RoadRallyRhythms

Weekend Review

Fab - BU – lous! The NW skies opened and the sun shone which always revs the motors and gets things humming ‘round here.

The 5/8^th’s track opened at Evergreen Speedway and we were raring to go!

Natalie Sather – D4D was making her debut and I was looking forward to seeing that young woman’s talent on the big track. Eddie and Scott (La Carrera 2007) are running the mini stocks and Roger Habich (La Carrera 2007, #105) and his good friend Jeff Knight, of super stock car racing and TVM fame, were well within reach of a win.

Turning into the stands, I experience a moment of déjà vu. There, sitting in the exact same spot as last year, is my past co-worker in crime, Dr. Dan.

“You come here often?” I say as I attempt to slap his knee. “Oh, about once a year,” comes the smart reply. Handshakes and grins abound.

“5/8^th’s track?”

“Yep, 5/8^th’s track.”

It’s a draw because Dr. Dan, my husband and I all support Roger. He has a rather infectious zeal about racing.

And…, let’s face it. Big engines, fast cars – what isn’t there to like?

As the super stocks take center stage, it is a little disappointing to see Jeff Knight lagging so far behind. He has been ramping up for a win, but his car was not right. In fact, after a couple of double-takes, it’s discernible that it isn’t his car at all! But, that’s a whole ‘nother story.*

As the field of ten stock cars dwindles to eight and the spread between them ever expands, I get a rather ho-hum attitude. Checking Dr. Dan’s shoulder with mine, I quip, “You think they could go faster?”

Dr. Dan plays along and retorts, “Yeah, I mean…, I drive! What’s the big deal?”

“I even turn to the right!”

*In my short experience dealing with folks who race, it is always difficult to relate the emotions that surface when plans go awry. It's the way in which tragedy and difficult times are handled that dictates an individual's stature in the eyes of others. No podium is needed. In my opinion, Jeff and his TVM crew are pretty amazing! 

Click here to read about it.

The Spirit of Women in La Carrera

I’ve spent some time writing about my compadres in La Carrera, but haven’t mentioned the women involved. All of whom are just as vibrant, energetic, and passionate about racing. At the 2008 Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb, I had the opportunity to meet up with Kristen and solidify a better acquaintance. When I mentioned we had seen her on the side of the road in 2007 La Carrera Panamericana holding up an “OK” sign, she opened up and began telling her tale. It IS impressive! I hope I do justice to the story.

It was the first day; hers – the fifth wreck we’d passed - in the Sierra Madres Mountains in this 2007 La Carrera Panamericana endurance race. She was angry with Renee. He was hyped and running hot like so many of the racecar drivers on the first day. As co-piloto, it was her job to keep the adrenaline flow in control. It’s a tough job! Renee had been unwieldy and, it seems, incapable of assimilating the co-piloto’s instructions.

In a day or so, the damage to the racecar was repaired, but Kristen refused to ride with Renee. Her brother thought it important that she get back in the race, “Would she be willing to ride as co-piloto if he drove?” Kristen hesitated, but through her brother’s cajoling, eventually agreed. They were off to a great run. At some point, in some particular speed section where Left 3 Long’s and Right 4’s give way to 1000 foot backdrops, Kristen’s brother lost control of the racecar.

They spun out and the back ass end of the Ford drifted precariously close to the edge. It hadn’t stopped moving as Kristen flung her arms up and her thoughts related the inevitable, “This is it! This is how I’m going to die.”  

The Ford stopped; back wheels within 6-inches of the cliff’s edge.

She recounts to me, “It was hard to make out, but all I heard coming through the headset was my brother’s voice repeating over and over “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…,””

“I think he was feeling bad about persuading me to be his co-piloto. He had assured me nothing would happen and here we were on the edge of a cliff.”

After inspecting the car for damage, Kristen’s brother related to her, this was it! They were done with the race. He’d limp slowly back to the transit section. No more high speed racing. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…,”

As Kristen listened to her brother’s apologies and tenuous notions of giving up, she just got angry. They were fine; these are the risks you take when you race endurance road rallies along the highway in the mountains and valleys of Mexico.

Strapped into her seat with a five-point harness, she attempted to draw her brother’s attention as he moved the Ford slowly onto the highway. She spoke clearly into the headset with determination and new found confidence,

“Bro?”

“You know your limits now…,”

She hesitated, and then added emphatically,

“So…, DRIVE to it!”

“You sure?” her brother replies, a hopeful cadence in his voice.

