Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix Schenley Park, Pennsylvania. July 15-16, September 2017 Victory Lane

Transcription

1 Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix Schenley Park, Pennsylvania July 15-16, September 2017 Victory Lane

2 #37 Dave Good, MGA; #23 Peter McCarthy, 1962 Austin Healey ; #425 John Vann, 1959 Turner Mk 1; #53 Dave Smith, 1959 Austin Healey Bugeye Mk 1; #78 Alan Patterson, 1961 Austin Healey. Victory Lane September

3 #79 Andrew Moore, 1964 Austin Healey ; #23 Peter McCarthy, 1962 Austin Healey ; #78 Alan Patterson, 1961 Austin Healey. story by Ted Sohier For the 35th year in a row this past July, the city of Pittsburgh s bucolic Schenley Park was transformed into a dream destination for vintage car fans. The Bob O Connor Golf Course hosted perhaps a thousand show cars, and spotlighted the 50th anniversary of the Camaro, Marque of the Year. Special displays included the very first Camaro, prototype #1, and among other displays, Studebakers, the spotlight marque, and a fine selection of vintage motorbikes. Just off the greens, the #77 Alan Patterson, 1952 Allard J2X. 26 September 2017 Victory Lane park s access roads provide a very challenging 23-turn road course. As a final event on Saturday, the day usually reserved for practice and qualifying on the race course, and massive car shows on the golf course, PVGP staged a run-whatyou-brung AXIS VS. ALLIES race. It drew entries from all the closed-wheel groups, and featured the 1960 Elva Mk. VI of Joey Bojalad on pole, next to Chuck Kelly s 1970 Porsche Predictably, Bojalad s sports racer took the win with Kelly second and another 914/6, in the hands of Gary Schultz, third. Out of the Top 10, five represented the Allies and five the Axis; 26 cars took the checkers. Sunday s races began with the combined GROUP 1/2 race for Pre-War, MG-T, and Production under 1-litre in a split start. Michael Barstow and Kurt Byrnes were fast qualifiers in their MG-TDs; Adolfo Massari and Michael Richmond were next in their s; and Frank Mount s gorgeous 1939 MG-TB Special was quickest of the pre-war entries. Submitting to one of Schenley Park s unforgiving granite curbs, John Guehl s 1939 #118 Daren Mann, 1965 Lotus Elan. Mercury Sprint Car was forced to retire with a wobbly wheel. Veteran vintage racer and 2016 winner George Shafer had his TD suddenly photo by Laurie Harnish #45 Charles Powell, 1967 MGB GT; #22 Joe Mendel, 1971 Lotus Elan.

4 quit running, admitting after the race that he d accidentally shut off the ignition. He finished third among the MGs. Barstow went on to take the overall win, with Massari second. Mount took sixth overall and the win in Pre-War, but corner workers loved the look of Lester Neidell s beautiful 1933 Plymouth Speedster, and its cream-and-green paintwork. GROUP 3 started 23 cars in MGA and Production Under 1 litre. Charlie Dolan s MGA took the pole ahead of Garth Knorr s Midget and Andrew Moore s. Moore was forced to pull over after 5 laps with smoke coming from the right rear. Dolan went on to take the overall win, with Knorr s second good for the U-1 victory. Dave Good s MGA was third and John Vann s Turner was fourth. GROUP 4, for Production Under 2-litres, had a 28-car field, headed by Dennis Wilson s #195 Tom Dick, 1966 Triumph TR4-IRS; #78 Alan Patterson, 1961 Austin Healey. Lotus Super 7 on pole, Norman Berke s Elva Courier starting second, and Jeff Snook s TR-3A in third. Eight laps later, Wilson took the win, with Stefan Vapaa s Saab Sonnet in second, and Snook in third. Berke, last year s winner, had been forced to retire after 4 laps. The over 2-litre race, GROUP 5, started 22 cars, with 2014 winner Perry Genova on pole in his BMW 2002, followed by two Porsche 914/6s driven by Chuck Kelly and Gary Schultz. And, that s the way they finished after eight laps, with two more BMW 2002s completing the Top 5, Scott Hughes and Roy Hopkins. The 2002 drivers may have been getting a leg up on next year s event, when BMW will be the PVGP Marque of the Year, the BMW club s national gathering, O Fest, will be centered around the PVGP, and the 2002 will be the club s spotlight model. GROUP 6 was for Sports Racers and Formula cars, and the winner from the past two years, Joey Bojalad, won yet again #69 Christian Morici, 1971 Lotus 69; #41 Scott Durbin, 1977 Tiga A; #65 Daniel Finocchiaro, 1980 Crossle 40F. from pole in his 1960 Elva Mk. VI. Oliver Scigliano qualified 2nd, and finished there in his 1972 Lynx FV, and Christopher Morici did the same in 3rd in his 1958 Lotus 7. George Vapaa, who qualified fifth in his Lotus 7, fell victim to the dreaded haybale chicane along the circuit s longest straight. The race was red-flagged briefly after Lap 2 while the bales partially blocking the course were restacked, and Vapaa was forced to retire with some damage at the rear. The final race of the weekend, GROUP 7, was part of the Royale Formula Ford Challenge Series. Christian Morici in his Lotus 69 won the pole nearly 3 seconds quicker than Scott Durbin in his Tiga. Daniel Finocchiaro qualified third in a Crossle 40F, and 12 cars started. When the checkers fell, Morici took the win with Finocchiaro in second. Durbin had spun and broken an axle, and Andrew Stein finished third in his Merlyn Mk 11A. Racers and workers were joined in paying tribute to three significant PVGP personalities who had passed away since last year s race. They were longtime race director (and course builder) Jim Rocky Farrar, media director Steve Weber, and, just weeks before the event, founding driver and organizer Alan Patterson. All three were represented by family members Steve s daughter Jenifer sang the National Anthem at opening ceremonies; Steve s two sons, Geoff and Greg, continue to volunteer at the heart of the event; and an increasing number of Alan s family members sons, nephews, a granddaughter carry on his passion as drivers. It was another in fact, the 35th fine vintage race weekend in Pittsburgh s Schenley Park. Among the reasons racers, spectators, and vintage car lovers keep coming back for the PVGP are the Schenley Park setting and the fact that, for 35 years, all PVGP events are created to raise funds for two charities, the Autism Society of Pittsburgh, and Allegheny Valley School, which provides services to individuals with autism and intellectual disabilities. #7 Ian Wisbon, 1961 Austin Mini; #27 Jay Their, 1964 Triumph Spitfire. Victory Lane September

