RepartoCorse.com is the Essence of Cycling Italian Style
Reparto Corse means great products for cycling enthusiasts. It also means racing department and racing is what I love to do in the RepartoCorse.com sponsored BMW 325 in the SpecE30 class with my buddies. When not on my bike, filling orders for RepartoCorse.com or fitting a customer for their bike in the Fitting Studio I can be found behind the wheel of the racing car. The BMW was a new car for me in 2012. The builder named it Vader for its all black body work.
After picking up the car in March with a great road trip from New York to Georgia with my son the first outing was the fast Watkins Glen track in the Finger Lakes on New York. Watkins Glen was the site of the first road racing in the US after World War II. They raced on the streets around the hills and through the town of Watkins Glen. Within a few years the danger of racing throughout the village met the enthusiasm of the racing community and a permanent track was built outside of town. Watkins Glen hosted America's Formula 1 race through the 1960's and 70's. Some of the best racers to ever turn a wheel raced at the Glen - names like Fittipaldi, Moss, Stewart, Andretti, Clark and many more ran then and today the Glen hosts the NAscar Sprint Cup stars. Racing at the Glen is like playing baseball at Yankee Stadium or playing a round at Pebble Beach.
The SpecE30 class was created within the National Auto Sport Association (NASA) a little over ten years ago in the Southeast Region. Depending on the region fields can be as small as a handful of cars to over 30. The national championship race has featured an average of 25 SpecE30's in each of the last 4 years. In the SpecE30 class all the cars are the same model - the e30 is the chassis model from BMW. All the cars must run to the same state of tuning. Modifications are kept to those that make the car safe and durable. We use full roll cages, FIA approved racing seats, harnesses, fire suits, helmets with hen and neck restraints and carry fire extinguishers on board. We all run the same tires, same suspension tuning, and at a minimum weight. Interiors are stripped down to the shell and engines are basically stock. With cars prepared to an equal standard the racing is always close. It isn't about top speed although on the banking of Pocono Raceway drafting at 130 mph is possible and just as exciting as being in a peloton moving at 30 or more in a bike race. Driving skill counts as much as car preparation and many time it comes down to who has their tires at the optimum amount of wear between being broken in and worn down.
The season in the Northeast Region includes stops at the Glen, New Jersey Motorsports Park, Pocono Raceway, and trips to another of America's most historic tracks, Lime Rock Park in Connecticut.
It is much more fun being on the inside of the track than in the stands. I always meet great folks and some of them are even cyclists who have come to RepartoCorse.com for their cycling equipment.
The highlights of the 2012 racing season came in the form of scoring a pair of pole positions in races at Pocono and New Jersey, taking a win in Pocono and finishing on the podium enough other times to take second place int he points battle in the Northeast region. At the NASA NAtional Championship I finished 16th in a field of 25. Not the result I was hoping for, but the locals were a bit too fast and I was chasing an overheating problem for a few days which cost valuable practice time. My reward, aside from the nice trophies themselves, is the knowledge that the hard work and practice that my racing results represent, was paid off with recognition from my clubs and competitors. Since 2008 I've added some variety to my track time instructing for NASA. Now I can share my experience and at the same time learn more about myself as a driver which helps my balance on and off the track. I hope to build on what I learned in 2012 to have an even better 2013. If you ever want to come on out just let me know!
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