Month: September 2012

SCCA – From Racing Photographer to Racing Driver

Doug Patterson

Ok, maybe I’m reaching with the moniker “racing driver”, but I did compete in my first motorsports event. After photographing a few of the Kansas City Region SCCA Solo Events, and seeing how much fun everyone was having, I decided to finally give it a go myself. I was fortunate enough to get in at the last minute to the Solo School the club held the Saturday before the event and received some much needed instruction, correction, and experience driving an autocross course. Thirty students signed up and were divided…

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ALMS and USF2000 Photos from the Virginia International Raceway

Doug Patterson

Tom Turk knocked it out of the park again! Tom was at the Virginia International Raceway (VIR) for the season finale of the USF2000 National Championship Presented by Cooper Tires Powered by Mazda, and the penultimate round of the American Le Mans Series. Joining the USF2000 and ALMS were the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge by Yokohama and the SCCA Pro Racing Playboy MX-5 Cup. Here are Tom’s photo galleries from the weekend. Remember, if you’re anywhere near the Baltimore/DC area and need photography services for your wedding, portraits, or event,…

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Rally – Risk of Forest Fire Shut Fans Out of Olympus Rally

Doug Patterson

Rally America released an announcement yesterday stating that due to the drought much of the country has experienced this summer, spectator access to the Olympus Rally, final round in the Rally America National Championship, will be limited to the Super Special. No spectators will be permitted on the stages, and many of the afternoon stages have been cancelled or rescheduled. This is a very late change to the schedule, and certainly not one welcomed by fans and I can’t imagine that event and series officials are pleased about it either.…

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IndyCar – STEM Education Days

Doug Patterson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadLast week, we had a conversation with INDYCAR’s Vice President of Marketing, Kasey Coler, to discuss their new STEM Education Days program. The series has been piloting the program in select markets this season, taking engineers from various teams and partners as well as drivers like JR Hildebrand to local high schools to discuss the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics that goes into making an IZOD IndyCar Series machine race at 220+ mph. So far, the series has been to Iowa, Baltimore, and Fontana…

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Indycar-Hunter-Reay Reaps Racing Rewards

John Olsakovsky

Under the sparkling lights of the Auto Club Speedway grandstand towers, Ryan Hunter-Reay broke through as one of racing’s great underdog stories to win the 2012 IZOD Indycar Series Championship over Will Power, becoming the fourth driver to bring home the title for Andretti Autosport. Hunter-Reay joins Tony Kanaan, Dario Franchitti and Dan Wheldon as drivers who have won the series championship for the fabled racing family, and the first for the team under the IZOD Indycar Series banner. Just a few short years ago, Ryan Hunter-Reay was testing a…

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USF2000 – Pigot Forces Championship Battle to the Last Race

Doug Patterson

The 2012 USF2000 National Championship Presented by Cooper Tires Powered by Mazda won’t decide it’s champion until the final race of the season set to take place tomorrow at 9:15am EDT. All season long, the two Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing drivers, #83 Matthew Brabham and #2 Spencer Pigot, have had a back-and-forth battle for the championship lead. After suffering a DNF in the second race in Baltimore, Brabham had a significant advantage over Pigot, leading by 41 points, 307 to 266. When the USF2000 drivers took to the…

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Rally – Olympus Rally Sees Record 78-Team Entry List

Doug Patterson

The last round of the Rally America National Championship is almost here! Next weekend, 78 teams will take to the back roads in the mountains around Olympus, WA. That’s a record turnout for the Rally America Series! All season long, the Rally America events have been recording record entries and seeing record crowds come to enjoy rally racing. It all points to the rising popularity of rally racing and seeing competition between real cars. IndyCar racing is exciting, but the cars are nothing like anything you’d see in the showroom,…

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Episode 155 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast

Shaun

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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Shaun, Mike, and Doug as they rehash the weekend that was Monza for the Formula 1 traveling circus. We also preview Rally GB and talk a little bit more about the ALMS/Grand-Am merger (buyout). This is it! Championship week for the IZOD IndyCar Series and also the Mazda Road to Indy for those title that have yet to be decided. Sit back and enjoy the show and as always, thanks for the download!

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