5 AXIS VS ALLIES 1 SR J. Bojalad/1960 Elva Mk VI 2: POR C. Kelly/1970 Porsche 914/6 2: POR G. Schultz/1972 Porsche 914/6 1 O2.0L R. Maloumian/1956 Austin Healey : BMW C. Zappa/1971 BMW : U2.0L J. Dolan/1972 Triumph GT6 2: O2.0L A. Ross/1970 Datsun 240Z 2 U2.0L M. Moore/1962 Triumph TR4 3 POR M. Schindel/1974 Porsche U2.0L J. Mendel/1971 Lotus Elan 1 MGA C. Dolan/1957 MGA 2: POR D. Smith/1971 Porsche 914/6 4 U2.0L P. Dolan/1972 Triumph GT6 2 BMW A. Hughes/1974 BMW U2.0L D. Bechtol/1972 Alfa Romeo Spider 1 U1.5L G. Knorr/1961 MG Midget 2: MGA D. Good/MGA 6 U2.0L L. Poseidon/1971 Alfa Romeo GT Jr 7 U2.0L J. Teplitz/1969 Datsun BMW R. Peterson/1985 BMW 325i 4 BMW J. Barhydt/1975 BMW U1.5L K. Michael/1960 Elva Courier 5 POR W. Swartz/1959 Porsche 356A 3 U1.5L M. Maehling/1969 Abarth Scorpione SS #15 Najeeb Khan, 1974 Renault Alpine MGA R. Finkel/1959 MGA 5 BMW C. Schindel/1975 BMW 2002 GROUP 1/2 1 MGT M. Barstow/1953 MG TD 2: U1L A. Massari/1959 Austin Healey Bugeye 2: U1L M. Richmond/Austin Healey 2 MGT E. Cronin/1953 MG TD 3 MGT M. Sherman/1953 MG TD 1 PW F. Mount/1939 MG TB Special 2: U1L D. Thomas/1962 Austin Healey 1 MGA M. Snider/1958 MGA 2: O2.0L M. Stein/1956 Austin Healey 100/4 2: PW P. O Malley/1952 Culbert 1/2 Mile Sprint 3 PW J.J. Rodman/1939 Ford Board Track Sprint Car 4 U1L J. Parlanti/1959 Abarth Zagato 750 GT 2 O2.0L A. Patterson/1952 Allard J2x 4 MGT G. Shafer/1951 MG TD #77 Alan Patterson, 1961 Jaguar E-Type. 5 U1L D. Streed/1959 Austin Healey Bugeye 4 PW J. Guehl/1939 Mercury Sprint 6 U1L R. Duell/1955 Panhard Dyna Jr 5 PW L. Neidell/1933 Plymouth Speedster 5 MGT K. Byrnes/1951 MG TD 3 O2.0L P. Patterson/1950 Allard J2 GROUP 3 1 MGA C. Dolan/1957 MGA 2: U1.5L G. Knorr/1961 MG Midget 2: MGA D. Good/MGA 1 U1L J. Vann/1959 Turner Mk 1 2: U1.5L P. McCarthy/1962 Austin Healey 3 U1.5L C. Seifert/Austin Healey 3 MGA D. Holmes/1957 MGA 4 U1.5L A. Patterson/1961 Austin Healey 5 U1.5L B. Whipple/1963 Austin Mini S 6 U1.5L J. Their/1964 Triumph Spitfire 7 U1.5L I. Wisbon/1961 Austin Mini 8 U1.5L J. Plunkett/1967 Mini Cooper S 9 U1.5L M. Bansal/1961 Austin Mini Cooper 1 POR W. Swartz/1959 Porsche 356A 2: U1.5L N. McCabe/1967 MG Midget 2 U1L J. Graham/1958 Austin Healey Bugeye 1 O2.0L J. Smith/1962 Devin C 3: U1.5L H. Murphy/1965 Mini Cooper 12 U1.5L A. Moore/1964 Austin Healey 2 O2.0L T. Dick/1966 Triumph TR4-IRS 4 MGA R. Finkel/1959 MGA 3 U1L D. Smith/1959 Austin Healey Bugeye Mk 1 13 U1.5L G. Higbee/1962 Austin Healey GROUP 4 1 