The Spirit of Westwood Lives On!
Brent Martin has just started a new photo website here . He has begun posting some of his scanned photos from the gone – but not forgotten – Westwood Motorsport Park plus many other west coast race tracks. Shown above is just one example. Check it out!
We are getting some great shots from the photographers who attended the BC Historic Motor Races – Racing at the River’s Edge – at Mission Raceway Park Road Course over the June 11-12 weekend. The Paul Bonner shot above illustrates the action in one of the Group 1 races.
VRCBC President Stanton Guy with Bill Sadler and the 1959 Sadler Formula Junior - VRCBC photo
The VRCBC was very pleased to have legendary Canadian race car designer, builder and driver, Bill Sadler, as their Guest of Honour at the 2011 BC Historic Motor Races. Bill has had a fascinating career with both race cars and innovative aircraft design and construction. (See the story in the BCHMR program here.)
Bill drove the 1959 Sadler Formula Junior (seen above) for the first time in about 50 years during a lunch time, on-track demonstration with Merrill Faulk in the thundering Burnett Mk 2 Can Am car. (Bill was good enough to let Merrill go by, so he could lead a few laps as well!) This Sadler Formula Junior (known as “Aunt Marge”) has a long history with VRCBC members. It was owned, initially restored and raced by long-time member Bob Smith. It is now owned by member Myles Winbigler, who has just completed another restoration and continues to race it.
In addition to meeting many of the those attending the event, Bill was an active participant in the traditional Saturday night barbecue entertainment. Thanks for coming Bill; we very much enjoyed having you as our special guest.
Don't forget to torque them, Jack! - VRCBC photo
The folks hanging around Vintage Racing seem to be steadily aging, funnily enough, about one year older every twelve months. (In many cases, the cars seem to be doing much better.) If Vintage racing is to continue growing into the future, younger generations have to be recruited as the oldtimers hang up their wrenches and helmets.
Someone who understands this very well is Alan McColl, well known racer and the first winner of the Pete Lovely Memorial Award at this year’s BC Historic Motor Races. There is no ‘free ride’ with Alan however! Seen above, working hard on grandpa’s TIGA Formula Ford is Alan’s grandson Jack, who has signed on as an apprentice race mechanic. (We understand he works for room and board.) The future of Vintage Racing will be assured if every racer gets their own ‘Jack” started in racing as a member of their pit crew.
Of course, being a race mechanic is not all glory – it can be pretty tiring – but the dreams are great!
Merrill Faulk gets ready for a demo run in the Burnett Mk2. - VRCBC photo
The 2011 edition of the BC Historic Motor Races is now in the books. There was some excellent racing, the weather was perfect and everyone had a great time. There will be stories and photos online very soon, but thanks to the hard-working folks at Timing & Scoring, the final results are already available. You can check them out under the BCHMR 2011 menu or go there directly by clicking here.