett maintained a comfortable lead for the remainder of the race, save for a late race effort by his old Audi rival Mattias Ekstrom. However, after it was discovered Ekstrom had made his first pitstop one lap before the pit window was opened, he was forced to come in for a third stop, effectively taking him out of contention.

Ekstrom’s stop moved Jamie Green (above) and his 2008 car into second, but it didn’t take long before Bruno Spengler (below) demoted the British racing driver to third on lap 32.

As Paffett slowed to preseve his tires, di Resta was able to close the gap between he and Audi driver Mike Rockenfeller, and, having passed Rockenfeller, fell into line with the three other Mercedes.

David Coulthard, who achieved his goal of making the finish in his first DTM race, finished 12th just ahead of fellow Mercedes rookie Franky Cheng.


2010 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters // Round 1 @ Hockenheimring:

1. Gary Paffett Mercedes 1h02m31.580s
2. Bruno Spengler Mercedes + 0.567s
3. Jamie Green Mercedes + 1.841s
4. Paul di Resta Mercedes + 2.251s
5. Mike Rockenfeller Audi + 3.201s
6. Mattias Ekstrom Audi + 3.420s
7. Timo Scheider Audi + 13.067s
8. Miguel Molina Audi + 13.503s
9. Ralf Schumacher Mercedes + 16.911s
10. Alexandre Premat Audi + 28.509s
11. Susie Stoddart Mercedes + 28.944s
12. David Coulthard Mercedes + 35.164s
13. Franky Cheng Mercedes + 36.589s
14. Katherine Legge Audi + 46.817s
15. Markus Winkelhock Audi + 1m14.113s
16. Maro Engel Mercedes + 1m20.480s
17. Martin Tomczyk Audi + 7 laps

Retirements: Oliver Jarvis Audi 1 lap

Images and Info: DTM
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

VIDEO // 1994 WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP

From our friends at The Rally Channel comes yet another compilation of vintage rally footage, this time highlighting the 1994 World Rally Championship. What some might consider the ultimate example of Group A competition, the 1994 WRC season saw Didier Auriol beat Carlos Sainz in a year long battle for the championship. Auriol, at the wheel of the potent Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD, collected three victories in 1994, including the Rallye Sanremo. Sainz on the other hand, managed only one victory in 1994, but was able to finish on the podium in six of the ten events that year.

With drivers like Auriol, Sainz, Kankkunen and McRae, as well as cars such as the Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD, Subaru Impreza 555 and the Ford Escort RS Cosworth doing battle on both gravel and tarmac, the 1994 WRC season certainly ranks high amongst the most interesting years of motorsport // [comment]

NEWS // PASTRANA WINS OLYMPUS RALLY (W/VIDEO)

Travis Pastrana has collected his second win of 2010, besting Antoine L'Estage and Nathalie Richard by 18 seconds to win last weekends Olympus Rally. Pastrana, at the wheel of his 2010 Subaru Impreza WRX STI, had a strong start and was able to maintain his lead over Rally America points leader Antoine L’Estage and his 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X... [read more]

Following the event, Pastrana said, “This rally was hard from the start. It was definitely the most intense field that we’ve had, unfortunately a lot of guys went out on the first day. It was a really technical course, more so than we expected!”

Unofficial results after last weekends Olympus Rally moves Pastrana from a third place tie with Monster World Rally Team’s Ken Block into second place overall, while Rockstar Energy Mitsubishi driver Antione L’Estage maintains his Championship points lead with a 2nd place finish, his third in a row.






For complete results from the 2010 Olympus Rally, click here

Photo: World Rally Sport
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

RACE RESULTS // CTSCC - BOSCH 200 @ VIR (W/VIDEO)

Also racing last weekend at Virginia International Raceway was the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge who held their fourth round of competition, the Bosch Engineering VIR 200. Amongst those racing in the CTSCC's Grand Sport class was Northwest native Joey Atterbury. At the wheel of the #6.2 Mitchum Motorsports Camaro GS.R, Atterbury started from 19th but quickly made his way through the field. Then, with only a handful of laps remaining, Atterbury suffered a gearbox failure, forcing him to retire early.