As Kristen repeats her statement, fully determined now, the RPM on the tach surges,

“You know your limit…., DRIVE TO IT!”

La Carrera 2007 Revisited

The red glare broadcast 4:03am.

Damn!

Awake again, wide awake!

The Nova beckoned. Not sure why. Maybe it’s to get my mind back on the road again. Possibly like the wind, as it sometimes howls through a small opening in a window, it was trying to get my attention. A little implausible perhaps, but it is MY imagination at play here. And, it's too early to argue.

The house was quiet as I opened the door to the garage. The weather-stripping sloughing along the slate reverberated against the cabinets. “This is so silly,” I thought to myself, but I still slunk into the driver’s seat. Heel, toe, heel, toe – if we can get the engine fixed, the wiring redone, and the suspension rebuilt - heel, toe,  heel, toe.

And so, I sat, staring straight ahead, running my hands over the roll cage, around the steering wheel, up along the side of the stick shift. In the gray of the early morning, the colorful memories of the 2007 La Carrera Panamericana punctuate my thoughts, ebbing and flowing with my heart beat. 

There’s Eddie Castillo yelling, “It’s still running!” as he spied the Habich Car #105 that afternoon in the Morelia parking lot of the Holiday Inn Express. (The entire crew pulled an all-nighter,  24-hours prior, and replaced the engine that blew on the track in Queretaro, Mexico.) Eddie grins, stretches his arms above his head in a victory stance, and runs down the lobby ramp toward the car and driver who’d just finished a run through Mil Cumbres, “Hooray! We get a night off!”

Remembering a moment in the Pueblo town square a few days earlier, where the excitement emanating from the Habich team table was palatable.

Something fabulous was up! The 2^nd day’s race results from Tehuacan to Puebla more than made up for the disastrous first day. I’ve never seen so much joy radiate from one individual as it did from Roger Habich that day. You couldn’t help but be infected by it.

On the last day, we drive down the long desert highway and pass the Habich service crew truck and trailer, yelling, and waving our hellos and laughingly our goodbyes as we speed off beyond the horizon.

Stopping at the last servicio.

 

 

 

Then, there was Kristen standing on the side of the road, obviously upset, but holding up an “OK” sign which indicated that no one was hurt. The beautiful 1954 Ford #11 lay in the ravine just off a Left 3 curve. The driver, Renee, sat a good piece up the road and in the shade from where Kristen stood. I didn’t know it then, but the story played out this past summer at the Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC).

Rampin Up - Evergreen Speedway & the D4D Program

Evergreen Speedway is the local NASCAR track up in our neck of the woods and folks here are ramping up for the racing season.

The fellow who got us involved in La Carrera has a new gig up there, a new love…,

And it’s prettier than a deuce coop!

Roger Habich and I had lunch the day before I left for La Carrera this past October, 2008. I surprised him with my news about joining Team #426 as service crew and he animatedly talked about his new adventure, the NASCAR Drive for Diversity (D4D) program. I was thrilled for him!

This guy loves racing and fixing racecars so that the set up creates a winner. It would be an understatement to say he is fairly passionate about it.

As he exited my car to head back to work, I gave him my newly created Road Rally Rhythms business card. He hesitated for a moment outside the open passenger door. I asked him if the D4D candidate was well-qualified.

He absentmindedly ran the business card up and down the rubber seal on the car’s window as he slowly exhaled, “She’s pretty…,

“She’s pretty…,

She’s pretty..., GOOD!!!”

I stifled a laugh as I leaned back behind the wheel thinking, “My, Oh, My! He’s been smitten!” Not sure if it’s ‘cause of her looks, her talent, or because he’s daydreaming about getting his hands on her racecar.

So..., you decide for yourself!

Check out Natalie Sather this season on the D4D site. Make sure to sign up as a fan! (The scoop bantering about town is that the Drive for Diversity member who gets the most fans to sign up wins special prizes.)  So, show your support and become a member!

For the inside skinny on local track news, check out Natalie’s blog site at: NatalieSather.com

It’s exciting to see young women entering the field of racing and doing well. I wish her and her Total Velocity Motorsports (TVM) crew a successful season!

A Beautiful Mercedes

I recently viewed Gary Faules blog and I am so saddened to read about Richard Morrison’s racecar being caught in a shop fire. I don’t know Rich well, but we enjoyed a conversational lunch together on Qualifying Day. His roots are right here in the Pacific NW with family ties to Carnation Dairy.

