Bullitt

The world of dedicated cops, high-speed car chases and adrenalin-pumping action, all started in the year 1968, with the release of the movie Bullitt. It was the movie that changed the way all action movies were going to be filmed from then on. It was also the first to depict one of the all-time best car chases ever caught on celluloid. When you see cast names such as Steve McQueen, Robert Duvall, Vic Tayback, Brandy Carroll, Jacqueline Bisset and Carl Reindel, you know immediately that the movie has to be spectacular.

For those who are unfamiliar with the movie the story follows the work of a police officer named Frank Bullitt. Bullitt and his squad are requested to protect an important witness for a weekend. During the weekend the witness and one of Bullitt’s men are seriously wounded during an assassination attempt, resulting in the witness eventually dying from his injuries. But Bullitt believes that there is more to the incident than meets the eye and goes on a quest for the truth. With his career and the reputation of the police department on the line, Bullitt aggressively starts to investigate the Mafia and their connection to the witness. Of course Bullitt eventually gets his man, but not without a few surprises and twists along the way. Hopefully this short insight into the movie will entice you to watch this memorable movie and find out exactly how it ends.

It isn’t just the convincing story line and gripping action scenes which skyrocketed Bullitt to first place as a ‘legendary action movie’, it is also the unforgettable car chase scene that rocked the world. In the famous car chase scene the team made use of a 1968 Green Ford Mustang GT 390 Fast back for McQueens’ character, Bullitt, and a 1968 Black Dodge Charger RT 440 Magnum. The two muscle cars square off on the streets of San Francisco with screaming tires, growling engines and speeds that put audiences on the edge of their seats. What makes this car chase memorable is the fact that in 1968 special effects were limited and computer generated images were not even thought of yet. What you see on the screen is the real deal. Stunt drivers were called in to drive the most dangerous parts of the sequence. The chase scene ends with an explosion as the criminal’s loose control of their dodge and tumble into a gas station. It is a wild car chase that has never been duplicated and no-one has been able to recapture the fire and excitement of the Bullitt car chase.

The Dodge was left pretty much standard with only its suspension being adjusted to handle the stunts. The engine of the Mustang was not even taken apart once. A few minor parts were replaced due to wear and tear, but it was the driving and not the cars that really caught the public’s eye. A few years after the award-winning movie was released, Ford manufactured a little something of their own to honor the movie “that did it first”: the 2001 Ford Mustang GT “Bullitt Mustang” Limited Edition.

Indianapolis 500

The year 1911 marks the beginning of the Indianapolis 500 making it the oldest and richest motoring event to ever have taken place. This American open-wheel event occurs every year on the weekend of Memorial Day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Over the years this entertaining event has been attended to by hundreds of thousands of spectators from all over the country giving it its apt nickname, “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing”. On top of that thousands more listen to the live event and watch it every year on Radio and Television broadcast ever since 1949. The year May 2007 marks the events 91st year since the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race was first created.

The actual Indianapolis Motor Speedway was first built in 1909 where it hosted many small motorway events on tracks made from tar and gravel. It was sometime later when the promoters decided that instead of having a lot of small events it would be better to focus on one large event. The next change to make was the actual racing surface, which had been related to a number of driver’s accidents and deaths. The reason for this was that the tar and gravel surface was too uneven to be safe at such high speeds. The new 500 mile track was built using bricks, over three million of them to produce the perfect track.

As mentioned above the first Indy 500 took place in 1911 on Memorial Day with over 80,200 spectators there to view this marked occasion. That day it was Ray Harroun who won the first event in his Marmon “Wasp” that he had put together. With the first race being an American win it now challenged European carmakers to produce cars of a similar nature that could compete in the Indy 500. Between 1913 and 1919 companies like French Peugeot and Italy’s Fiat came up to meet the challenge.

This well loved racing event continues to be a popular form of sport attended by a large following every year. Having existed for so long the Indianapolis 500 has developed a number of traditions, which the supporters love to keep up with.

