La Carrera - 10/31 report

[DBesic@domain.elided]

I spoke to Mike ('60 Sprint crew chief) today and he gives this report:

There has been huge attrition among the Carrera participants.  Lots of broken 
cars along the side of the road.  A mid-50's Detroit barge left the roadway 
in the mountains and tumbled 90 feet down the slope before coming to rest 
against a tree.  It was utterly demolished.  The other '60 Giulietta Sprint 
was plagued with charging problems early in the race which resulted in a huge 
time differential.  The 69 GTV slid off the road and hit a boulder in the 
left front which caused body damage and a bent frame.  Their intrepid crew 
found a bodyshop to pound out the big dents and straighten the frame and they 
were back in the hunt.

Martin and Patrick have been sharing driving duties in the Besic Motorsports 
'60 Sprint.  The car has performed flawlessly.  So far the starter and 
alternator have been replaced (as a preventative measure) but they are still 
running on their original set of tires.  As of today's standing, Martin and 
Patrick are in First Place in their Class (Sport Menor) with a six minute 
lead over two race-prepared Porsche 356's which have been nipping at their 
heals all week. 

Mike says the race drivers are treated like royalty whenever they arrive in 
town.  The whole town shows up and throws a big party.  The drivers are 
utterly mobbed by the townsfolk and they end up signing autographs for hours. 
 (No wonder Patrick hasn't sent me any e-mails - gets in the way of his 
adoring fans?) 

Tonight they are in Zacatecas and tomorrow they run the last leg of the race. 
 First they will head into the mountains with the crew leaving 1 hour before 
the racers & meet them at the top.  After they come out of the mountains, 
they will get on the longest and fastest stretch of road where they will hit 
top speed.  The other cars in their class have more horsepower and the boys 
will really have to pedal fast to preserve their lead at the finish line.  
Very exciting stuff.........

Darren Besic

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