VARA had its annual Driver's School and Test & Tune at Buttonwillow Raceway this weekend. Attendance was particularly good considering the weather and the economy. We had almost 100 attendees, and dozens of club members attended as volunteers to help out. I spent the weekend as a "Wall Monkey" (aka driving instructor) and "Cone Boy" (aka track layout technician). The … [Read more...] about VARA-U 2010
GARAGE REALITY
For the past six months I have been in car guy's heaven. I have been able to use my good friend Paul Moore's fabrication shop to work on my Datsun Wagon race car project. I have had access to his lift, his welders, his tools, but most importantly, access to his talent and his tutelage. For this I am forever thankful. His shop is getting full with customer cars, so it was … [Read more...] about GARAGE REALITY
DRIVER’S DOOR BARS
I've had the last few days off and have completed a couple more projects. We finally finished off the rollcage with the driver's side door bars and the fuel cell cradle. The door bars were done "NASCAR" style, meaning they are bent into the door cavity. This increases driver comfort by creating more elbow room, and improves safety by enlarging the crush-zone envelope. We were … [Read more...] about DRIVER’S DOOR BARS
IT’S A TEAM SPORT
I could not even get close to building my own race car without a lot of help from my friends. My buddies Paul Moore and John Teaby are shown here working on my CV joint conversion project. … [Read more...] about IT’S A TEAM SPORT
HELMET REVIEW
I needed a new SA2005 certified helmet for the 2010 season, and wanted to stay on my budget. A buddy and I bought these GForce Pro Eliminators, and are very pleased with them, especially for the money. It's easy to spend $500 on a helmet, so it was nice to get a comfortable helmet with a lot of top features for $250. I got mine through Apex Performance, and they even threw in … [Read more...] about HELMET REVIEW
WAGON REAR BRAKES
I finished installing the rear disc brakes on the wagon today. I'm using a small, two piston Wilwood caliper, 200SX rear rotors, and a set of T6 aluminium caliper brackets that I made. It all fits inside my 14x7 Panasports vertically, but needs a 1/4" spacer to keep the caliper from rubbing horizontally. I could shave down the corner of the caliper to make it fit if I decide … [Read more...] about WAGON REAR BRAKES