 

Rich has a gentle heart and steady-on driving skills. Richard Hamlin (Rick), his co-piloto became very ill with pneumonia during La Carrera 2008 and, to his credit, he remained for the duration as service crew to make sure the Mercedes was in top-notch condition every morning. Day 3 saw Gerie Bledsoe helping out as interim co-piloto.

Seeing fellows pull together like that is what the spirit of La Carrera is all about. After seven days of endurance road racing, Team 422 went on to garner an Original PanAm class podium finish. 

 

Affiliations Numero Siete and Ocho

He placed it on the table before I rose to greet him. A blue and gray walkie-talkie with a belt clip fixed in its design. “Oh, my gosh!” I announce, “How did you?....,

Darrell cuts me off with a chuckle, “Well, it’s yours and Franc’s isn’t it?”

“Yes, but I’d forgotten you even had it!”

“Well, remember? Melinda held onto it through the end of La Carrera. We were never able to hook up with you after the banquet in Nuevo Laredo.”

“But, that was two years ago!” I exclaim.

A hug passes between us. “That was sure a great time, wasn’t it?” I ask.

“Sure was!” Darrell states, “I’d love to go again,” as we both settle into our chairs and pass our gaze toward the lunch menu.

Darrell and I met up in the Habich’s shop one late summer evening. I introduced myself and we got to talking. Darrell would be heading to Hawaii in a week, but he’d be back for La Carrera 2007. Being a longtime friend of Daryl Habich’s, he had been garnered into service for the Habich team in 2006 and had an amazing set of adventures. His biggest hope in 2007? Rent a car and drive really fast along the race route, preferably right behind the racecars. I laughed and asked how he hoped to do that.

“Don’t know, but it’d be great fun!” he says with a grin.

Movement and talk began to surround the Habich’s Studebaker. Acceptance of the evening’s assignments had me jumping into the trunk and balancing myself over the fuel cell, each foot precariously situated on an opposite roll cage bar extension. Darrell handed me the drill, and then the rivets as we teamed up to create air vents in the rear window lexan.

Good memories of good times.

A couple months later, while Antonio, Franc and I sidled in behind the sweeper car in La Carrera 2007, Darrell and his daughter, Melinda, followed suit in a compact rental car! They clung to our rear bumper like glue while Antonio hit speeds of 100 to 160 km/h. We used the walkie-talkies to communicate while on the race route.

Darrell complained about the rental car’s shocks and poor choice of racing tires because, at times, he was hard pressed to keep up with Antonio’s well-outfitted and fast-moving Jetta. By day five, Melinda angrily announced her father was falling asleep at the wheel (Ah! The endurance aspect of La Carrera)!

Back in the restaurant, Darrell and I talked about what life has proffered since our escapades in Mexico. We discussed family and friends, life’s losses and new ventures, along with large obligatory amounts of bench racing and laughter. As we left our extended lunch, we gave each other a parting hug, happy in the assurance that acquaintances and friendships formed in La Carrera last a lifetime.

 

Momentum

We round the overgrown bush and pass the silver chain link gate. A beautiful, classic Rolls Royce greets our eyes. Flanked on either side of it are small Sunbeam Imp sedans and a bright orange yellow Porsche set amongst older Volvos. It’s as if they are paying homage to the Rolls.

Lots of folk’s mill around the asphalt driveway and as our eyes adjust to the bright light coming from Apex Automotive's garage, we begin to recognize a few. There’s John from Group2 Motorsports, Phil and Bill from the NW Alfa Romeo Club, and, oh my gosh, as we move into the garage, there’s the Volvo #287, Corvair #343, and Alfa Romeo #280 that ran in this year’s La Carrera!

John Voss quietly appears behind us, leans toward our shoulders, and in his subdued voice states, “How you guys doing? Glad you made it!” “Oh my gosh!” I turn and exclaim, “the Corvair’s here too!” “Yeah,” he smiles, “and did you see the Alfa from British Columbia? Pretty cool car. They won their class.”

Franc gets swept away with John to do what guys do around classic cars. I stand by myself and can barely contain my excitement. Memories of this year’s La Carrera come flooding back.

 

Several minutes pass and Franc returns to my side. His comment pulls me out of my reverie, “Pretty cool these cars are all here.” “I know!” I exhale, “Do you have the keys to our car? I want to go get the rest of the Rally Car Mexico (RCM) magazines Roberto sent us. Did you see, Steve Schaeffer’s here, too?!”

(Steve navigated for the Unlimited #588 Subaru WRX in the 2007 La Carrera and he was a stalwart fan of our 1965 Nova when we attended the NW Alfa Romeo Club’s Performance Driving School last year where he volunteers and instructs students.  He rode with Franc and was awe-struck by the Nova’s interior roll cage. Franc and he laughed and joked about the other amenities and improvements required to outfit our Nova for La Carrera.)

Franc returns with the magazines and I work my way into Steve’s crowd and ask if he’d like the RCM Special Edition. In one fluid motion, he unzips his laptop's computer bag and drops the magazine into its side pocket which prompts laughter from me along with the question, “So, you hoping to attend La Carrera again?” “As soon as somebody asks me, I’m there!” Steve grins. We catch up reminiscing. Then, I excuse myself to finish my distribution rounds.

Franc and I introduce ourselves to Greg, the co-piloto of the Corvair. Seems he and his piloto, Dan left their truck and trailer rig in Laredo,TX and drove the Corvair all the way to Tuxtla-Gutierrez (a mere 1,925 miles/ 3,155 km) to turn around and compete in the race. They were their own service crew!

And, they made history due to the fact that, not only did they finish the race, but they finished it in the first Corvair ever to enter La Carrera Panamericana! (Did I mention they’re from Ballard – right here in the Northwest? A little bit of regional pride is growing around here.)

That aspect became a topic of conversation. About how, outside of California, Washington state and the Northwest region has the largest contingent of racecars in La Carrera Panamericana. This years’ participants:

 

1.     #287 Volvo – John Voss & Alan Petersen – Historica A+

 

2.     #343 Corvair – Dan Landon & Gregory Shaw – Historica B

 

3.     #349 Jaguar – Joel Eisenburg & Marcia McCraw – Historica A+

 

4.     #290 Volvo – Richard Bailey & Nate Wilson, the Apple Farmers – Historica A+

If you add in the folks from British Columbia:

5.     #280 Alfa Romeo –Ulrich Lanius & Trevor G. Smyth – Historica A+

6.     #120 Studebaker – Stewart & Linda Robertson – Tourismo Mayor

7.     #425 Studebaker – John & Chrislana Gregory – Original PanAm

8.     #435 Studebaker – Matthew & Jacob Gregory – Original PanAm

 

Oh! And, don’t forget last year’s contingent from Monroe and Seattle!

9.     #105 Studebaker – Roger & Daryl Habich – Tourismo Mayor

10.   #349 Jaguar – Duane Wilcoxon & Lorraine Hamilton

 

That’s a pretty solid contingent!

I think John Voss and Alan Petersen have started something. At Apex Automotive, many a smiling face listened in rapt attention to stories from the race participants. The enthusiasm was infectious. More than a few fellows debated how they might just HAVE to get involved in a race of this nature.

(See? It just takes a little momentum…,  maybe a touch of acceleration. Just let kinetic energy play its part and the wheels continue to turn. J

As we walk out the garage entrance to leave, we give our thanks to Alan and John for hosting a great event. By this time, John is smoking a celebratory cigar and, as he waves back to the three racecars in the garage, smoke spirals into the night air. “We’re all going back in 2010,” he says with a twinkle in his eye. As I turn back to admire the racecars, I hear “You want to come along?”

La Carrera Affiliations

Thanksgiving in the USA is a time for us to give thanks for the abundance that we have, the friends and family that we love. It’s a sentimental time for me...,

They say people come into your life for a reason. I’m not sure I believe that, but I do know that those whom I have affiliated with these past two years are something special. I am writing several posts about the individuals that I, or my husband and I, or my son and I have met due to our association with La Carrera Panamericana. My storytelling is the way I say “thank you” because I can never repay the generosity, the laughter, the camaraderie, and the personal growth that I, my son, and my husband have experienced these past two years.  These stories will be archived in a Category column marked La Carrera Affiliations which I hope will continue to grow.

Who knows why you meet up with the people you do? Are reasons really necessary? For me, it’s what we take or what we give to the relationship that produces the reasons. If you look hard enough and play a little, if you stay positive and pray a lot, life happens and it’s your choice to go along for the ride or get behind the wheel and drive: sometimes to win, sometimes to just stay in the race.

Tom, Paul, and Corky - Affiliations Cuatro, Cinco, Seis

Tom Overbaugh & Team #426 – I could write several pages on Team #426. We spent a lot of time together on the race route in this 2008 La Carrera.

And…, it was grand!

 

Tom is the man with the propane-powered Mean Green Machine! His love for historic cars is passionate and his thoughtfulness for his team’s welfare, inspiring. To a keen observer, his demeanor provides a subtle hint of playfulness, but, at first glance, you’d never know how well-traveled he is or the community service he has performed throughout the world. By the end of the trip, I was very grateful for the opportunity to get to know him and to be part of his team.

Paul, the rookie, is co-piloto extraordinaire! A good time will be had by all with Paul in the mix! He never missed a morning, without calling out to me “How ya doing doll!” or “Morning sunshine!” which always started my day off right!  In Zacatecas, he looks over his 6’ shoulder height with an impish grin as we enter the rotating door of the Emporio Hotel (the 2^nd to nicest hotel in town). Round and round he goes pushing the revolving door faster and faster and then he jumps inside the lobby with a big grin leaving me to fend for myself! The bell boys didn’t know what to make of it or us as I jumped back out onto the sidewalk and attempted to walk a straight line. There was never one town square we passed by without Paul finding a six-pack or more of beer and handing them out to all the appreciative race participants. It made my day when Tom and Paul received their medals in Zacatecas. With the effort that goes into being a race participant and the disappointment in not ever making it across the arrival arch in their racecar, it IS nice to go home with some great stories and a souvenir or two to show off, just a little.

And then there’s Corky, the famed mechanic and man who retains a heart of solid gold. He became my roomie after 3 days. (Hey! When you spend an average of 12 hours a day hauling truck and trailer over extraordinary distances – what’s with sharing a room?) The second day, when we picked up The Mean Green Machine just outside Tehuacan due to brake failure, we had to pass through a Toll Booth to get onto the highway heading toward Mexico City. I grabbed Corky’s wallet off the center console and pulled out some pesos. A shocked voice filtered in from the back seat, “What ARE you two…, married or something?” Corky and I looked at each other and chuckled along with my rebuttal, “Yeah, something like that…”

There are so many adventures and fun times (pillow drowning being one) that I could relate, but there is limited space on this blog. Suffice it to say that Corky makes sure that you are part of the team and no one (absolutely no one) will be left behind on his watch. If ever you find yourself in La Carrera, pray that Corky is coming along your route. You will have nothing to fear because if you break down, he will be there for you, checking in and making sure you are OK! He is and was the solid gold core of our team!

     

(I am so very thankful for the experience. I could repeat La Carrera Panamericana over and over again and, though exhaustion sets in early when running an endurance road rally of this nature, I doubt I will ever tire of the event and the special memories it harbors.)

Gerie Bledsoe - Affiliation Numero Tres

In 2007 at a hotel in Puebla Mexico, I introduced myself to “the man” who organizes and coordinates Mexican endurance road rallies (La Carrera Panamericana and Chihuahua Express) for us Norteamericanos. Franc and I thanked him for the encouraging words he gave us and for all that he does to help manage such a grand race, it is a huge undertaking. After passing along our thanks, he nodded graciously and gave us leave.

In 2008 we met up again. A family adrift, Gerie made sure we got to where we needed to be in the 2008 Chihuahua Express to celebrate Franc & my 25^th anniversary. In the process, we learned the intimate details about the business of border crossings and how to drive a truck and trailer rig through a sand storm. (Just listen to Selena on CD!) We had a rather “open-ended” plan for returning home, so to make sure we got home safe, Gerie drove us all over the western section of the lower 48 states. We dropped off Franc in Tucson and Gerie gave my son & I leave in Phoenix by smiling and saying, “Have a good life!”

 

Pike’s Peak arrived in the summer of 2008. Always looking for opportunities to witness vintage class racecars, my son & I decided it was time to experience one of the greatest hill climb’s in the U.S.  Once again, Gerie was there to take us under his wing. We signed on as his service crew and tried our best to keep his car on the road, but to no avail. (A damaged O-ring in the hydraulic clutch played havoc with hill climb plans and Gerie left the show early to return home.)

As this year’s La Carrera Panamericana approached, the virus that smote me but good was trying to get the better of my rational state of being. I emailed Gerie and he put me in touch with a team from NY State. They were missing a 4^th member of their team and needed a navigator for the service crew’s truck and trailer rig. I jumped at that opportunity, but was somewhat disappointed to hear that the crew chief was not expecting Gerie to send him a member of the female species. It would mean a crew of three men would have to bunk up together – something they’d need to discuss. It was a worthwhile attempt, but I didn’t hold out much hope. I emailed Gerie with the same doubts and thanked him for his help as he was leaving for Mexico the next day.  The surprised look on his face when he saw me in the lobby of the Tuxtla-Gutierrez hotel on qualifying day warmed my heart. When I asked why the look, he said, “Because it means you’re committed!” (Oh, dear…, given that word could be interpreted in a variety of ways.., I suspect he’s right!)

