Howie Liebengood, Jr., a 15-year veteran of the U.S. Capitol Police, died Saturday in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 insurrectionist attack on the Capitol building. He was off duty Saturday. Officer Liebengood was a member of the 2018 RRDC membership class. He raced extensively prior to joining the USCP in 2005, winning the 2000 […]
OSCAR KOVOLESKI 1932-2020 On Dec 28, we lost one of the great characters in motor racing – Oscar Kovoleski. An RRDC member for 50 years, Oscar had been in an assisted living facility in Scranton, PA, for a couple of years. He was 88. “Oscar Koveleski was a treasure,” said RRDC President Bobby Rahal. “His […]
STRONG SHOWING FOR RRDC MEMBERS AT THE SCCA RUNOFFS Despite a truncated 2020 SCCA National racing program, a herd of Club Racers answered the call for the National Championship Runoffs at Road America, Oct. 5-11 – 577 in all. Andrew Aquilante led a Phoenix Racing assault on the podium scoring a hard fought victory from […]
“RACING GOES SAFER” WEBINAR SET FOR MONDAY, NOV. 30 The “Racing Goes Safer” motorsport safety foundation, EPARTRADE and Racer Magazine are teaming up to present a safety webinar during the Online Race Industry Week, November 30 – December 4. “A Crash Course in the History of IndyCar Racing Safety” is the title of the webinar […]
JIM PACE (1961-2020) remembered by his friend and business partner Byron DeFoor On July 25, 2020, I stood on the front straight at Road America in Wisconsin and witnessed the most terrifying crash that I had seen in many years. Jim Pace flipped over driving a historic Shadow Can-Am race car, and thousands of people […]
TEAM USA SCHOLARSHIP AT BRANDS HATCH FOR 49TH FORMULA FORD FESTIVAL BRANDS HATCH, DAY 1: Podium for Lee, Fourth and Fastest Race Lap for Aron WEST KINGSDOWN, England, Oct. 24 – Team USA Scholarship drivers Jackson Lee (below) and Bryce Aron were faced with some changeable conditions on the opening day of the 49th Formula […]
TEAM USA SCHOLARSHIP GETS FEET WET AT SILVERSTONE SILVERSTONE, ENGLAND, Oct. 10 – After two weeks of mandatory COVID-19 quarantine, Team USA Scholarship drivers Bryce Aron and Jackson Lee gained some valuable experience today in both wet and dry conditions during the final two rounds of the BRSCC Avon Tyres National Formula Ford 1600 Championship […]
THREE TEAM USA SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS FOR 30TH YEAR The Team USA Scholarship reaches an important milestone in 2020, celebrating 30 years since Jimmy Vasser was confirmed as the inaugural scholarship recipient in 1990. Despite the global pandemic, three young American racers nonetheless have been chosen to compete in England later this Fall – Bryce Aron, […]
TATIANA CALDERóN IS LATEST SiF ASK A PRO Tatiana Calderón, Test and Reserve driver for Alfa RoNEWmeo F1 team and driver for Richard Mille Racing Team, is the latest driving instructor for SAFEisFAST.com. Calderón was part of the first all-female LMP2 driver lineup to compete in Le Mans this year with Richard Mille Racing Team, […]
BRIAN TILL Oct. 11 – “Hard to believe it’s been a year. One year ago, I experienced my last radiation treatment at the Taussig Cancer Center at the Cleveland Clinic (I pray!). The folks there gave me a diagnosis, a plan, hope and ultimately my life back. And while I know that I will always […]
Sunday, August 23, was an historic day in motorsports – the 104th Indianapolis 500 was run without spectators. New IMS owner Roger Penske had to dig deep to pull this off with no gate. The television and sponsorship revenue were the only real income. But then, that’s Roger. Even though he’s all about the fan […]
SiF – ROSS BENTLEY’S SPEED SECRETS – PART 3 We conclude our very well-received Ross Bentley “Speed Secrets” series with some obvious tips that often elude us all. BEING COMFORTABLE WITH FEELING UNCOMFORTABLE If the car feels really comfortable to drive, it’s probably not fast DRIVE THE CAR, NOT THE TRACK Chasing that perfect line […]
KATHERINE LEGGE INJURED IN TESTING CRASH Katherine Legge was injured Wednesday in a high-speed testing crash in the Signes corner at Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet, France, breaking her lower left leg and damaging her right wrist. Legge was driving an LMP2 ORECA 07-Gibson which she shared with Richard Mille Racing co-drivers Tatiana Calderón and […]