Car Racing Lingo

Lingo is a part of auto racing pleasure. You must be able to understand the jargon of car racing, and use it fluently and correctly as well. Here are brief meanings of 10 top terms which are used commonly but exclusively in auto racing and motor sports circles:

• Banking: the car racing meaning is different from finance. A bank is the incline of a race track relative to the wall at the edge. It is especially difficult if it exceeds 31 degrees. Banks where cars turn are tougher than an incline on a straight section.

• Down force: a tricky balance to be stuck by crews between a driver’s ability to take corners at high speed, and the ability to accelerate on straight stretches. This relates to the pressure a race car exerts on the track, principally through its tires.

• Drafting: again, a very different meaning exists in car racing! It refers to a driver keeping a race car very close behind another to take advantage of the vacuum created by the movement of the first car. Drafting helps the driver behind to gain speed at the cost of the driver in front.

• Firewall: computer nerds love this one! Race cars have a thick metal curtain isolating the driver from the engine area.

• Groove: this depends on a driver’s experience of and practice on a particular race track. The driver will choose a particular line which gives the best lap time. Sometimes, this will mean staying close to the wall, while other track designs could mean that a driver will prefer to stay near the center of the apron, or as far away from the wall as possible. This is why a champion on one race track may not do as well when racing at a new site for the first time.

• Happy hour: this could be interpreted as a reminder to serious car racing folk to stay near the track rather than a bar between events. The term refers to practice laps.

• Interval: you may have guessed this one! It is the exact time difference between two cars for a particular reference point on a track during a lap. Your friends may guess the interval in terms of car lengths instead of in terms of seconds.

• Marbles: you will hear drivers speak of nothing else with such hatred! The term refers to bits of tires and other grit on a turn left by other cars and blown around, causing following cars to spin out of control.

• Pole position: the pecking order which determines who gets an advantageous position at the start of a race. It is fixed by performance in qualifying rounds.

• Push: again, this is something a driver dreads. It refers to the front tires being out of control. This forces a driver to cut speed. You may hear this term from losing drivers often!

Auto racing is limitless! Perhaps you have some favorite terms which we have left out, or would like us to explain something you just heard for the first time. Write to us!

Marshall Teague – An Early Star in NASCAR

In his relatively short life-time, Marshall Teague earned a place in the history of auto racing that will not be forgotten. Marshall Teague was one of the pioneers in NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) and also one of its first stars.

Driving his “Fabulous Hudson Hornet“, Teague captured two pole positions and claimed seven victories in just twenty-three career starts, beginning in 1949. In 1951 and 1952 on the Daytona Beach course, Marshall Teague claimed first place, earning himself the nickname of “King of the Beach”. He was also the winner of the first NASCAR race that was held at Carrell Speedway in California in 1951.

Following an altercation with Bill France Snr, Teague left the NASCAR series in 1953 to race in the USAC (United States Auto Club) and AAA series. Fortunately, they later settled the dispute.

Marshall Teague established a relationship with the Hudson Motor Car Company, and was part of the Hudson Motors team during the 1951 and 1952 racing seasons. It was during this time that he nicknamed his car as the “Fabulous Hudson Hornet”. Teague played a significant role in assisting Hudson to tune the Hudson Hornet to its full stock car potential. With the Hudson Hornet’s light weight and its low centre of gravity, no other car of the time could match it and Teague and other Hudson drivers dominated stock car racing from 1951 to 1954. Marshall Teague, with the assistance of his friend and mechanic, Smokey Yunick, won the majority of the stock car events he participated in. Teague was awarded the AAA Stock Car Driver of the Year in 1951 and AAA Stock Car Champion in 1954.

Tragically, Marshall Teague lost his life when his car crashed while he was attempting a closed course speed record at the new Daytona International Speedway on 11 February 1959 – he was only 36 years old. He was posthumously honoured by the National Motor Sports Press Association’s Hall of Fame at Darlington Raceway in 1968, the National Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 1988, TRS/NASCAR Mechanics Hall of Fame in 1989 and The American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame in 1991. Clearly, Marshall Teague was one of the best!

Folk Race – An Entertaining Motor Sport for All Types

Not many people in the world will have heard of the term ‘Folk race‘ before. This is because this type of auto racing mainly takes place in European countries such as Sweden, Finland and Norway. The sport receives little coverage but is very popular due to the low expenses and little driving skill that is needed to participate in it.

