Car Camera Story: Vacation Ramblings and Car Club Activity

I am now back in Florida after two trips to New York in as many months to finish work and begin promoting my new book "Echoes From The Glen", Reflections of Race Fans After Forty Years. I met some incredible motoring enthusiasts in my travels. I also visited Watkins Glen twice, stopping by various places including the Seneca Lodge, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Franklin Street Gallery. The highlight though was stopping by the International Motor Racing Research Center to chat with track historian, Bill Green who is considered the guru of motor racing history. I was totally impressed by his encyclopedic knowledge of a broad variety of topics on racing going back decades.

Other highlights of the trip included having coffee with SVRA racer Steve Rauh who tracks a couple of Alfa Romeo GTV's, enjoying lunch and reminiscing with artist William Gillespie, having a few cold ones with seminal race fan Jeff Hume who has been an SCCA member since 1959 and having breakfast with 'Bud Man', Jeff Washburn who contributed to my book. The final highlight that was a real pleasure was having lunch and some PBR's with four of the Pabst Blue Ribbon Gang members in Auburn, NY. The gang's activities from days gone by are included in the book. I was a gang member for a day!

The Pabst Blue Ribbon Gang- Lunch in Auburn, NY

All of the above added to the atmosphere of nostalgia that flows forth when I unveiled to these folks the book 'Echoes From The Glen'.

But alas, it is winter and looking out the family room window in our Mendon, NY home only produced a yearning for spring as I stared out at ice sickles and snow on our back deck. Spring was still over two months away. But to ease the wait if you are in a similar climate, here's a must watch video that will occupy your time and take you into the world of racing as it was in the '50's. It will also give you an appreciation for the feat Cameron Argetsinger achieved by bringing sports car racing to the United States through a little town called Watkins Glen when he created the Watkins Glen Grand Prix in 1948. And that paved the way for him to eventually bring Formula 1 racing there in 1961!

Click below for a wonderful video:

The Story of Sir Stirling Moss

Here's a few more pics from my journey, including pictures from lunch when arriving back home in Florida with another gang, the Tampa Bay Café Racers. It sure was a nice welcome home to have lunch with the Café Racers!