Also racing in the GS class was Ted Anthony Jr. in the #14 TC Motorsports x ColdTrackDays Mustang Boss 302R. Ted's teammate, Rick Edwards, who qualified 25th, took the car all the way to 14th before handing it over to Anthony. Driving from 14th, Ted managed to take the car all the way to P1 before having to pit for fuel. He would go on to finish 15th overall.

Follow the link for complete results and photos courtesy of Curtis Creager... [read more]















Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge // Bosch Engineering VIR 200:

1 97 GS 1 Hand / Marsal Turner Motorsport / BMW M3 Coupe 66 2:04.081 45 85.774
2 6 GS 2 Bell / Bucknum Stevenson Motorsports / Camaro GS.R 66 2:04.348 56 85.750
3 13 GS 3 Bacardi / Plumb Rum Bum Racing / BMW M3 Coupe 66 2:03.759 18 85.733
4 48 GS 4 Espenlaub / Putman Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 66 2:04.136 50 85.673
5 61 GS 5 Johnson / Roush Roush Performance / Ford Mustang GT 66 2:04.034 34 85.638
6 45 GS 6 Borcheller / Hendricks Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 66 2:04.380 52 85.618
7 15 GS 7 Foster / Maxwell Multimatic Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 66 2:04.493 31 85.597
8 83 GS 8 Cosmo / Tetreault BGB Motorsports / Porsche Carrera 66 2:04.827 45 85.581
9 52 GS 9 Martin / Michaelian Rehagen Racing / Ford Mustang GT 66 2:05.320 46 85.475
10 44 GS 10 Keen / Potter Magnus Racing / Porsche Cayman 66 2:04.930 32 85.471
11 41 GS 11 Ballou / Pumpelly TRG / Porsche 997 66 2:04.670 47 85.382
12 38 GS 12 Jenkins / Stanton BGB Motorsports / Porsche Cayman 66 2:05.055 32 85.372
13 16 GS 13 Jeannette / Montecalvo Multimatic Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 66 2:05.312 32 85.342
14 37 GS 14 Gue / Seafuse JBS Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 66 2:04.652 33 85.098
15 14 GS 15 Anthony Jr. / Edwards TC Motorsports/ColdTrackDays Mustang Boss 302R 66 2:04.147 32
16 99 GS 16 Hillestad / Russell / Waddell Automatic Racing / BMW M3 Coupe 66 2:05.387 52 85.096
17 9 GS 17 Plumb / Stone Stevenson Motorsports / Camaro GS.R 66 2:04.369 31 85.059
18 59 GS 18 Wilden / Winchester Rehagen Racing / Ford Mustang GT 66 2:04.934 50 84.608
19 23 GS 19 Carroll / Ende BGB Motorsports / Porsche Cayman 65 2:06.697 34 84.440
20 11 GS 20 Ackley / Panzer / Snyder CMA Motorsports / Ford Mustang GT 64 2:04.849 32 84.747
21 75 ST 1 Eversley / Lutz Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 64 2:11.053 30 82.200
22 81 ST 2 Heumann / Thomas BimmerWorld/GearWrench / BMW 328i 64 2:11.549 32 82.127
23 181 ST 3 Hurley / Stadtlander APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI 64 2:12.277 56 81.931
24 74 ST 4 Aschenbach / Thilenius Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 63 2:11.045 30 81.854
25 10 ST 5 Jonsson / Lally Kinetic Motorsports / KIA Forte Koup 63 2:12.775 11 81.424
26 80 ST 6 Clay / White BimmerWorld/GearWrench / BMW 328i 63 2:14.020 58 81.351
27 12 ST 7 Burrows / Hopwood Kinetic Motorsports / KIA Forte Koup 63 2:12.463 2 81.291
28 46 GS 21 Cameron / Finlay Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 63 2:04.990 4 80.902
29 24 ST 8 Mason / Mitten V-Pack Motorsport / BMW 330 62 2:12.862 52 80.448
