EMCO Gear Classic at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
On Saturday, June 21, I had traveled 150 miles one way to the EMCO Gear Classic at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. This marks the 6th time that the Grand-Am’s Rolex Sports Car Series’ Daytona Prototypes and GT racers met head to head. Also featured was the Triple Crown Tuner Challenge which featured amazing Tuner cars from around the Midwest.
The first thing that struck me as I drove inside the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course was the sheer size. The map I printed off the website certainly didn’t convey size very well. I didn’t realize that they offered golf cart rentals there for $100/day. Knowing this now, I would recommend getting one to get around the course if you really want to see everything and not pay the next day with aches and pains.
The Ford Mustang Challenge was the first event on hand as they raced for the Miller Cup. The Miller Cup featured all new model Mustangs modified from factory conditions producing around 325hp+. There were quite a few collisions during the race which made me cringe since these are extremely beautiful cars. The time trials ended early with a bad wreck. To see more Ford Mustangs, visit the Ford Mustang Challenge on my Flickr page.
Next up was the Triple Crown Tuner Challenge which featured beautiful stock looking cars with super turned engines and suspension. The tuner series featured many Mazda RX-8s, BMWs, Acuras, Subaru, Chevy Cobalts, Mini Coopers and Honda Civic Sis. I was shocked that Mitsubishi didn’t have a showing at all during the tuner series nor any other event. I was pretty impresses with the handeling of these cars. Despite their stock appearance, they are anything but what you can buy straight off the showroom floor.
The featured race was the Grand-Am series race featuring the Daytona Prototypes and GT cars. The first thing you notice is how loud the Daytona Prototypes are. While taking pictures, I was probably no more than 70′ away from the track. This made for getting good photos, but at the same time a little hearing loss was incurred. A word of advice to those not familiar with racing, bring a cheap set of ear plugs. The main Daytona Prototypes racers included Pontiac, Ford, Lexus, and Porsche. The main GT racers included Mazda, Porsche and Pontiac.
For those that have never been to a race like this, I highly recommend going. This was my first race and was a little concerned that I wasted about 3hrs driving one way. I can say for sure that this wasn’t the case. Seeing these cars race first hand does more than watching it on TV. Luckily the weather held off and I was able to get some great photos of the events.
Tags: BMW, Chevy, Daytona Prototypes, Ford, Ford Mustang, Grand-Am, Lexus, Mazda, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Pontiac, Porsche, Racing, Triple Crown Tuner Challenge
