Bobsy folks:
An update on the Reunion -- things are going very well! I just counted 12 Bobsy cars that will be there! This is AMAZING and most appreciated. Frankly I was pleasantly stunned when I sat down to actually count them for this update. A couple are tentative, but they are quite hopeful and making every effort to attend. Thanks so much to each of you.
We'll have Bobsys from both coasts, Washington state, and as far south as Texas. For some reason Graham Cowell decided to not ship his car from the UK. Imagine that. But he is going to try to attend anyway. How about that! There are several ex-Bobsy owners who are planning on attending just to see the "show" and to visit the car they used to own. And a couple of current owners who, like Graham, can't get the car to the event but wish to attend anyway. Many thanks to those folks also.
Indeed this will be a great event. In addition to the Bobsy sports racers, there are quite a number of "other" sports racers that have given a "Yes, I'll be there" RSVP. I'm still hopeful of having a total grid of 25-30 sports racers including the Bobsys. If you know of any fellow vintage sports racer owners who would make a nice addition to this event, please forward this email to them as an invitation. Reaching and recruiting non-Bobsy sports racers from other clubs is proving to be hard to do. Help me get the word out. The links at the bottom of this email would be quite useful to them.
If you haven't made up your mind yet about attending, all of this argues you won't want to miss the Reunion. Let me hear from you as soon as you feel you can decide one way or (Egads!) the other. But remember, this Reunion will be your only chance to participate in something like this. There will not be a second Reunion, that I can almost guarantee. So, don't miss it.
After individually responding to several questions and requests for additional info on the Reunion, I thought I'd pass those answers to everyone. Sort of a FAQ thing.
What is the Entry Fee?: RMVR's entry fee is $250 + $20 per ticket for Saturday evening's BBQ.
Event Registration right away isn't essential, but as you know, I'd really like to know "yeah" or "nay" RSVP for my planning purposes as soon as you feel you can (or can't) commit.
On Friday, there will be a "Lapping Day" (aka Test & Tune) available at the track. Lapping track fees are $100 (no half-day pricing). This is payable at the track, to the track.
Folks with campers or RVs are welcome to get to the track on Thursday to spend the night. Hook ups are limited and only Electric (no full hookups). Hookups arranged directly with track. If we are not racing will we be able to get in to the paddock area to look at the cars? Absolutely no problem. Just sign the waiver and come on in. We (RMVR) don't charge any gate at our events and the paddocks are always wide open for visitors and even if you have an RV you can stay in the paddock area for free if you don't need an electric hookup. If you arrive on Friday afternoon/evening, the track is then controlled by the track and they might charge a small entry fee because they host "Friday Night Drags" for the locals. But Sat. or Sunday it's RMVR's track and no admission is charged.
What's the motel situation?: If you plan on using a motel, all the usual national chains within 15 minutes of the track in the vicinity of I-25 and Hwy. 50. Since it is the Labor Day weekend, I'd recommend booking rooms early. What's the schedule for the weekend? Nothing is set in stone at this point. RMVR's typical schedule is four different race groups (Small bore, big bore, FVs, all other Formula cars and sports racers). But groups depend on what cars actually attend. For each group there will be a practice/qualifying session Sat. Morning with two races during the rest of Saturday. For the first Saturday race, cars grid by morning qualifying times. Subsequent races for the weekend griddled by finishing position in prior race. Then on Sunday there is usually a short combined warm up session in the morning (e.g. all open wheel in one session, all production in another). This is really to just check out your car for the day's racing. Grid position for the first race on Sunday is determined by finish position Saturday afternoon. During Sunday each of the groups have two and sometimes three races. Obviously we'll have enough of "our" group (Bobsys and Sports Racers) to have our own run group. Perhaps all weekend, but certainly on Sunday there will be a feature race for only the Bobsy/SR cars. And for sure there will be some Bobsy-specific social things going on. Bottom line, plenty of track time. Typical 15 or 20 minute race sessions.
And then there's the great BBQ dinner (buy a ticket) on Saturday evening.
What cars & tires will be allowed?: As to rules regarding "legality" of how a car is prepped (e.g. tires, etc.) We're not imposing any preparation restrictions on folks who are kind enough to travel across the country to come race with us, especially tires. If someone enters a car with a logbook from another vintage club, we assume it's prepared to that club's rules and welcome them. As a matter of policy, RMVR doesn't impose our rules (either years of eligibility or preparation of cars) on cars from other vintage clubs. Just present your current log book on the car from your home club to tech at the event so they can log the event in it and provide your rollbar tech inspection sticker. (In fact our tech lads don't check for any eligibility or rule conformance. They only check cars for safety aspects.) And we don't run around the paddock looking for "illegal" cars. Good grief. We're here to have fun.
Any gearing suggestions?: Given the wide array of engines, HP, preferred red line, tires, different ring gear ratios, top speeds, and different driving styles, any specific gearing would be misleading. However, I can provide some relative guidance. Based on having raced my Formula Ford at Pueblo and a number of tracks around the country, hopefully the following track comparisons will give you a good idea of gearing for Pueblo if you've run any of the following:
Bottom line, Pueblo is faster than small slower circuits, but not as fast as the really fast circuits. Kinda' like Goldilocks' porridge, just right.
Oh. The slowest corner at Pueblo is pretty darn slow. Forty MPH at turn #7. So plan your gears accordingly. Again gearing similar to Thunderhill and Topeka would be good guides for your first gear. (I used 18:32 1st gear at Thunderhill by way of reference)
By the way, I just raced the new track surface at Pueblo Motorsports Park last weekend at RMVR's 10th Annual TransAm Invitational. We were the first road racing club to hold an event on the all-new paving laid down in March but allowed to cure until now. Fantastic! The complete PMP circuit is as smooth as a baby's behind. No tire wear issues at PMP. And there have been other nice upgrades to the facility.
I've received some financial help for event "extras" that I'd like to do but don't feel I can ask RMVR (or me) to totally pay for them. So, if you'd like to help out, any little donation would be appreciated. The biggest item is I'd like to offer to help pay for or reimburse some travel expenses of Ron and Jerry Mong if they can indeed make it. (Their attendance is still not a definitive commitment, but they're certainly hopeful). It would be nice if "we" could do that for them as a token of our appreciation.
If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Bob Alder
303-981-6364 (cell)
3330 S. Albion St.
Denver, CO 80222
Here's some links to more info on the Bobsy Reunion & Sports Racer Challenge:
RMVR's Event page describing the "Labor Day Extravaganza" which features our Bobsy Reunion & Sports Racer Challenge"
Pueblo Motorsports Park webpage describing their Lapping Days. http://www.pueblomotorsportspark.us/index.aspx?nid=108
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