 

 

Antonio Penaflor - Affiliation Numero Dos

We met Antonio Peñaflor rather serendipitously in La Carrera 2007, Thursday morning in Oaxaca before the race began on Friday. Franc had worked out the correspondence and logistics through Gerie Bledsoe (U.S. Coordinator of La Carrera). We didn’t know Antonio and he didn’t know us. It was obvious from the get-go, Antonio is passionate about road rally racing.

We became fast friends over the course and his wife Yorleny joined us on Day 4 for the remainder of the trip. It was a superb adventure and Franc and I will always be thankful for the grand tour of Mexico Antonio made sure we received. Here is an excerpt from the stories I wrote relating our ride across Mexico in a former blog spot I maintained last year on Vox.

 

I'm a Really Good Driver

(You have to repeat the title again and roll the “r” in “really.”)

“I’m a rrrrrr...eally good driver,” Antonio stated with a smile and a nod toward the back seat. Franc was fast asleep as we drove the flatlands after coming through the Sierra Madres on Friday. I laughed!

Antonio has been our godsend! He is an A #1 driver with a great personality. He also is Mexico’s national road rally champion from year’s past. He’s retired now at the “old” age of 30, but he has told us a few details of his life during our long drives.

Each morning, he takes us to a new special speed section on the La Carrera Panamericana route. He knows the entire route! He raced in La Carrera in 2004.

We get a bird’s eye view of the race participants as they roar past, and then we dart in behind the Sweeper car and fly down the highway at speeds reaching 140 kph.

He has even allowed me to practice being his co-piloto! I get to call out the difficulty of the upcoming roadway terrain from the official route book. Franc & I are having the time of our lives!

We had dinner with Antonio tonight. In discussing his career and talking about the road rally and team members we’ve come across, I asked him if he’d give me some tips for being a good (make that great) navigator (i.e. co-driver/piloto).

He replied that it starts with teamwork, the driver has to trust the co- driver and the co-driver must trust the skills of the driver. The driver must pace himself, but it is up to the co-driver to rein the driver in and to emphasize certain aspects of the upcoming corners and terrain according to the personality of the driver.

 

Then he got a far off look in his eye and stated,

“It’s all about rhythm…, reading the road and listening to the car.”

Franc and I exchanged a look – Antonio doesn’t know about this blog or its name….,

Roger Habich - Affiliation Numero Uno

A few years ago, Roger began working in a company where I had been a 15+ year consultant. In his early months of employment, we worked together on the same project. As I got to know this somewhat shy, family man, I began to admire his quick wit, irreverent sense of humor, and serious work ethic. 

I suspect we were both going through a transition of sorts. He has a passion for racing and his years behind the wheel of a stock car were culminating just as my interest for road rally racing was beginning to sprout. Perhaps, it’s an exchange of sense and sensibilities. Although, I’d bet there is many a racecar enthusiast who would not place the word “sense” in the same topic sentence as “racecar.”

Roger has a son the same age as my youngest, so I thought it prudent to ask someone in the know, how to introduce a young boy into the field of motocross and motorsports. Is it a sensible thing to do? I mean…, are the costs justifiable? Little did I know that in short order Roger’s son and mine would be chasing each other around in go carts with abandon! I also had no idea that Franc and I were about to get infected, too!

Time moved forward and as happenstance would have it, a care package, given with tongue in cheek to wish the Habich’s well in La Carrera Panamericana 2006, came back to bite Franc & me butt good and woo us as observers into the same historic road rally across Mexico in 2007. To which heights of exhilaration and delight, I have never experienced ever before! The race itself was phenomenal and the experience new and incredible!

Roger’s talent as a racecar driver put him, and his co-piloto father Daryl, in contention for a podium finish. (Nothing quite like knowing the athletes in a sport you enjoy.) Franc & I were there to witness, photograph, and document it. Then, back at home in Daryl’s “barn”, Roger placed his energy, experience, and expertise into fabricating a roll cage and installing disc brakes, along with a multitude of other improvements, in our 1965 Nova II SS (more to come on that subject). His hard work and dedication has given us the jump start we need to make a dream a reality.