Event Report 20110925
Every year, as part
of the Navy's "Fleet Week", NAS North Island hosts the Coronado Classic
Car Races. 2011 was no exception and we attended the festivities
along with our close friend Kai and his son Parker. Kai was able
to get us a "pit pass" that allowed us to park in the car club parking
area, thus eliminating the hassle and time of a long walk across the
tarmac.
The photos below are what we saw.
Kai
and Parker rode in their Ural motorcycle with side car.
The
local car clubs had a large turnout and some of the rides were very,
very sweet. Above is a classic Corvette. Get your kicks on
Route 66.
I
know this car's owner well and he needs to be counseled on washing his
car more often. Dirty paint notwithstanding, this car rocks.
While
a "standard production car", the M3 convertible is a great ride.
I really like the red color, but as any car buff knows, you get more
speeding tickets when the car is red.
"Hey,
Mister, got any spare change?". If you own this car, you better
have plenty of spare change; repair costs are punitive.
A
surgically clean engine compartment. Hell, I would settle for a
good detail job.
Good
ole' Detroit iron.
Nice
restoration on this car.
Given
the size of the back seat of this car, I am sure that babies have been
conceived there. The pink color is very funky though.
There
was a ton of work put into this ride.
Check
out the reflections in the paint job.
I
have no idea what this is.
A
fuel funny car.
Yow!
The
"Drifters" car club gave a drifting demonstration. Smoky and loud.
As
the races officially started, the Seals from the local base dropped in
via parachute.
Note
that this fellow has a video camera on his helmet.
Old
Glory descends from the heavens.
After
the Seals hit the deck and the flag was secured, we had a fly-by from
some vintage aircraft. This was a P-51.
Another
one of the vintage planes.
The
vintage planes were followed by fleet-operational aircraft. These
are FA-18s; note that the paint schemes are not the same.
Helos
followed the fixed wing aircraft.
As
the first races started, we decided to head into the pits to check out
some of the cars.
This
crew was nice enough to allow spectators to sit in the cars.
A
NASCAR style car. We gave this one a hard look-over and found
several hoses that were disconnected. The crew knew about them
(that is good) but had not reconnected them (bad).
Some
of the older racers were very, very small.
Ah,
lest we forget, the real face of racing. Note the transmission
sitting on the jack.
Cool
color scheme.
Looks
like the body has been chopped to provide clearance for the large
rubber.
The
Z8s are nice cars, but way pricey. But, the owner of this one
does not care; he owns the local BMW dealership.
The
down-draft Webber carbs suggest that this car is an original Cobra
rather than a kit-car.
While
not my "cup of tea", this is a fantastic car. Look at that paint.
One
of the pit crew sits with a driver before the start of the second race.
A
lot of folks came to watch the race.
Not
every race ends happily -- this fellow hit the wall.
Number
8 was quite fast.
In a
subsequent race, in the other grandstands, I caught this fellow coming
by at warp speed.
In a
later race, this Mini Cooper, number 177, gave the other drivers
lessons. He lapped so many cars we lost count.
The
balance of the drivers in his race were taken to school and spanked
hard.
A
very nice Woody from the San Diego area.
Note
the bamboo surfboard rack.
A
nice Lotus Elise.
The
Shelby Cobra club had a large showing at the races. These are
some very nice rides.
A
parting shot of my next-door-neighbor's Bricklin, which is for sale.
The
races were fun, as always. The noise level was off the chart due
to the combination of the race cars, helicopters and jets from NAS
North Island. We wore ear plugs most of the day. But, the
sights were great. Thanks to Kai and Parker for inviting us to
the races and providing us with a pit pass.
Copyright Bill Caid 2011. All rights reserved.