Fellow Racers, The response to Part One of Ross Bentley’s Speed Secrets has been fantastic – check out the comments on our YouTube Channel. Now we present Part Two. In this video, Ross explains the advanced skills that separate the very best from the rest. He also covers visualization and learning to manage your change […]
ROSS BENTLEY REVEALS HIS SPEED SECRETS FOR SAFEisFAST – PART 1 What sort of secret tips do Driving Coaches really whisper into drivers’ ears to help them go faster? To find out we turned to Ross Bentley, one of the most sought-after Driving Coaches in North America. Ross has coached many of today’s top drivers […]
SHELBY COBRA DAYTONA COUPE RETROSPECTIVE With the launch of Rinsey Mills’ new book Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe–The autobiography of CSX2300, UK publisher Porter Press has released a filmed retrospective of the iconic car – America’s first International GT champion. The car’s justifiably proud designer Peter Brock says, “It’s still pretty cool looking after 55 years!” […]
GoFundMe FOR DOC BUNDY RECOVERING FROM OPEN HEART SURGERY Doc Bundy is recovering from open heart surgery from Covid-19 complications. Doc had stents installed a number of years ago, so he was/is in a tough situation. The May 15 surgery was successful, and he is home having been booted out of the ICU because of […]
SAFEisFAST – ENGINEER THE RACECAR We all know the feeling, your car’s handling like a piece of s***, and you have no idea why. That’s where the race engineer comes in. In the fifth installment of our Race Ready series we are focusing on how a driver and engineer can best work together to find […]
NEW FROM SAFEisFAST – GEORGE RUSSELL AND LATEST RACE READY INSTALLMENT Williams F1 Driver George Russell is Latest Ask a Pro. George Russell, driver for the Williams F1 team and 2018 FIA F2 champion, is the latest online driving instructor for SAFEisFAST.com. Russell’s debut F1 season in 2019 saw him out-qualify experienced teammate Robert Kubica at […]
SAFEisFAST: REFRESHER COURSES ON CHASSIS SET-UP Fellow racers, Basic chassis set-up is required knowledge in every form of racing. And you can’t fake it. In this third installment of our Race Ready series we are focusing on the technical side of racing with IndyCar engineer Jay O’Connell. This three-part series focuses on the basics of […]
“It is with great regret that the RRDC has once again lost an important member of the racing community with the passing of Dave Ammen. “A Board Director for the SCCA at critical times, a former RRDC president, and for many years a successful SCCA racer in his own right, Dave exemplified the term ‘gentleman […]
Sadly, we lost fellow member Bob Lazier this past week due to complications from Coronavirus. Bob’s energy on and off the track was dynamic, first as one of the key developers of Vail, Colo., and then on race tracks throughout North America. Successful in Formula B in the early ’70s, culminating with Rookie of the […]
Author Gordon Kirby on his latest book: “In these trying times it is my pleasure to announce the publication of my latest Racemaker Press book. ‘Chris Pook and the History of the Long Beach GP’ is a handsome 320-page book with more than 180 photos and illustrations. It retails for $80 plus shipping and handling […]
We at the Road Racing Drivers Club are saddened by the passing of one of the most dynamic and iconic race-car drivers that have ever competed on race tracks around the world, Sir Stirling Moss. He was an honorary member of the RRDC since the 1960s and a good friend. Stirling was legendary in the […]
While the world was still in the early stages of making decisions as to how to contain the coronavirus outbreak, and despite concerns about losing attendees to these concerns, the 2020 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance successfully took place on March 6-8 at the Amelia Island Ritz-Carlton hotel and its surrounds. Thanks to the forward thinking […]
The RRDC Evening with Rick Mears Presented by Firestone will be rescheduled, as will the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, both called due to the coronavirus outbreak. The decision was made in response to a directive from the City of Long Beach prohibiting all gatherings of more than 250 people in the city until […]
We recently learned of the passing of Don Sesslar on May 19, 2019, at age 91. As a young man, Don fell in love with cars through his father. Following WWII, he began stock car racing which led to his meeting entrepreneur Cyrus Fulton who asked Don to be his sports car driver. Over the […]