30 76 ST 9 Kirby / Tesler-Mabe Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 62 2:12.827 16 80.396
31 43 ST 10 Nonnamaker / Sahlen Team Sahlen / Mazda Speed 3 62 2:15.013 3 80.285
32 19 GS 22 Adams / Phillips Capaldi Racing / Ford Mustang GT 62 2:07.851 18 79.976
33 31 ST 12 Bocchino / Lamb i-MOTO / Mazda Speed 3 62 2:12.459 35 79.716
34 34 ST 13 Giovanis / Tallman Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330 62 2:17.503 16 79.677
35 42 ST 14 Leroux / Leroux LRT Racing / Honda Civic SI 59 2:13.706 5 80.884
36 171 ST 15 Halpin / Sweeney APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI 59 2:12.355 17 76.580
37 197 ST 16 Cattaneo / Mirzayan RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S 58 2:11.785 26 75.352
38 29 GS 23 Buford / Gutierrez Racers Edge Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 57 2:06.524 2 83.275
39 77 ST 17 Combs / Liefooghe Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 54 2:12.408 51 80.644
40 01 GS 24 Baas / Taylor APR Motorsport / Audi S4 46 2:05.054 35 82.567
41 66 ST 18 Riley / Riley Riley Racing / Mazda RX-8 46 2:11.917 34 76.466
42 26 ST 19 Carbonell / Pombo Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5 45 2:11.236 31 79.768
43 62 GS 25 Atterbury / Cates Mitchum Motorsports / Camaro GS.R 39 2:05.787 33 81.010
44 86 ST 20 Prey / Sigal Prey Racing / Boxster 39 2:13.416 33 71.688
45 36 ST 21 Brown / Olson Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330 35 2:14.353 14 74.871
46 50 ST 22 Corthell / Lewis Irish Mike's Racing / Volkswagen Jetta 32 2:12.848 6 69.817
47 196 ST 23 Smalley / Trinkler / Zacharias RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S 31 2:11.338 3 70.041
48 27 ST 24 Foss / Pobst Freedom Autosport / Mazda Speed 3 30 2:11.694 30 76.000
49 35 GS 26 Aquilante / Spaude Subaru Road Racing Team / Subaru WRX-STI 29 2:05.949 29 65.637
50 51 ST 25 Buras / Wilson Irish Mike's Racing / Volkswagen Jetta 22 2:12.011 10 84.117
51 25 ST 26 Long / Whitis Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5 22 2:12.006 12 84.094
52 32 ST 27 Hacquard / Kleinubing i-MOTO / Mazda Speed 3 22 2:12.261 12 84.083
53 91 ST 28 Aranha / Hooks APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI 22 2:13.001 4 84.043
54 96 GS 27 Auberlen / Dalla Lana Turner Motorsport / BMW M3 Coupe 19 2:06.774 6 83.845
55 79 GS 28 Hall / Prusinski Kinetic Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 18 2:04.485 2 68.921
56 17 GS 29 Ackley / Maiman / Serralles CMA Motorsports / Ford Mustang GT 15 2:06.698 7 91.006
57 20 ST 29 Bushey / Shaffer Matt Connolly Motorsports / Mazda MX-5 9 2:14.994 3 82.983
58 47 GS 30 Boden / Pilgrim Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 3 2:16.014 1 73.272
59* 198 ST 0 Conway / Zacharias RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S 0 0 0.000
60* 64 ST 0 Giovanis Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330 0 0 0.000
61* 93 ST 0 Gilsinger / Schmitt HART / Honda Civic SI 0 0 0.000
62* 21 ST 0 Danyliw / Holtom GS Motorsports / Chevrolet Cobalt SS 0 0 0.000
63* 07 GS 0 Heath / Robichaud Euro Motorworks Racing / Porsche 997 0 0 0.000

For additional images from the Bosch Engineering VIR 200, click here

Photo: Curtis Creager
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey