NASCAR // SUBWAY JALAPENO 250 @ DAYTONA

I find myself back at Daytona for the third time this year. The biggest difference this time was that the weather would finally be typical Florida weather, well into the high 80’s with equal or higher humidity and just enough rain to keep things sticky!  

This weekend was full of action, Friday night the Nationwide cars would race in the Subway Jalapeno 250 powered by Coca-Cola, Saturday the Rolex cars would race in the Brumos Porsche 250 and on Saturday night the Sprint Cup cars raced in the Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola... [read more]

Unlike most other forms of racing (read: F1), NASCAR has always been about the fans and giving them access to drivers and pre-race activities, and to this day that still holds true.  



Thirty minutes prior to the start of the Nationwide race, fans gathered at what looked like a holding pen. Once the gates were opened and the herd of fans released from the holding pens, the massive crush of fans crowded onto the most hollowed grass in all of racing, the inside of Daytona’s tri-oval. I have to say, this being my first time at a NASCAR weekend at Daytona, I too was a bit excited to take a walk on this same grass and sign the checkered start finish line.

Myself and a few thousand fans had twenty minutes of free time to cross the track, sign the start/finish line and hang around for driver introductions.  Once all the drivers were given their five second intros and paraded passed us in the backs of trucks, it was nearing the time to here the most fabled words in auto racing. During our free time I meet a couple all the way from Portland, Oregon (above) it was their first time to Daytona.



During qualifying I had an opportunity to meet one of the Pacific Northwest young guns, Tayler Malsam, driver of the #10 Toyota.  We had a nice chat with each other before he was to qualify.  Tayler also races in the NASCAR Camping World Truck series in the number 56 Toyota.  You can check out Tayler's blog here.





This race would see the new Nationwide Series car debuted this weekend, the Chevrolet Impala, Dodge Challenger, Ford Mustang and Toyota Camry usher in a new era in the series.  It was getting closer to hearing the most fabled words in motorsports “gentlemen start your engines” so I had to get in place for the start of the race.  I positioned myself in the grandstands above the track to see 43 cars take the green flag, what an amazing sight I must to say. The cars looked great and the sound of 43 cars ripping beneath me was exciting.













The race would end with Dale Earnhardt Jr. taking the checker flag. In an interview with Dale: "I worked hard to try to win, not only for daddy-I'm proud of him going to the Hall of Fame, and he would be proud of this, I'm sure - but just all these fans. I hope they enjoyed this. This is it - no more '3' for me. That's it."



I remember watching Dale Earnhardt race the Wrangler car in the Winston Cup Series back in the 70’s at Ontario International Speedway and had always liked that car. What a fitting end to a great race for Dale Jr. We all know that his father would have been very proud of him!

Photo/Editorial: Curtis Creager

NASCAR // MUSTANG TO MAKE NATIONWIDE DEBUT ON FRIDAY

The Ford Mustang will make it's NASCAR debut this Friday at the Subway Jalapeno 250 at Daytona International Speedway. To promote the Mustang's entrance into NASCAR's Nationwide Series, Ford has just announced that it will offer a brand new 2011 Mustang GT to the winner of Friday's race, provided they do so in a Ford branded vehicle of course. Additionally, Dodge will unveil their NASCAR ready Challenger on Friday night, and with ColdTrackDays correspondent, Curtis Creager, live at Daytona all weekend, we're excited to see how the two stack up. Stay tuned // [comment]

CTSCC // ANTHONY JR. TO RACE #59 REHAGEN RACING MUSTANG

Our good friend Ted Anthony Jr. just sent us this photo of the #59 Rehagen Racing Ford Mustang which he will be driving in this weekends Emco Gears Classic at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Anthony, who previously drove the TC Motorsports x ColdTrackDays Mustang Boss 302R, qualified 26th for tomorrow's race, noting that the #59 Mustang was significantly down on power. Additionally, for those of you unwilling to wait for SPEEDs broadcast of the CTSCC Emco Gears Classic (June 26th @ 1pm EST), tomorrow's race will be streaming live on GRAND-AM.com starting at 1:15pm EST // [comment]

NEWS // GRIGGS RACING 2010 GR40ST @ MUSTANG ROUNDUP

Our friends at Brad's Custom Auto just informed us that Griggs Racing will debut their 2010 GR40ST Mustang at this years MCA Grand National & 30th Annual MNW Roundup. The event, which will be held on July 15-18th, includes a ride 'n drive track event at Pacific Raceways, as well as the worlds largest gathering of Mustangs. Click here for additional information // [comment]

VIDEO // WEB RIDES TV TEST 2011 SHELBY GT500 @ VIR

My friend Brandon Scarpelli of WebRidesTV was invited to Virginia International Raceway to test the 2011 Shelby GT500, the fastest Mustang ever produced. Featuring Ford's 550hp DOHC 5.4-liter V8, the 2011 GT500 is everything you'd expect it to be. Fast, fun and affordable (relatively speaking).

Follow the link for the video... [read more]



Image and Info: WebRidesTV
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

CTSCC @ LIME ROCK PARK // RACE RESULTS & PHOTO GALLERY

The fifth round of the 2010 Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge took place last weekend at Lime Rock Park in Lime Rock, Connecticut. ColdTrackDays correspondent, Curtis Creager, was trackside all weekend and was able to capture some spectacular shots of both the Grand Sport and Street Tuner class cars, as they battled it out for two and a half hours around the 1.5-mile circuit.

Leading the way in the Grand Sport (GS) class was the Turner Motorsport BMW M3 of Joey Hand and Michael Marsal, who were able to finish ahead of Jack Roush Jr.'s Roush Performance Ford Mustang GT to collect their second win of 2010. In the Street Tuner (ST) class, it was the BimmerWorld BMW 328i of Heumann and Thomas that took the win, finishing ahead of Aschenbach and Thilenius in the Compass 360 Racing Honda Civic SI.

Follow the link for additional images and complete results... [read more]

















Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge // Grand Sport Class:

1 97 GS 1 Hand / Marsal Turner Motorsport / BMW M3 Coupe 147 57.699 79 89.488
2 61 GS 2 Johnson / Roush Roush Performance / Ford Mustang GT 147 57.622 142 89.485
3 48 GS 3 Espenlaub / Putman Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 147 58.245 113 89.180
4 52 GS 4 Michaelian / Wilden Rehagen Racing / Ford Mustang GT 147 58.182 111 89.170
5 35 GS 5 Aquilante / Spaude Subaru Road Racing Team / Subaru WRX-STI 147 57.943 77 89.066
6 83 GS 6 Cosmo / Tetreault BGB Motorsports / Porsche Carrera 146 58.211 100 88.867
7 9 GS 7 Carter / Plumb Stevenson Motorsports / Camaro GS.R 146 58.260 79 88.858
8 62 GS 8 Atterbury / von Moltke Mitchum Motorsports / Camaro GS.R 146 58.515 103 88.798
9 38 GS 9 Dumoulin / Jenkins BGB Motorsports / Porsche Cayman 146 58.400 133 88.790
10 45 GS 10 Borcheller / Hendricks Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 146 58.372 102 88.677
11 59 GS 11 Mason / Winchester Rehagen Racing / Ford Mustang GT 146 58.860 74 88.312
12 47 GS 12 MacNeil / Schaldach Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 145 58.728 99 88.047
13 16 GS 13 Jeannette / Montecalvo Multimatic Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 145 58.568 137 88.020
14 01 GS 14 Baas / Taylor APR Motorsport / Audi S4 144 58.490 85 87.638
15 29 GS 15 Buford / Gutierrez Racers Edge Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 142 59.456 72 86.302
16 46 GS 16 Cameron / Finlay Fall-Line Motorsports / BMW M3 Coupe 142 58.950 123 85.933
17 89 GS 17 Freile / Stadtlander Ranger Sports Racing / Porsche 997 141 59.218 113 85.491
18 17 GS 18 Ackley / Ludwig / Serralles CMA Motorsports / Ford Mustang GT 141 58.720 91 85.351
19 6 GS 19 Bell / Bucknum Stevenson Motorsports / Camaro GS.R 140 58.322 82 84.743
20 88 GS 20 Ellis / Wellon Ranger Sports Racing / Porsche 997 139 58.760 95 86.144
21 96 GS 21 Auberlen / Dalla Lana Turner Motorsport / BMW M3 Coupe 132 57.617 75 86.943
22 23 GS 22 Carroll / Ende BGB Motorsports / Porsche Cayman 125 58.196 80 76.074
23 37 GS 23 Gue / Seafuse JBS Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 123 58.427 80 88.252
24 15 GS 24 Foster / Maxwell Multimatic Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 120 58.078 119 87.878
25 14 GS 25 Anthony Jr. / Edwards TC Motorsports / Mustang Boss 302R 116 59.342 99 82.049
26 19 GS 26 Adams / Phillips Capaldi Racing / Ford Mustang GT 114 58.776 113 69.079
27 11 GS 27 Panzer / Snyder CMA Motorsports / Ford Mustang GT 104 58.258 101 74.313
28 87 GS 28 DiLeo / Schroeder Maxwell Paper Racing / Porsche 997 80 57.862 16 85.039
29 44 GS 29 Keen / Potter Magnus Racing / Porsche Cayman 56 59.076 28 39.659
30 13 GS 30 Bacardi / Plumb Rum Bum Racing / BMW M3 Coupe 47 59.096 41 71.201
31 99 GS 31 Hillestad / Russell / Waddell Automatic Racing / BMW M3 Coupe 31 58.671 15 45.148
32* 68 GS 0 TBA CA Sport / Ford Mustang GT 0 0 0.000

Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge // Street Tuner Class:

1 81 ST 1 Heumann / Thomas BimmerWorld/GearWrench / BMW 328i 139 59.899 103 84.496
2 74 ST 2 Aschenbach / Thilenius Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 139 1:00.002 131 84.492
3 75 ST 3 Eversley / Lutz Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 139 59.962 84 84.482
4 181 ST 4 Hurley / Stadtlander APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI 139 1:00.049 86 84.468
5 12 ST 5 Burrows / Hopwood Kinetic Motorsports / KIA Forte Koup 139 1:00.344 15 84.361
6 98 ST 6 Hamelin / Hebert 89 Racing Team / Honda Civic SI 139 57.183 90 83.713
7 95 ST 7 Salama / Turner Turner Motorsport / BMW 328i 139 59.833 19 84.288
8 86 ST 8 Prey / Sigal Prey Racing / Boxster 139 1:00.666 75 84.173
9 18 ST 9 Gerrard / Jensen RRT Racing / BMW 328i 138 1:00.152 91 83.763
10 171 ST 10 Aranha / Halpin APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI 138 1:00.606 40 83.760
11 22 ST 11 Lepper / Schmidt GS Motorsports / Chevrolet Cobalt SS 138 1:00.737 41 83.746
12 77 ST 12 Kirby / Liefooghe Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 138 1:00.464 29 83.702
13 82 ST 13 Maynard / Sheehan 3D Racing / BMW 330 138 1:00.504 105 83.695
14 27 ST 14 Espenlaub / Putman Freedom Autosport / Mazda Speed 3 138 1:00.321 104 83.665
15 42 ST 15 Leroux / Leroux LRT Racing / Honda Civic SI 138 1:00.941 42 83.585
16 80 ST 16 Clay / White BimmerWorld/GearWrench / BMW 328i 138 1:00.347 103 83.438
17 25 ST 17 Long / Whitis Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5 138 1:00.300 15 83.422
18 8 ST 18 DiLeo / Schroeder Maxwell Paper Racing / Boxster 138 1:00.152 91 0.000
19 26 ST 19 Carbonell / O'Doski Freedom Autosport / Mazda MX-5 137 1:00.095 54 83.064
20 67 ST 20 Kozarov / Tallman CA Sport / Honda Civic SI 137 1:01.079 78 83.050
21 64 ST 21 Dewey / Giovanis Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330 135 1:01.318 43 81.718
22 20 ST 22 Talbot / Weisberg Matt Connolly Motorsports / Mazda MX-5 134 1:01.445 110 81.177
23 32 ST 23 Hacquard / Kleinubing i-MOTO / Mazda Speed 3 133 1:00.586 102 80.767
24 10 ST 24 Jonsson / Lally Kinetic Motorsports / KIA Forte Koup 123 59.999 19 85.888
25 02 ST 25 Smith / Taylor Maxwell Paper Racing / Mazda RX-8 109 59.493 78 77.542
26 24 ST 26 Jackowitz / Lux V-Pack Motorsport / BMW 330 89 1:00.427 80 82.357
27 76 ST 27 Combs / Kuitwaard Compass360 Racing / Honda Civic SI 85 1:00.238 40 83.643
28 197 ST 28 Cattaneo / Mirzayan RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S 84 1:00.116 58 82.624
29 21 ST 29 Danyliw / Holtom GS Motorsports / Chevrolet Cobalt SS 72 1:00.126 49 76.625
30 55 ST 30 Cullen / Grahovec Marren Motor Sports Inc. / Honda Civic SI 43 1:01.492 20 81.790
31 91 ST 31 Stehley APR Motorsport / Volkswagen GTI 38 1:00.253 30 73.709
32 196 ST 32 Riegel / Smalley / Trinkler RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S 37 59.443 28 51.709
33 66 ST 33 Riley / Riley Riley Racing / Mazda RX-8 31 1:00.521 29 82.585
34 28 ST 34 Leverone / McHaffie / McHaffie Freedom Autosport / Mazda Speed 3 26 1:01.347 11 60.338
35 36 ST 35 Brown / Olson Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330 6 1:06.961 5 75.104
36* 34 ST 0 Bock Next Generation Motorsports / BMW 330 0 0 0.000
37* 31 ST 0 Bocchino / Lamb i-MOTO / Mazda Speed 3 0 0 0.000
38* 198 ST 0 Conway / Zacharias RSR Motorsports / Mini Cooper S 0 0 0.000