Bill Warner’s iconic Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance celebrates its 25th Anniversary this weekend on the Georgia barrier island. Casual elegance marks this storied event celebrating the automobile and those who have dedicated large portions of their lives and fortunes to the motoring experience. This year’s honoree is The Captain – Roger S. Penske – who […]
Why is it that some drivers always seem to get all the good luck – and others always get the bad? Is there really something called “Racing Luck” or do you make your own luck? To answer that question we’ve turned to an elite group of champion racers who have experienced both: IndyCar Team Owner Chip Ganassi, Team Penske […]
Ross Bentley, performance coach, author, and former racing driver, is the latest online driving instructor for SAFEisFAST.com. Bentley is the author of a series of books called ‘Speed Secrets’ which focuses on racing technique and strategy through coaching. A former driver in the CART IndyCar series in the 1990s, he became one of only seven Canadian drivers […]
Google “Rick Mears” and, by rights, you should be directed to multiple Wikipedia entries: Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner of course, but also racer and gentleman. For his singular fusion of scrupulously clean racing and modest grace made Rick not just a racer’s racer, but one of motorsports’ finest ambassadors; one who autographed countless hats and […]
This morning, January 30, John Andretti lost his lengthy battle with colon cancer. The son of Mario’s twin brother Aldo and first cousin to Michael and Jeff, John was 56. Andretti Autosport issued this statement: “It is with the heaviest of hearts we share that John Andretti has today lost his battle with cancer. John […]
Rob Dyson, retired American sports-car racing driver and owner of Dyson Racing, was named the 2019 recipient of the RRDC Bob Akin Award. He was presented the award at the annual Road Racing Drivers Club members’ dinner on January 22, prior to the running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, the season opener of the […]
Jack Roush – racer and team owner, former Ford engineer, college physics teacher, and current CEO of a number of engineering-related companies – was honored by the RRDC with the 2019 Phil Hill Award. The 2018 award recipient, RRDC President Bobby Rahal, made the presentation at the annual RRDC members’ dinner on January 22 prior […]
Broderick Bauguess, of Laurinburg, N.C., was named the 49th recipient of the RRDC Mark Donohue Award. This unique award is presented annually by the Road Racing Drivers Club for outstanding performance, competitiveness and sportsmanship during the amateur Sports Car Club of America National Championship Runoffs®. It is voted on by RRDC members attending the Runoffs […]
Tom Yeager, 83, of Marion, OH and Naples, FL passed away Dec. 28, 2019 at Avow Hospice in Naples. In 1965 Tom received the first customer Ford Mustang GT 350R and competed as an original team driver for Shelby American. And the first car he used he bought on a nj used cars and succeeded […]
According to a report on RACER.com, motor racing broadcaster Bob Varsha has been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of prostate cancer that will require intensive chemotherapy over the coming months. With an immediate need to step away from racing and focus on defeating cancer, the veteran of ESPN, NBC, SPEED, and Fox Sports […]
HORST KWECH – 1937-2019 Horst Kwech, an RRDC member since 1976, passed away Dec. 30 at age 82 according to the following edited notice in Vintage Motorsport. Shortly after his birth in Vienna, Austria, in ‘37 Kwech’s mother emigrated to Australia where he grew up. In the fifties, he began sports car racing with an […]
BILL SIMPSON – 1940-2019 Bill Simpson, renowned racing safety pioneer, passed away Monday, Dec. 16, in Indianapolis due to complications from a massive stroke on Friday. He was 79. Robin Miller eulogized the man on Racer.com: “He made safety part of the racing vernacular, but lived his life on the edge. He started in drag […]
SCCA HALL OF FAME TO INDUCT THREE RRDC MEMBERS Three RRDC alumni are among the inductees into the 2020 Class of the SCCA® Hall of Fame: Walt Hansgen and Dave and Sherrie Weitzenhof. The Hall of Fame Awards Banquet takes place Saturday, January 18 and serves as the capstone of the three-day SCCA […]
