2015 SVRA Vintage racing at Portland International Raceway

  When my good buddy Ezekiel calls to let me know he's coming into town for an event I know it's worth getting off my ass for.  In fact it's more than that. It's going to be amazing and I will be kicking myself in the ass for the rest of my life if I don't go. He told me an entire weekend of vintage racing was going to be happening at Portland International Raceway - You have my full undivided attention, sir!  It's not often you see true vintage race cars and even more rare that you get them out of the garage let alone racing! I told him I was in and I patiently (or not so...) waited for his arrival.

     If you actually read my blog, I've stated before that Portland has a very odd but amazing car scene.  The scene is most definitely there, it's just scared of the rain.  Pay attention and you will see some amazing stuff!  This event is just one great example.  Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA) holds events nationwide but I was unaware that Portland was on their map.

A little bit about SVRA

Their motto, "some people collect art… we race it" says it all to me. SVRA was founded in 1981 by Ford Heacock III and is the largest and one of the oldest vintage racing organizations in the United States. Their guidelines require these cars to be as close to factory as possible. Original body materials and shape, engines, suspension, etc. No kit cars and no modifications that the manufacturer didn't do. These cars are legit and certainly art!

Race Day!

     Nicole and I rolled in and were immediately greeted by the standard Pacific Northwest clouds and the lovely sound of tiny carbureted engines. Screaming like angry bees while attempting to squeeze every last bit of inertia from the few horses they have under their hood. It was apparent that these races were about skill and not power.   

Fortunately, the threat of rain never materialized into anything more that a perfect day for racing!  We had our media briefing and started at the staging lanes before the races started.

Racing is such an artform. It starts with the hours of work, blood, sweat, and tears to build and prep a car. Finding and making parts for some of these is damn near impossible. Getting a car ready is only the first of many tests.

Constructing a team can be a daunting task. Assembling even a small group of people can seem like pulling nails and it's amazing how many people one car can require. Altogether, just getting a car like this to the starting line is a feat not to be taken lightly. The amount of time, effort, money, and coordination is unimaginable as these are not big league races with sponsors and large companies running the show. The majority of these people are collectors, hobbyists, and enthusiasts. 

We worked our way to one of our favorite spots on the track just in time.

Jaguar was the main sponsor this year and did a fantastic job. Their pace car was a very sharp looking 2015 F-Type decked out in a Union Jack livery.

Green Flag

This is where I shut up and let the photos do the talking.  We took soooo many images and I lost my class/drivers/car list so I can only organize these so much.  I also apologize but we totally missed the American Classics race!  

It's official - The Austin-Healey Sprite Mark I is the happiest car ever.

The Mark II - So serious...  :-|

These two Morgans were have way too much fun! I know I promised to shut up but I love Morgans and the company has a cool history. Morgan was established in 1910 by Henry Frederick Stanley Morgan. In 1909 he designed and built a car for his own use. He began production of this car a year later and the company prospered. Morgan continued to run it until he died at age 77 in 1959. All Morgans are hand built and have wooden frames - still to this day!

3 wheeling in a Mini!

The pits and show!

Not surprising but Jaguar and Landrover had an awesome display showcasing their newest line up!

Ahhhhh the AC Cobra... What car show wouldn't be complete without one!  Well a kit at least. None of the ones I saw at this event were kits. Seriously impressive since there were at least 4!