Photo: Curtis Creager
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

VIDEO // FABER & A FOX UP THE HILL

Yvas Faber, having recently rebuilt his Fox body Ford Mustang, decided to enter his car in the Eschdorf Hillclimb as a way to, you know, sort out any bugs. Video courtesy of Alok Paleri // [comment]

FOR SALE // GURNEY'S '69 MUSTANG BOSS 302 ON EBAY

Dan Gurney’s 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302 is up for sale on eBay Motors with a ‘Buy it Now’ price of $1.1 million. Helping Ford to a second place finish in the 1969 Trans-Am manufacturers championship, Gurney’s former Mustang certainly has a racing pedigree. According to the listing, this particular Mustang was the prototype for the rest of the Trans-Am Mustangs that competeted that year and was driven to a fourth place finish at Laguna Seca by Peter Revson.

Follow the link for additional images and information... [read more]

After Carroll Shelby pulled out of Trans-Am competition, Gurney's Boss 302 found itself being used as a wind-tunnel test car by Ford. A few years later, the Mustang was back on track, racing in various series across the country and collecting an SCCA Championship in the process.

In 2003 Gurney's former Boss 302 was restored to its 1969 configuration, complete with a 527hp 302 c.i. V8 under the hood. The listing on eBay Motors includes an abundance of documentation, to include signed letters of authenticity from Carroll Shelby, as well as Kar Kraft engineering drawings and a handful of photos of the car when it raced in Trans-Am.

Images and Info: Autoblog
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

VIDEO // 2011 SHELBY GT500 SET NEW RECORD @ VIR

Ford's all-new 2011 Shelby GT500 just shed nine seconds off its lap time at Virginia International Raceway. Powered by a 550 hp supercharged V8 and having lost 120 lbs courtesy of an aluminum block (amongst other things), the latest iteration of Ford's all-mighty muscle car was also equipped with the track-day SVT Performance Package, which includes lighter wheels, stiffer springs, and a higher rear axle ratio. The package, which was intended to reduce lap times on a 2.3-mile course by three seconds, has instead reduced the GT500's lap time from 3:07.4 (set by the 2010 GT500) to 2:58.5 on VIR's 4.1-mile course // [comment]

EVENT PREVIEW // SHAWN MANNY @ THE MITTY

ColdTrackDays correspondent, Shawn Manny, spent the better part of last weekend at Road Atlanta for the Classic Motorsports Mitty 2010. An annual gathering of racing cars and enthusiast, be sure and stay tuned for a complete report from Shawn's visit // [comment]

DRIVER BLOG // TED ANTHONY JR. @ BOSCH 200

Hello CTD faithful! I’m excited to share my first experience at Virginia International Raceway with all of you! The track is challenging, fast, and beautiful. Everything a racer dreams a track should be! We were hoping for a better result than the disaster that was the previous race… [read more]

I apologize for not reporting on Round #3, but there wasn’t a whole lot to report. My co-driver Rick Edwards got in one lap of green flag racing at Barber Motorsports Park, before being involved in an accordion-style pileup on the races first restart. Someone up the grid tapped their brakes, and (like what happens on the road) people start getting closer and closer, and in some cases, collect one another. So, our race was over before it began.

