Fellow Healeyists and listers:
A rare coincidence of events this summer will offer owners and
racers of"big" Austin-Healeys (100 and 3000 series) from all over the
U.S, and Canada a great opportunity to meet and compete on the weekend
preceding Conclave 2000 at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. (Sprites
are welcome, too, but there always seem to be scores of those anyway.)
On behalf of the half-dozen or so100-Six and 3000 owners who race
there every year, I'd like to invite every Healey enthusiast to one of
America's permier vintage racing events on the beautiful, fast and
challenging Road America course July 21-23.
The annual Brian Redman International Challenge this year will mark
the 50th anniversary of sports car racing at Elkhart Lake, an event that
promises to be really spectacular.
For non-racers, Wisconsin's kettle moraine country offers gorgeous
touring opportunities on roads that might well have been designed for
sports cars. The track is open for touring at lunch time all three
days (@ $50 a day), and there are race car and sports car concours as
well as a Mecum collector car auction each night. Wandering the
paddocks is a delightful exercise in sports car racing nostalgia, as is
the bar at the legendary Siebkens' Resort.
For Big Healey racers, it's an unprecedented opportunity (at least
in the decade since the Healey Challenge) to race others of our kind,
trade technical secrets and tell lies. Wouldn't it be nice to outnumber
- not to mention to humble - those ubiquitous bathtub Porsches just
once? And you will truly appreciate your overdrive on three (!!!)
mile-long straights, as you pull another gear out of your -- um --
pocket to surprise the competition.
For those going on to Conclave 2000, Indianapolis ain't far and
events don't get rolling until Monday. There's no reason for concern
about maintenance and parts with two of the nation's most knowledgeable
Healey restorers (Tom Kovacs' Fourintune and Bill Dredge's SportsCar
Services) always a presence in the paddock, and their shops just down
the road.
Early entry is advised because the grids do fill up, even on a
four-mile race course with huge paddocks. For information and an entry
packet write to International Challenge, Road America Inc., P.O. Box P,
Elkhart Lake, WI 53020-0338. Also, finding accommodations in the
immediate area can be a challenge because it's high season in a popular
resort, so plan ahead. I can provide a list of nearby hotels, motels
and B&Bs by e-mail to anyone interested.
See you at Elkhart Lake!
Brian Mertz
bmertz@home.com
1957 A-H 100-Six #88
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