The Cobra has an interesting history too. British automaker AC Cars had been using the Bristol straight-6 engine (pre-WWII design by BMW) in its small-volume production line. This had a hand-built body with a steel tube frame, and aluminium body panels that were made using The English Wheel. The engine was considered outdated by the 1960's. Bristol decided in 1961 to cease production of its engine and instead, use Chrysler's 331 ci V8 engine. AC started using the 2.6 litre Ford Zephyr engine in its cars instead. American automotive designer Carroll Shelby wrote to AC asking if they would build him a car modified to accept a V8 engine. AC agreed, but Shelby would have to supply a suitable engine. Shelby first asked Chevrolet to see if they would provide him with engines, but not wanting to add competition to the Corvette they said no. However, Ford wanted a car that could compete with the Corvette and they happened to have a brand new engine which could be used in this endeavor: Ford's 260 HiPo engine – a new lightweight, thin-wall cast small-block V8 tuned for high performance. Ford provided Shelby with two engines. In 1962 mechanics at AC Cars fitted a prototype chassis with the 260 ci Ford V8 borrowed from Ford UK. After testing and modification, the engine and transmission were removed and the chassis was air-freighted to Shelby in Los Angeles. Since AC had done most of the dirty work, Carroll's team fitted it with an engine and transmission in less than eight hours and began road-testing - thus the beginning of the AC Cobra!

This Mark I Sprite was fabulous! 

We finally caught up with the Mark II that caught our eye on the track.

I think my favorite pure show car was this Jaguar. Absolutely impeccable!

LOVE the timing clocks!

OMG E-Type Jaguar!!! So sexy!

YES!!

This MGB was my favorite at the event and it really deserves its own feature. The sign reads... "This car started life as a Mineral Blue GT owned by a Manager of BMC USA, in Leonia, NJ. When the parent company, BMC UK entered a GT for the 1967 Sebring 12 Hour International Championship Race, this GT was converted to racing specs by BMC USA for use as a 'Driver Familiarity' car by BMC UK team drivers Paddy Hopkirk and Andrew Hedges at Sebring, until the BMC UK Works Competition car arrived. After Sebring, this car was 'gifted' to Harrington Motors, and raced in the USA. It was then entered in the 1969 Sebring Race as a 'reserve' car, and ran in the 1970 Sebring race, driven by Robert Kilpatrick. The car was quickly painted in Blaze Red for this race. During the race the tire 'exited' the car, which proceeded to barrel-roll down the track. This event was captured by the Wide World of Sports TV Broadcast. Driver Robert Kilpatrick escaped the wreck relatively uninjured. The car was subsequently stripped, and the shell was hung above a bar in New York. When the bar burned down, Kilpatrick recovered the shell and rebuilt the car. This car had an extremely long successful SCCA career, with many drivers, and has now been returned to its original Sebring condition. It made a very successful return to race at the iconic Sebring racetrack in 2012."

I know there are so many cars with interesting, unique and wild stories like this and I'd love to find them and tell the stories here!  If you know of any please drop me a note and put me in contact! shuttermeshort@me.com

The 510 "Bluebird" is my favorite Datsun, aside from the classic 280Z.

This Cortina made me smile. The Cortina ALSO has an awesome history (What car doesn't?!). The Ford Cortina was built by Ford of Britain from 1962 to 1982 and was the UK's best selling car of the 1970's. The name was inspired by the name of the Italian ski resort Cortina d'Ampezzo, site of the 1956 Winter Olympics. As a publicity stunt, several Cortinas were driven down the bobsled run at the resort which was called "Cortina Auto-Bobbing". 

Here's a video of the event too! --> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_XyqpD1_O4

Man oh man a GT40! Ford was having a really good day!

Do It In A Jag!

Jaguar and Landrover had some very awesome driver experiences set up.  They set up the motocross track for 4x4ing and had an autocross setup for the new F-Type. 

The new F-Type R is an incredible machine. I have to say that I think the AWD only decision on this was good.  550 horsepower needs it in order to be the car that Jag wants it to be.

A select lucky few got to go out on the track with Jaguars professional drivers for hot lap ride-a-longs

 Oh yeah! Drifting the pace car! This is what happens when you ask the driver if the driving line can get a little more "dynamic".  

I have to say that this was one of the better events I have ever been to. One of the best gatherings of authentic vintage cars I've ever seen (outside of Pebble Beach)!  It was truly touching to see these beautiful cars - built with such love and passion - being utilized as originally intended. I have a feeling we have a new yearly event to add to our list!