Tom Stahler
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http://motormavens.com/tag/tom-stahler/
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COVERAGE> ALMS Last Lap At Laguna Seca
Racing today has become about closeness. Photo finishes, improved safety and lowered operating costs have made many sanctioning bodies look to spec racing, where all the cars are the same and the contest then becomes a driver vs. driver battle.
The major casualty in these forms of racing (ie: IndyCar, NASCAR, etc.) has been truth in engineering and innovation. There is not much you can do to innovate without breaking the rules - and being hung out to dry for it.
When the American LeMans Series (ALMS) came to the Monterey Coast at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, this theory was thrown to the dogs as multiple chassis, motor, and tire combinations had no hindrance on the level of competition. The four hour enduro proved to be an absolute slugfest. It looked far more like a 20 mile sprint as it proved one of the most closely contested, nail biting, bump-and-rub fests of sports cars and prototypes lapping the twisty, hilly 2.238 mile circuit in 1:13.948 while making insane 10,000 rpm noises. Read more...
The major casualty in these forms of racing (ie: IndyCar, NASCAR, etc.) has been truth in engineering and innovation. There is not much you can do to innovate without breaking the rules - and being hung out to dry for it.
When the American LeMans Series (ALMS) came to the Monterey Coast at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, this theory was thrown to the dogs as multiple chassis, motor, and tire combinations had no hindrance on the level of competition. The four hour enduro proved to be an absolute slugfest. It looked far more like a 20 mile sprint as it proved one of the most closely contested, nail biting, bump-and-rub fests of sports cars and prototypes lapping the twisty, hilly 2.238 mile circuit in 1:13.948 while making insane 10,000 rpm noises. Read more...
COVERAGE> ALMS Street Fight In Long Beach
Endurance racing has always been about how hard and how long you can go. For almost a century, legendary races like Le Mans, Sebring, and Daytona have made history as a proving ground for men and their machines. The Streets of Long Beach circuit brought a similar challenge to the cars and stars of the American LeMans Series (ALMS) on Saturday Afternoon.
In just two hours, 157 miles would be traveled and 36.329 seconds would separate an endurance racing champion from a former Formula One star - and with the win, produce the winning-est driver in American LeMans series history - a man who only turned a wheel for 25 minutes. Read more...
In just two hours, 157 miles would be traveled and 36.329 seconds would separate an endurance racing champion from a former Formula One star - and with the win, produce the winning-est driver in American LeMans series history - a man who only turned a wheel for 25 minutes. Read more...
EVENT> Toyota Camry Takes First Place In Fontana
NASCAR was pigeonholed many years ago as a redneck, Southeastern cultural phenomenon. It still has some of that down home feel, but when you drop the Sprint Cup and Nationwide series into the heart of Southern California car country, it melds almost seamlessly with so much of the culture surrounding things that go vroom-vroom.
Consider NASCAR evolved out of the uncanny abilities of drivers who spent most of their time trying to outrun the police... No, really. Most of NASCAR’s original heroes cut their driving chops running moonshine (illegal grain alcohol) in the 1920s to the 1940s. Not only were these guys phenomenal drivers who regularly escaped certain prison time, they were clever mechanics, who could tune a 1930s Chevy to outrun just about any municipal vehicle of the day. Read more...
Consider NASCAR evolved out of the uncanny abilities of drivers who spent most of their time trying to outrun the police... No, really. Most of NASCAR’s original heroes cut their driving chops running moonshine (illegal grain alcohol) in the 1920s to the 1940s. Not only were these guys phenomenal drivers who regularly escaped certain prison time, they were clever mechanics, who could tune a 1930s Chevy to outrun just about any municipal vehicle of the day. Read more...
CARSPOTTING> Ford GT40 Chassis 1051
You Better Win. More demanding words have never been spoken in the history of racing. In an infamous three word memo to his engineers and executives prior to the 1966 LeMans 24 Hour endurance race, Henry Ford II would stand for nothing less than victory. Read more...
ARCHAEOLOGY> John Morton’s 510 & 240Z at RIAM
When a 21-year-old John Morton took a job in Carroll Shelby’s Cobra shop in the mid-1960s, sweeping floors and chasing parts, he had a dream. Much of that dream came true for him, but in what could be called a great and celebrated road racing career, he does have regrets and disappointments. Read more...