U2.0L D. Wilson/1962 Lotus Super 7 2: U1L S. Vapaa/1968 Saab Sonett 2: U2.0L J. Snook/1961 Triumph TR3A 1 U1.5L D. Mann/1965 Lotus Elan 2: POR C. Schindel/1974 Porsche 911 2: U2.0L J. Mendel/1971 Lotus Elan 4 U2.0L D. Wannagat/1973 Alfa Romeo GTV 1 MG M. Zappa/1962 MGB 2: U2.0L P. Dolan/1972 Triumph GT6 6 U2.0L C. Lance/1964 Lotus Elan 7 U2.0L B. Criss/1967 Volvo 122 Amazon 8 U2.0L J. Dolan/1972 Triumph GT6 2 POR R. Evans/1969 Porsche 911 ST 9 U2.0L D. Bechtol/1972 Alfa Romeo Spider 2 MG C. Longo/1968 MGB GT #340 Ralph Steinberg, 1954 Jaguar XK BMW J. Wisbon/1976 BMW : MG C. Powell/1967 MGB GT 10 U2.0L C. McCandless/1959 Devin D 11 U2.0L L. Poseidon/1971 Alfa Romeo GT Jr 12 U2.0L J. Teplitz/1969 Datsun U2.0L G. Reed/1968 Datsun U2.0L N. Khan/1974 Renault Alpine U2.0L J. Breslow/1965 Alfa Romeo GTA 3 POR S. Scholze/1976 Porsche 914/4 1 O2.0L R. Steinberg/1954 Jaguar XK120m 2: MG R. Schaefer/1974 MGB GT 16 U2.0L N. Berke/1959 Elva Courier 17 U2.0L M. Moore/1962 Triumph TR4 GROUP 5 1 BMW P. Genova/1970 BMW : POR C. Kelly/1970 Porsche 914/6 2: POR G. Schultz/1972 Porsche 914/6 2 BMW S. Hughes/1970 BMW BMW R. Hopkins/1969 BMW O2.0L J. Bechtol/1972 Datsun 240Z 2: BMW J. Barhydt/1975 BMW O2.0L A. Ross/1970 Datsun 240Z 3 O2.0L J. Jeffrey/1972 Datsun 240Z #366 William Swartz, 1959 Porsche 356A. 3 POR D. Smith/1971 Porsche 914/6 4 O2.0L M. Kuli/1972 Datsun 240Z 4 POR J. Southwood/1972 Porsche POR M. Schindel/1974 Porsche BMW A. Hughes/1974 BMW BMW S. Liadis/1983 BMW 320i 7 BMW S. Walters/1973 BMW BMW R. Peterson/1985 BMW 325i 5 O2.0L A. Patterson/1961 Jaguar E-Type 6 O2.0L S. Patterson/1967 Jaguar XKE 9 BMW C. Zappa/1971 BMW O2.0L K. Patterson/1964 jaguar XKE 6 POR S. Ryan/1971 Porsche 914/6 GROUP 6 1 SR J. Bojalad/1960 Elva Mk VI 2: FV O. Scigliano/1972 Lynx 2: L7 C. Morici/1958 Lotus 7 2: SR P. Wilson/1959 Jabro Mark II 3 SR D. Allison/1960 Lotus 18 2 L7 T. Chisholm/1962 Lotus 7 4 SR D. Gibson/1958 V.A.Y. Special Sports Racer 2 FV W. Kovick/1963 Formcar Mk 1 3 FV A. Harriman/1967 Zinc C-4 1 FJ S. Morici/1963 Cooper T67 2: L7 G. Vapaa/1959 Lotus 7 GROUP 7 1 FF C. Morici/1971 Lotus 69 2: FF D. Finocchiaro/1980 Crossle 40F 3 FF A. Stein/1970 Merlyn Mk 11A/17 4 FF C. Cogswell/1978 Crossle 32F 5 FF D. Helman/1972 Crossle 25 6 FF B. Chesbro/1978 Lola T440 7 FF S. Bartley/1968 Lotus 51C 8 FF G. Tapp/1969 Winklemann WDF-1 9 FF R. Albert/1988 Chevron B FF J. Tapp/1970 Merlyn Mk FF J. Mihalich/Lotus T FF S. Durbin/1977 Tiga A 28 September 2017 Victory Lane