Well, if you said any of them, or maybe all of them you would only be partially correct. Many club or vintage racers are not short of cash. (the author excepted of course) While some pros don’t have anything special in the nature of the last two items.

I submit the real difference is in the testing and setup of the cars. While I dont want to stereotype Club Racers:

Most club racers get a basic setup, either from a friend or just something that seems like it should work. And, because of the limited track time on a club racing weekend they dont change it too much. So the car probably doesnt get a lot better. Yes, you may get some new tires or engine but things pretty much stay the same.

The pro however is always working. They, like the club racer develop a baseline. This is usually in the form of notes from the previous races at that track or basic information from the engineer who designed the car. BUT, each time the car goes onto the track they are trying something new. Perhaps its a different front sway bar, or maybe springs, shock settings etc. Even the mesh of the screen on the grill effects downforce. And all of the results go into building the data base. So the car is constantly evolving and becoming better (hopefully). No wasted time at the track and there is a purpose to every trip onto the track.

That I submit is the difference between the average Club Racer and the Pro.

So lets take a look at these cars, again. Its interesting that many of these cars have been around a pretty good while. And that in one way or another they all go back to a common theme. The tube chassis built by Pratt and Miller back in the day. That was a quantum leap from the unibodies and stock car chassis that had gone before. In one fell swoop those were obsolete.

Before you go any further let me say that the following is MY OPINION, based on conversations with professionals. And hard to quantify given the constant changing of tires and car weights, engines, etc.

Even today I think most people would say that the Pratt cars are the Cadillac of all the modern TransAM cars. Now I know that some people will say, “NO!” that Rocketsports cars were the dominant cars. But I disagree. Rocketsports became the organization that P&M had been, and still are, but they weren’t better.

But the P&M car was one that was for the expert, not the average driver. And this led to the Riley and Scott, which was more comfortable for more drivers, and in the right hands just as fast.

And of course dont forget the many cars that Pancho Weaver built that were successful as well. These even more than the R&S were for the bulk of the competitors.

And I don’t mean to overlook the Roush cars, which had more success than any of them. But they had the benefit of more testing, more data collection than any team before or since. And, of course, absolutely first class fabrication and maintenance. They are deservingly collectors items today.

These were just the most widely known of the chassis, there were and are others. Peerless,Riggins, and  some teams built their own, particularly backup cars, and then the chassis Tony Ave is building has to be considered.

I invite any opinions or discussion you have about the subject.

Next time we can talk about the hardware. Transmissions and engines.

John Baucom's Mustang at 3Rivers. Note the "Roadraceparts" decal on the door

(2) A continuation of the traditional race cars, as we know them today. These will continue for the foreseeable future as we baby boomers move through this cycle of our lives.

In upcoming blogs we will have some comments on the current generation of cars, their technical specs, and a report on the TA race at VIR.

Anyway we had to farm out the work on the GT1 chassis we had lying around. Sent it to a friend to put the body on it, and get all the brackets welded on it. Seems like at my age theres just not enough light for me to be able to see.

I know that he wont be done in time to race it this year, but maybe next year we can get back out on the track again. Perhaps even find a young whippersnapper who wants to give real racing a try.

Now to finish the rest of todays tasks.

As far as Roadraceparts.com goes this looks to be an exciting year. We intend to be more diligent with the blog, as well as the Facebook page and Twitter. The web designer has even promised (well almost) that the revamped website will be ready before the Christmas holiday.

We will be incorporating into these formats a series of technical articles aimed specifically at the road racer. This will be from information provided by a professional car builder and crew chief.

The big news will be the launching of a new program involving a presence at the track. The announcement merely awaits final approval by the sanctioning bodies represenatives. So stay tuned.

My first GT1 car

But these are the real racers, not the professional teams with the slick transporters and the PR types to make sure that the hero of the moment doesnt put his/her foot in her mouth. Rather these guys work on the car in the garage after work every night, spending money that they hope the wife doesnt find out about, tow to the track, race in front of just a few people, drive home, unload and next week do it all over again.

While some say they are a little bit nuts, I will bet the farm that they are having much more fun, despite the sacrifices, than the guys on TV by a wide margin.

This week I’d like to congratulate a friend of mine Mark Wilson who races a GT2 Ford Capri i the SCCA. Mark won, for the first time , his class at the SCCA Regional in NJ last weekend. I’m proud of him for the effort he has put in with that car.

Now for a little shameless self promotion. Mark’s car was my first race car, an ITA Capri V6. I can still remember buying it for $60 from an attorney in Lawrenceville, Va who told me “it stopped running at a stop light, dont know whats wrong with it.” Turned out it had 3 broken connecting rods. But the times we had with that car.

To this day the most fun racing I have ever had. I envy any of you who can have experiences like that ,because more than anyone else you are the real racers.

He assured me that the TransAm was alive and well. In fact that they were just in the second year of a five year plan.

Next year they expect to have a title sponsor for the series as well as a TV package with a major network. While this wont be a live broadcast, it may be the ingrediant that will put the series back on the map.

If I can read anything into the talk that I am hearing,  it does seem like the series is making a comeback. While dreadfully slow at times it is coming back.  More cars being built or changing hands to people that hopefully will race them a bit more.

After our conversation with Randy, we fully intend to have some kind of presence in TA next year. Just seems like the thing to do, and I hope others will as well.