The 1978 Swedish Grand Prix
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T H W R E O S T N A B L February 2006 U F Alfa’s F1L Day in the Sun: A The 1978C Swedish Grand Prix R by Daron Walker O E O M Colin Chapman was unarguably successful with his Lotus F1 racing program. Lotus F1 was all In This Issue the envy in the late 1970s. In 1978, the Lotus 79 was dominating the F1 circuit because of one very clear advantage: Chapman had Cover Features: discovered that creating a vacuum under the Alfa’s F1 Day in the Sun car with the use of side skirts increased the February Guest Speaker: downforce on the car. Chapman’s insightful Cindy Lux discovery left the rest of the F1 teams on a steep learning curve for the 1978 racing Alfafredly’s Rambling season. Page 2 Gordon Murray of Brabham-Alfa Romeo had 1978 Brabham-Alfa fan-car Calendar of Events struggled to find a competitive answer to the 2006 Events Calendar Lotus 79. The ground-effects packages Murray came up with created an oversteering problem Page 4 that driver Niki Lauda was very uncomfortable with. It was later discovered that the oversteering Member Profile problem was caused by the combination of the car’s newly designed full-length front wing and Meet our new Competition Chariman, Murray’s side-skirt package. Dave Kingstone Page 8 Bernie Ecclestone (Brabham-Alfa Romeo owner/manager) said after the 1978 Monaco Grand Prix that “Murray is every bit as talented as Chapman, and he will not be outdone so easily.” At this NWARC Performance point, Murray felt the pressure from Ecclestone and Brabham’s star driver Niki Lauda. Murray’s understanding of the F1 world was quite keen. He knew that the technology in F1 racing was only Driving School going to become greater over time. This meant side skirts and ground effects were here to stay. Program and registration information. Page 10 The second thing Murray knew was that F1 rules were loosely written in some categories for a reason. This was to allow the incorporation of new technology to the sport. Murray took advantage Newsletter of the loosely written rulebook by introducing the infamous “fan-car” to the F1 rules committee. Submissions The use of fans to create downforce under the car was not a new idea. Jim Hall and his very Interested in contributing to the successful Chaparral-Chevrolets used them in the Can-Am series of 1970. Iniezione? Continued on page 6 Page 3 February General Meeting Guest Speaker: Professional Race Car Driver, Cindy Lux This month we are lucky enough to have championship race car diver Cindy Lux paying us a visit as guest speaker. She is going to come and speak with us about her beginnings in racing, a woman’s perspective on racing, and much more. For more information on Cindy Lux please visit http://www.cindilux.com/ Board Members President Fred Wright 312 211th Place SE Sammamish, WA 98074 425.369.0699 [email protected] Vice-President John van Rensburg 17917 Bothell-Everett Hwy #102 Bothell, WA 98012 425.941.4747 [email protected] Alfafredly’s Rambling Secretary Randy J. Rumley 11008 NE 140th St. Kirkland, WA 98034 425.814.6459 [email protected] February 2006 Treasurer Ron Calkins What a winter so far. It has been impossible to sneak the Spider out between the raindrops. PO Box 33512 Seattle Wa 98133 Maybe we will see some sunny skies in February as we usually do?? 206.940.2471 [email protected] Let’s hope for a great day on the 19th for our annual Chili Cook-off and drive to the New Ingram Enterprises (see information in this issue). It will be fun to be out again with all our friends. It Committee Directors seems like it has been way too long since we have had just a good old “Alfisti” get-together, Activities which this promises to be. I hope many of you plan to attend! Dave Emerson [email protected] At the last board meeting, we spent a great deal of time discussing our plans to improve Competition communication to you, the members. I am very curious about how many of you would rather Dave Kingstone get your newsletter in color via email versus the US Postal Service in black-and-white? Oh, don’t 14614 72nd Place NE Kenmore, WA 98028 worry – we are still planning to offer a mail version to those that prefer it, but we believe the 425.823.9031 advantages of email are significant. It just excites me that we could see all Dave Emerson’s [email protected] photos in their true glory. If you feel strongly about this subject, I want to hear from you. Call, Membership Harry Reed email, or send me a letter. 8111 184th St SW Edmonds, WA 98026 I find it fascinating that every once in awhile I get the pleasure of talking to people who are [email protected] looking to sell their cars (it is one of the many benefits of being president of the club). Many Webmaster times they are selling the car of a family member who has passed on and left it to them. There Kim Christiansen 206.229.7725 are so many wonderful cars hidden out there in the world. I get great pleasure out of talking to [email protected] these folks and learning about them. I tell Kathy all the time, “I could have bought another Alfa today but I didn’t.” It is tempting, though! If you’re interested in hearing about these cars, let Iniezione Staff me know and I will put you on my “look what’s for sale email blast list” when I get these calls. Editor/Designer Cyndi Walker So, Valentine’s Day is coming – what are you doing for that special person in your life? Is it 3917 S. 326th Pl. Federal Way, WA 98001 flowers or a special night out? How about chocolate? That always seems to be a big hit. One 206.650.8146 option is to join us for our general meeting at Lombardi’s, where we will have some special [email protected] Valentine treats for your lover. See you there! Copy Editor Amy Chadwick Enjoy the drive! 425.820.5363 [email protected] Ciao Technical Editor Wes Ingram Fred 309 S. Cloverdale St #D-5 Seattle Wa 98108 206.938.2558 [email protected] Production Editor Fred Russell [email protected] Continued on Page 3 Club Liaisons Italian Car Club of British Columbia Meeting Time & Location Fritz Duernberger 604.988.7904 Society of Vintage Racing Tuesday, February 14th, 2006 - Lombardi’s, Issaquah, WA Enthusiasts (SOVREN) Steve Scheaffer 206.6789.9317 For directions visit http://www.lombardiscucina.com/MainPages/Locations/Issaquah.html Alfa Romeo Owners Club of Oregon Dan Sommers 503.649.6735 www.nwalfaclub.com The Iniezione is the monthly newsletter Interested in contributing of the Northwest Alfa Romeo Club, a non-profit organization of Alfa Romeo enthusiasts. NWARC is a regional chapter to the Iniezione? of the national Alfa Romeo Owners Club (AROC). Chapter meetings are held the second Tuesday of every month except Share your love of Alfa Romeos with your fellow NWARC members December. We are currently accepting articles, photo essays, how-to articles, travel stories and other pieces Membership dues are $63 per year, which on Alfa Romeo-related topics. Be a part of the club and spread the joy of Alfa Romeo ownership! includes subscriptions to the Iniezione and the national publication, Alfa Owner. Submission Guidelines For information about joining the club, contact the membership director, whose Please submit all articles and other content in Word format, and send to: submissions@ name appears on this page. NWAlfaClub.com. Photo submissions should be in either JPG or EPS format saved as high Deadline for the submission of articles or resolution (300 dpi). Remember to include your name, article title, and contact information with classified ads is the second Saturday of the month prior to the issue month. all submissions. Opinions expressed in the Iniezione are Deadlines those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the club. Deadline for the submission of articles or classified ads is the second Saturday of the month prior to the issue month. Publication of articles describing techni- cal procedures does not constitute an endorsement by the club, its officers, or Questions? E-mail [email protected] AROC. It is the responsibility of the person performing any procedure to accept all consequences of his or her actions. R T H O W N E S A A T L L F 2006 NWARC Calendar of Events A B R U Feb 25 (Sat) Bremerton Motor Park Performance School O L M C Mar 17 (Fri) Bremerton Motor Park Lapping Day E O Mar 18 (Sat) Joe and Lynn Faherty’s St. Patrick’s Day Party April 14–15 Defrost Kickoff at Pacific Raceways April 18 (Sun) Pacific Raceways Lapping Day May 13–14 Spring Sprints at Pacific Raceways May 24 (Wed) Pacific Raceways Lapping Afternoon & Evening May 27–28 Vintage Race Club of BC Historics at Mission Raceway Jun 15 (Thurs) Bremerton Motor Park Lapping Day June 30–July 2 Pacific Northwest Historics at Pacific Raceways July 7–9 Portland Historic Races at Portland International Raceway July 28 (Fri) Pacific Raceways Lapping Day July 29–30 NW SCCA Regional at Bremerton Raceway Aug 17 (Thurs) Pacific Raceways Lapping Day Sept 2–4 Columbia River Classic Road Race at Portland International Raceway Sept 14 (Thurs) Pacific Raceways Lapping Day Sept 23–24 Fall Finale at Pacific Raceways Sept 30 - Oct 1 Maryhill Loops Hill Climb at Maryhill, WA Oct 15 (Sat) Pacific Raceways Lapping Day Oct 29 (Sun) Bremerton Motor Park Novice School Events in bold are SOVERN events INGRAM ENTERPRISES INC.