ROCK ON!

[cdh]

from 10/08/2008 AutoWeek...



The first single-seater to thunder down the main straight at Lime Rock wasn't a Cooper T-53 or a Brabham BT-4. It was a Caterpillar D8 bulldozer.

The year was 1955, and the man at the controls was Jim Vaill, whose father, Frank, owned the place. The Vaills were potato farmers, but Jim had turned a chunk of the property into a gravel pit to earn extra cash. His buddy Jack Fisher would often drop by in his MG TC, which they thrashed around the perimeter of the pit. The resulting dirt path sparked the rumor of "a racetrack up in Lakeville." With encouragement from local SCCA drivers, Vaill got the town to okay the project, and soon he was atop his trusty D8, carving the track's basic layout. The rest, as they say, is history.

And history is what Labor Day weekend at LRP is all about. This year's event celebrated both the 50th anniversary of the track and the 25th anniversary of the Vintage Festival, with a special salute to historic IMSA GT cars. Sunday's traditional car show surpassed most historic competition concours, with iconic racing iron such as the 1935 Alfa Tipo C that had been driven by a guy named Nuvolari.

Having achieved semisacred status with drivers and fans alike, the festival underwent a major change four years ago, when vintage racing impresario Steve Earle took over as race organizer. And while some of the faithful argued that Earle's entry standards are too restrictive, everyone agreed that the caliber of the cars and the competition was excellent. Watching Joel Finn in his '72 Chevron B19 come from behind to overtake Californian Bruce Canepa's Porsche 935 in the final laps of the final race raised no complaints.

Earle's guest list is selective as well. IMSA founders John and Peg Bishop were there, along with Bruce Kessler and the Ferrari TR500 he drove in Lime Rock's first race. One of Kessler's competitors in that race-John Fitch-was also in attendance, as was the Cunningham-prepped D-Type he drove on opening day. Still fit and razor-sharp at 90, Fitch helped design the challenging 1.53-mile road course and was its first manager.

Also on hand was local hero Sam Posey, who, among his many accomplishments, was first to turn a sub-one-minute lap on the track that launched his career.

"It's hard to explain what makes Lime Rock so special," Posey observed. "It's got a warm, family-oriented feeling. It's the kind of place where a father introduces his son to racing."

As if to underscore Posey's point, up comes Jim Steerman and his son James. When James was five years old, Jim took him to LRP, where they admired Armand Giglio's 1959 Lancia Dagrada Junior. Giglio let the boy sit in the cockpit, where he pronounced, "Someday, I'm going to race a car like this!" Twenty-two years later, Giglio decided to sell the Lancia. He still had the Steermans' phone number. Aside from that change in ownership, the car is virtually unchanged.

History, indeed.

[WatertownNewbie]

Originally Posted by cdh

Twenty-two years later, Giglio decided to sell the Lancia. He still had the Steermans' phone number.

Two questions: (1) Who hangs onto someone's phone number for twenty-five years and (2) Who still has the same phone number after twenty-five years? These seem to me to be very unusual occurrences.

[dalyduo]

In all likelihood the writer took some license as it makes a much better story to tell it that way.

Having said that... My family had the same phone number for over 25 years and up in the more rural area's around LRP It's probably not unusual for a family to have the same number for 4 or more decades, especially if there is a family business.

In terms of having the number... There are plenty of older generation folk whose dog-eared rolodex's never need batteries or upgrades and never lose data... even after 55 years.

Could be wrong but I'd venture a guess that the two parties maintained some sort of relationship over the years and the sale was a no brainer pass along.

Either way a great story.

Originally Posted by WatertownNewbie

Two questions: (1) Who hangs onto someone's phone number for twenty-five years and (2) Who still has the same phone number after twenty-five years? These seem to me to be very unusual occurrences.

[Slowhands]

Originally Posted by WatertownNewbie

Two questions: (1) Who hangs onto someone's phone number for twenty-five years and (2) Who still has the same phone number after twenty-five years? These seem to me to be very unusual occurrences.

As Pat says, the old school way of doing things. My parents still have the same house and phone they had in 1974. And I still have a "dog-eared" address/phone no. index card collection I've had since college. Small-town mindset-- not dead yet! And hopefully, not for a while.

Too bad the Mid-O weekend coincides with the Festival. Would like to see it.

[wbs]

My mom has had the same number for over 40 years, the first phone number I ever knew.

[Rosso]

Originally Posted by WatertownNewbie

Two questions: (1) Who hangs onto someone's phone number for twenty-five years and (2) Who still has the same phone number after twenty-five years? These seem to me to be very unusual occurrences.

My wife's 95 year old Aunt Gerry still has a rotary dial phone and, in theory at least, a party line and Mom and Dad have had the same phone number since '64 or '65.

But I feel for your sceptiscism. I work in a rural area where about 2 years ago I once loudly expressed disbelief to a group of good ol' boys that neither my parents, or my wife's parents, had NEVER, ever, in their entire lives, used an ATM. As one good ol' boy slowly looked to the next good ol' boy they one by one admitted that NONE of them had ever used one either. The next day when I walked into my office I found a Mason jar containing $1 on my desk labeled "Meade County ATM". I put 5 bucks in it and put it out in the maintenance shop.

[Tireman]

As long as we're trying for phone number longevity records ,
my Dad's farm stand in Westchester (now owned by one of our loyal
employees) has had the same number since at least 1951.

Viz