Culture|Garage

Photo credit: Quinn Morley, for the rest of his set visit his flickr stream

We are really starting to get a lot of user submissions and we are always blessed when we have someone with writing or photography talent on-hand at events.  Thanks for the pictures, Quinn.

Anyways, the Olympus Rally this past weekend was a fast event; competitors were reporting 130mph speeds on some of the long straights. Crazy. Ken Block turned a first place overall finish, which is his second in a row.  Travis Pastrana came in second overall, and Tanner Foust rounded up third.  Evo driver Andrew Comrie-Picard brought in a fourth place finish.

After three events, the standings in Rally America are:

1. Ken Block

2. Andrew Comrie-Picard

3. Matthew Johnson

4. Travis Pastrana

5. Kyle Sarasin

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Track events are a good time. It doesn’t matter whether it takes place at a drag strip, a cone-filled parking lot or a muddy field, enjoying your car, truck or bike with other enthusiasts is always fun. Some are club-sponsored and well-organized, while others are simply meet-and-go type affairs. So here’s the question: What kind of track/off-road events do you enjoy?

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Twin Ring Motegi, Tokyo- Although it has been reported on several websites and news programs already, it is worth noting in today’s Wrap-Up that Danica Patrick has become the first female driver to take the overall win at an IRL event. How the race was won notwithstanding, Patrick did an outstanding job driving, as well as persevering in a sport that is male-dominated. Other sources that have been sharing this story have received a LOT of Chauvinistic feedback (yes, fellas, you just got dusted by a female, get over yourselves), however I believe I speak for the C|G staff when we say congratulations, Danica, you deserved it. Helio Castroneves took second, with Scott Dixon bringing home third. Read the rest of this entry »

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“The Strip” at Las Vegas Motor Speedway- Top Fuel was hotly contested in Vegas, as Cory McClenathan snatched victory from the jaws of defeat on Sunday. McClenathan, who bested Antron Brown in the final, hoisted a Wally for the first time in 30 races. “To say the least, it’s about time,” McClenathan said. The race was close, with McClenathan’s 4.65 to Brown’s 4.70 ET, further sweetening the victory for McClenathan. In Pro Stock, Jason Line took home the overall victory in his Pontiac GXP-bodied ride. In the final, it was Line over Greg Stanfield. Line left after Stanfield but managed to get around him to secure the victory, with a margin of 6.78 to Stanfield’s 6.81. In Funny Car, Tim Wilkerson claimed the win, beating out Ashley Force in the final round. Wilkerson, driving in a one-car operation, took his Chevy-bodied car to the winner’s circle in a holeshot victory, soundly trouncing Force’s reaction time, 0.09 to a 0.12. At the big end, Wilkerson ended up with an ET of 4.96 to Force’s 4.99, although Force was faster through the traps. “This was a hard weekend. The track was treacherous from time to time, but NHRA did a good job, and the Goodyear tires worked well today. The U.S. Smokeless guys helped us change motors after I hurt one against Ron Capps,” Wilkerson said. Read the rest of this entry »

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Seems to be quite a few rally fans here.  Thought you would enjoy this one! 

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Las Vegas Motor Speedway- Coming up April 10-13 is the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at the famous “Strip” at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. A ticket to Vegas is cheap-so if you have a free weekend, head on over and check it out! It’s just a quick drive up I-15 from the Las Vegas Strip (you know, the one with flashing lights and casinos and such) and promises to be a good time. If you can’t make it to Vegas, catch the action on ESPN2, with Qualifying April 12 from 8-10:00 PM, Eliminations on April 13 from 8-11:00 PM, and a repeat of Eliminations on April 16 from 3-5:00 AM. All times are Eastern. Read the rest of this entry »

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Houston Raceway Park, Houston, Tx.- A record was broken this past weekend at the O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals, as driver Antron Brown became the first NHRA driver to win both Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle titles. Read the rest of this entry »

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Pictures courtesy of Ryan (no not the Ryan that makes our site look cool)

Yesterday marked the first rallyx event of the season for the Land O’Lakes SCCA club. The event was relocated to another smaller venue due to ground conditions. This was a much smaller course, but it allowed for eight runs.

The beginning of the day started out bad for me. In autox, I have always been told to make my first run the most balls out run of the day… and then dial back from there, because your fastest time of the day is all that matters. With rallyx, I forgot that it is your quickest time per heat that is then added together…oops.

The powdercoaters didn’t have my wheels ready so I ran on all seasons (rather than competition rally tires), which was ultimate fail given the conditions. Then I ran out of gas. Oops. Then I lost the fender liner.

After lunch, I chilled out and stopped cussing. This allowed me to drop my times over 20 seconds. Yes, 20 seconds. And run all but one run clean (no cones).

In the end, I still had a blast, but showed poorly.

Keep going post jump for more details on the day

[view slideshow]

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