Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Fun is for girls

For the last year many that I have talked to that is involved with the La Carrera Panamericana talks about how important it is to have fun and not focus on winning. To be honest with you I am having a difficult time getting into that frame of mind. If I just wanted to have fun I would spend a weekend at Disneyland. It's only a 4 hour drive to get there, if the ride breaks down it's not my problem, there are no donkeys crossing in front of any rides and it only cost a few hundred bucks.

Everyone of us on CALIFORNIA'S BEST RACING TEAM know how to have fun and racing is not only fun to each of us but a way of life. We live, eat and breath racing and we take what we do very seriously whether it's a car build, prep or driving the car. We all hope that everyone else takes their car preparation and safety as seriously as we do. On the same subject we are hoping the quality of drivers are nothing short of the best. Nobody wants to finish on a podium only to hear someone say, "It sure was a good thing ole So & So wasn't there." As a matter of fact we are hoping the best in the world are there. After all, isn't that what this race is all about... The best drivers in the world brought together in what has Wikipedia Encyclopedia says, "The Carrera Panamericana was a sports car racing event on open roads in Mexico, similar to the Mille Miglia and Targa Florio in Italy. Running from 1950 to 1955, it was widely held by contemporaries to be the most dangerous race of any type in the world. Due to safety concerns, the high speed race was canceled after the 1955 Le Mans disaster. This was unavoidable given that cars of the period were of a high-speed, low-safety design, and drivers of a win-at-all-costs mentality. Only a third of entrants typically finished the race, and unlike more compact circuits, the long course was impossible to secure entirely, making it possible for crashes to linger for several hours before being noticed. 27 people had died during the five years of the Panamericana, giving it one of the highest mortality rates per race in the history of motorsport, primarily because during the years the race was held, automobile racing had undergone an amazing technical transformation to emerge as an advanced science. The speeds had almost doubled as a result but safety controls remained static and competitors, spectators and safety control personnel alike became casualties." This is not my idea of fun but in fact something that I have been preparing for, for over a year both mentally and physically.

Now don't get me wrong, TEAM CALIFORNIA'S BEST plans to have a blast and lots of fun but we will not be doing it from the cockpit of the car.

4 comments:

Carreratime said...

Speaking of fun, where did you get the good pricing on your American Torque Thrust D wheels?

Gary Faules said...

I bought them right from American Racing.

Gary Grant said...

Oh, you'll be having fun in the car, who are you kidding!

It's just the type of fun that comes from the focused intensity it takes to win! Especially when you know how well prepared the car is.

Gary Faules said...

;)