Folk race racing originally came from Finland, though the idea behind the sport is very similar to ‘banger racing’ which is commonly found in Britain, some parts of Europe and in a few places in the US. The event takes the form of a race, which is run on a gravel or tarmac track that measures approximately 800 meters in length. These tracks are designed in such a way that speeds in excess of 80 km/h should not be possible. Thus, the race is not so much about speed and skill and instead the focus is on trying to ‘bump’ your opponents off the track as you try to make your way up the ranks. Because of the damaging nature of the sport, only old, dented cars are usually used. Any type or model of car can be used as long as it is fitted with the regulation safety equipment. This makes getting started relatively easy and inexpensive and is one of the reasons the sport is so popular.

The average Folk race competition is divided into different classes which are usually determined by factors such as age and gender. Age limits are quite low and anyone over the age of five may race. The race itself is usually separated into different heats with six cars in each heat. The drivers are awarded a number of points according to where they place in each heat and at the end of the race these points are tallied up to determine who the top six drivers are. These top six then go on to race in the ‘A final’ and the winner of the A final is the overall winner of the event.

Folk race racing is somewhat different from other auto racing events in that limits are put on how expensive the cars are, instead of how cheap they are. All cars must cost no more than the set standard and must meet the minimum safety regulations. However, this does not mean that all cars are equal and often the more mechanically minded car owners will have better cars as they can fine-tune them themselves. It means that each race is exciting and unique. If you ever have the chance to enjoy a Folk race while in Europe you should definitely do so, as this is a wildly entertaining form of motor sport.

Ice Racing – An Action Packed Motor Sport

The motor sport of ice racing has been around for many years and actually has a large following of fans. It is also a sport that can be enjoyed both indoors and outdoors and in various categories. Ice racing is not limited to only automobiles and motorcycles, but there are quad races, All-Terrain vehicle racing and snowmobile racing. It is still racing, but is much cheaper than the normal form of auto racing and motorcycle racing that we are accustomed to. It is just as much fun and exciting.

Ice racing takes place on different types of tracks. Dirt tracks, which are used for racing, have the snow plowed off to create an ice track and if there has been no snowfall, water is sprayed on the track and left for the below freezing temperatures to freeze the water. Frozen lakes are sometimes used and if there are no areas available for a natural track, artificial tracks are created. Indoor tracks are generally used for motorcycle racing, as they do not need as much space as motor vehicles.

Races are usually divided into non-studded races and studded races. Non-studded races are also referred to as Full-Rubber racing or Rubber-to-Ice Racing. These terms reflect on the tires that are being used. Studded tires cannot be bought, which means that an approved stud must be attached to the tires by hand. Studded tires provide much more traction than full rubber on the ice track and prevent excessive sliding. Motorcycles that make use of studded tires are not permitted to broadside around corners as the damage made by the studs it too great. Riders, therefore, have to lean their motorcycles into the corners, with the handlebars almost touching the ice. Protective mudguards that extend to a few centimeters above the surface of the track are also required when racing with studded tires.

Motor vehicles and motorcycles are raced according to engine size and can reach very high speeds. Protective barriers are placed around the tracks to prevent serious injury if an accident does occur. It is still a dangerous sport and motorcycles that race in the studded races can reach speeds of between 100 to 130 kilometers an hour. Rules regarding Quad racing have changed over the years, as only quads with a 250cc engine displacement (in both the two stroke and four stroke engines), were permitted to race. Today, two strokes have remained at 250cc, but the four strokes have been amended to 360cc engine displacement. An ‘Open’ category within Quad racing has led to much excitement and spectacular racing. In the ‘Open’ races, spectators can look forward to seeing 1100cc Harley Davidson V-Twins, 650cc four cylinders and many other different engine powered quads go head to head.

The sport of ice racing has grown into an entertaining and adrenalin pumping sport that is enjoyed by both the drivers and racing enthusiasts. It has all the action and heart stopping moments that are seen in conventional racing, it is just a little colder.