With generous support from Ford Racing, the TC Motorsports crew repaired our #14 Mustang Boss 302R, and got it ready to go just two days before we were to be at VIR. I arrived at the track Thursday afternoon to see the guys doing final prep, and applying the last of the ColdTrackDays.com vinyl.

As I said above, this was my first time visiting Virginia International Raceway. I had done a few laps on iRacing.com’s online simulator, but beyond that I had no first-hand experience. My first few laps tell me that this place is awesome! There are slow, technical corners, and there are fast, ballsy corners. It rewards a technical, consistent driver as well as a driver who is not afraid to use every little bit of the car’s potential. My favorite section of track is what’s known as the “Upper Esses,” a set of connecting bends that in our Boss 302R, we enter the first bend at over 135mph! The entry speed makes the following four turns very interesting (and fun)!

Our practice sessions went well; Rick was very diligent at absorbing data to learn the track as quickly as he could. He picked up time every session, and we were slowly creeping up the charts. After Thursday’s testing, the crew put the car on the scales to align it and make sure our weight was in order, only to find that we were 115 lbs. overweight! That could make a small difference in lap time!

I was elected to take the car out for the first official practice session, and put down a lap good enough for 9th overall. I’d say the weight played a role in some of that speed! Rick had a rough qualifying session, as he was balked several times and just couldn’t get his “game face” on. We would start the race from 25th position.

Rick had a great opening stint, and he kept the car in perfect shape. At just under an hour, Rick pitted under a full course caution, and all the way up to 14th place. I jumped in for the remaining hour and a half in 21st position. I had a good restart, gaining one position, and not even one lap later there was a massive incident involving four cars that would lead to a long caution period. My thoughts go to Todd Buras, who reportedly broke several ribs in the crash; I wish him a speedy recovery!

As the pit cycles continued, I found myself in 8th place by the time the race restarted! Two laps beyond that I was in 5th, and sticking right with the leaders! Ladies and Gentlemen, TC Motorsports is for real! As I continued to hang with the leaders, more cars pitted, and I ran in 2nd place for several laps. Part of the way into my stint, the mouthpiece for my drink bottle came off, which left the hose free to dribble all over me whenever it pleased. It was pretty distracting, and I made a few mistakes. About the time the leading car (#15 Multimatic Boss 302R) pitted, I had a huge slide coming onto the front straight and the #6 Sunoco Camaro was all over me. I braked a little too deep going into T1, and slid off the track, losing my short-lived lead and dropping to 6th place. I finally moved the drink bottle tube so it wouldn’t pour all over me, and got back down to business.

Two weeks prior to the event, I had a massive episode of stomach pain, which was determined to be a gallstone attack. Due to this, I was unable to exercise during those two weeks and my endurance was a little lacking. We had one more pit stop to make, and we took fuel and four tires. Looking back, taking tires was a call that could’ve gone 50/50. We would have lost fewer positions in the pits, but our times would not have been as quick. Ultimately, we finished 15th in GS and overall. The team did great, our pit stops were fast and efficient, and Rick and I kept the car clean, dent-free, and competitive. I also turned the 5th fastest lap of the race, which really shows our true potential for strong finishes in the future!

After the race, I was exhausted! The lack of training combined with the heat in the car, the lack of a cool suit and drink bottle, I was hurting! Two days following the event, I had my offending gallbladder removed, and am currently recovering from the operation. Needless to say, I am grateful for the month off, during which I hope I will be able to train and regain some strength for Lime Rock!

Thanks for reading!

Photo: Curtis Creager
Editorial: Ted Anthony Jr.

NEWS // MUSTANG TO RACE IN FIA GT3 CHAMPIONSHIP

Canadian racing garage, Multimatic, has just finished preparing a 2010 Ford Mustang for Marc VDS Racing. The team, who also have a pair of Ford GTs entered into this years GT1 Championship, will race their competition-spec Ford Mustang in the FIA GT3 European Championship, where it will compete against the likes of Porsche, Alpina and Mercedes. The car has already undergone testing at Ford's Bedfordshire test facility and will be piloted by a team of Belgian and Canadian drivers when the GT3 season kicks off on Sunday, May 2nd at the Silverstone Circuit in the UK.

Follow the link for additional images... [read more]






Images and Info: Autoblog
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey