Official BMW Club
Joy of Driving
February 2019
Inside this Issue: Kalender 3 President’s Corner 4 Street Survival 5 BMWCSA Christmas Party Quiz 7 BMW World News 8 Weekends at HPR and BIR 10 Canadian Rockies Road Trip 14 Progress at Motorsport Tracks 15 Joy of Driving
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BMW Club of Southern Alberta Kalender The BMW Club of Southern Alberta is a member club of the BMW Club of February 2 Cars, Coffee & Chat, 10:00 am at The Block Kitchen and Canada. The BMW Club of Canada is a founding national member of the Lounge at 2411 4 St NW International Council of BMW Clubs. February 2 Winter Driving School at YYC (rescheduled). Registration at: https://www.bmwcsa.ca/event/winter-driving-school-at-yyc/ Mailing Address: PO Box 75012 Cambrian, Calgary, Alberta T2K 6J8 February 13 Social & General Meeting - social at 6:00 PM; meeting at 7:30 General e-mail: [email protected] to 10:00 PM, Austrian-Canadian Club, 3112 11th street NE Website: www.bmwcsa.ca February 21 Technical challenges in the Design and Build of the Rocky Facebook: BMW Club of Southern Alberta (@bmwcsa96) Mountain MotorSports Track at Carstairs, 7:30 PM at Instagram: @bmwcsa96 Cardel Theatre, 180 Quarry Park Blvd SE, Calgary. Twitter: @bmwcsa96 Free Event but registration for headcount required at : https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/design-and-build-challenges-of- YouTube: BMW Club of Southern Alberta the-rocky-mountain-motorsports-track-tickets-54147375257 (Track is expected to open in late 2019) February 24 BMW Club of Northern Alberta Winter Driving School at Roy’s Freude am Fahren [Joy of Driving] Newsletter Lake. Contact Dave Welsh at [email protected] or (780) 701-6365 to register. Cost is $200 . The BMW Club of Southern Alberta (BMWCSA) publishes Freude am Fahren in February 28 Last Day to register for Canadian Rockies Tour (see page 14). print 4 times per year and emails Joy of Driving 6 times per year. Contact [email protected] Ideas and opinions are those of the authors, without authentication by or liability March 2 Cars, Coffee & Chat, 10:00 am at The Block Kitchen and to the BMWCSA, its Editors, Directors or Officers. BMWCSA reserves the right to Lounge at 2411 4 St NW modify or edit any material or submissions. March 13 Social & General Meeting - social at 6:00 PM and meeting at Material in this newsletter may describe vehicle modifications or procedures that 7:30 - 10:00 PM, Austrian-Canadian Club, 3112 11th street NE may void your warranty, cause your car to fail emissions tests, or make your April 6 Cars, Coffee & Chat, 10:00 am at The Block Kitchen and insurance company or agent unhappy. BMWCSA, its Editors, Directors and Officers Lounge at 2411 4 St NW are not responsible for any consequences that may ensue from such modifications. Please send Articles, Mail, Classifieds and advertising to Chris Tworek, Editor, at April 10 Social & General Meeting - social starts at 6:00 PM and [email protected] meeting at 7:30 pm - 10:00 pm. Austrian-Canadian Club, 3112 11th street NE Please submit photos at 300 dpi in tiff or jpg format, and text submissions in MS Word or alternative format by arrangement with editor May 4 Cars, Coffee & Chat, 10:00 am at The Block Kitchen and Lounge at 2411 4 St NW Print Deadline: 15th of the month preceding or by arrangement with Editor May 8 Social & General Meeting - social at 6:00 PM and meeting at Advertisement Deadline: last Wednesday of the Month preceding 7:30 -10:00 PM, Austrian-Canadian Club, 3112 11th street NE Classified Ads are free to members; $50/month to non-members May TBA E30/E46 Retro Road Test – currently looking for cars & drivers Please send Address Changes to Glen Cook at [email protected] for fun filled afternoon of retro road test same as 2018 E39 Retro Road test. Contact Greg Walsh at [email protected] June 1 Cars, Coffee & Chat, 10:00 am at The Block Kitchen & Lounge Directors and Officers June 12 Social & General Meeting - social at 6:00 PM and meeting at Please limit phone calls to between the hours of 9:00 AM and 9:00 PM 7:30 - 10:00 PM, Austrian-Canadian Club, 3112 11th street NE President & Director Membership Newsletter Editor June 15 TIRERACK STREET SURVIVAL - 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM at the Greg Walsh Chairperson Vice- President & Calgary Police Training Grounds – registration open (see pg 5) 403-286-2248 Glen Cook Director [email protected] 403-274-8716 Chris Tworek [email protected] 403-238-8049 Membership in BMWCSA [email protected] Treasurer & Director Social Media Manager Membership is a family affair with many of our events devised with family Gord Anderson & Director Production Editors participation in mind. The family membership of $60 for one year, $105 for two [email protected] Victor Yuen Margaret Cook [email protected] Michelle Belanger years and $150 for three years covers all household family members. You do not Secretary & Director have to own a BMW to be a Club member! Rainer Kahl Webmaster National Club Liaison To join the club, download the membership form from the link below and fill [email protected] Michelle Belanger & Director in your details: http://bmwcsa.ca/resources/Membership-Application.pdf Brian DeBoeck For more info, or to submit your membership application, please [email protected] email Glen Cook or Victor Yuen at: [email protected] Events Coordinators Motorsport Coordinators Membership privileges include newsletters and participation in many social and Greg Walsh Josh Carter Motorrad Liaison Bruce Borstmayer [email protected] Bill Jackson motoring activities, plus a 15% discount on parts & lifestyle accessories at BMW [email protected] Gary Coleman [email protected] Dealerships. After one year of membership, you will also enjoy a 2% Rebate off [email protected] MRSP on either a new car or motorcycle from BMW Canada. This discount is based on MRSP and not on your negotiated price. Also many of our advertising sponsors, whose ads appear in our newsletters, offer discounts to members for parts and services. Please remember to show your BMWCSA card and identify yourself as a club member when purchasing parts, accessories and service. On the cover: Track Days at Brainerd – see article on page 10. We would like to welcome to the Club: Photo by Greg Walsh Delree Dumont (2017 320i)
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Greg Walsh
BMW Group Canada has made a couple of significant changes to their Loyalty Discount on new car purchases for the members of BMW Clubs Canada. There are no longer any restrictions on which cars qualify. All M-cars now qualify for the Discount. There is now however, a cap on the discount at $2000 Canadian. So, your Discount on any new BMW is now 2% of MSRP up to a maximum of $2000.00. This is a generous reward from BMW Group to long term members of the BMW Clubs in Canada. I encourage you to take advantage if you are considering the purchase of a new vehicle. There are, of course, qualifications and procedures to follow. The most pertinent are that you must have been a BMW Clubs Canada member for the 12 months preceding your application and you must apply in advance of your purchase. These are the Canadian rules, which differ from our neighbours to the south. You may not apply using the American Club’s rules. See our web page for complete Canadian details and forms: https://www.bmwcsa.ca/membership-overview/benefits . N.B. The bikers in our crowd get a slightly different, ride-specific discount, also linked on the Club web site. February brings a longing for track time. It has been a long drought in Calgary since the closure of the track at Race City and the temporary hiatus in the Club’s High Performance Driving Schools. But there appears to be a light shining at the end of the tunnel…. Thursday February 21st at 7:30 PM Mr. Dominic Young, President of Rocky Mountain Motorsports, will be giving an exclusive presentation to your Club describing the new track being built at Carstairs and scheduled for opening in September. This will include a virtual walk of the track design. Please see the Kalender for details/registration for this presentation and Q&A, and please do register so Dominic can order sufficient doughnuts. Winter always brings opportunities for Car Handling Schools on ice and snow…unless of course you are unfortunate enough to live in Calgary. We had to postpone the January 19th Winter School at YYC due to insufficient ice and snow. It was rescheduled to February 2nd and by the time you read this we’ll know if the Snow Queen cooperated at last. In any event our northern friends at BMWCNA (i.e. Edmontonians) are planning a winter track and skid pad school on the ice at Roy’s Lake (10 km South of Spruce Grove) on February 24th, 2019. Your intrepid Membership Coordinator Glen Cook, myself and three other Calgarians attended and thoroughly enjoyed this School last February. See Kalender for details and registration. See you there! Attention E30/E46 drivers! Following the ROARING SUCCESS AND BimmerLife PUBLICATION of the E39 Retro Road Test by our Club members (see September 2018 Freude am Fahren), we will stage a road test for E30/E46ers. This is tentatively scheduled for a weather- dependent weekend afternoon in May. If you are the lucky owner of one of these great cars and want an adventure filled afternoon please drop me a line at [email protected] to register your interest. We are considering other such road tests for models such as E36s or whatever as it is a lot of fun taking out your favourite toy and will consider. Let We have also made one upgrade to our website – the last two years me know if you feel we should expand our testing. of Freude am Fahren and Joy of Driving Newsletters are at Tire Rack Street Survival (TRSS) will take place for the second year https://www.bmwcsa.ca/membership-overview/newsletter-archive/. on June 15, 2019. This car control school for young drivers (more than Our intent is to post Newsletters older than two months as we want to 20 hours and less than 10 years behind the wheel) is being offered by give our members first cut at the latest. Let me know what you think. your Club with the cooperation of the Calgary Police Service and Calgary Fire Department, at their road training facility in SE Calgary. Last Our Club succeeds because its members step forward. year 17 grumpy students participated and upon completion we had to Thank you all! use Brillo to remove their smiles. This year we are open to 32 Students with registrations already pouring in. To reserve a spot for your aspiring I wish you the Joy of your BMW! Driving Survivor, see the details later in this newsletter and on our web page. Greg Walsh, President Continued at right *Joy of Driving 4 Joy of Driving
The BMW Club of Southern Alberta is pleased to announce our second Tire Rack Street Survival (TRSS) School in Calgary!
Save the date: Saturday June 15, 2019.
Real world. Hands on!
The Tire Rack Street Survival School starts where traditional “parallel parking” driver education programs leave off.
Rather than studying driver’s manual theory, the primary emphasis of the program is a “hands on” driving experience with in car skills development in a very safe, purpose built, closely supervised training environment.
When your teen driver, or those with less than 10 years of driving experience, attends a Street Survival school, they learn to control their own car in dynamic exercises that can’t be learned from books or games. They experience the physics of motion in exactly the types of situation that can cause a loss of control! They learn how to make good driving decisions and react more quickly. They become more aware of their own limits and learn to begin anticipating the actions of other drivers.
How important is it that new drivers learn Street Survival skills? Consider these facts: Stats Canada reports: motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for drivers in their first 10 years of driving. They account for over 70 percent of accidental deaths in that age group. A 16-year-old is 20 percent more likely to be killed in a crash than an adult. Nearly 50 percent of teen-driver fatality accidents involve a single vehicle! The School is held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Calgary Police Service Training Grounds. Cost is $125 including EventBrite fees for a full day of training, lunch and refreshments. Register at: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/2019-bmwcsa-tire-rack-street-survival-driving-school-tickets-55160749286
TRSS is a program developed to train newer drivers who have up to ten years of driving experience, with preference given to the 16 to 21 age group. The event is designed to equip the next generation of drivers with real-world, behind-the-wheel skills that will help to keep them safely on the road. The program includes instruction by experienced driving instructors, in the classroom and one-on-one with each student while they learn and practise emergency braking, accident avoidance, proactive vision, car placement, and car control on slippery surfaces. Students will also get help with how to sit properly in their car and how to adjust mirrors for maximum visibility; they will see an actual truck blind-spot demonstration, and more. Parents are encouraged (but not required) to spend the day with their student. Students bring the vehicle that they normally use and, as a result, learn and understand the response characteristics of their individual car. BMW ownership or BMWCSA membership is NOT REQUIRED. The Club is organizing TRSS in Calgary as an annual community service. The CBC News Clips of the 2018 event can be seen at: https://www.bmwcsa.ca/tire-rack-street-survival/ and at https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/street-survival-driving-school-distracted-driving-docus-1.4700288 Two additional great videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trKWDq8rwdk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKgLX1xAeoo FAQs: http://streetsurvival.org/schools/frequently-asked-questions/ *Joy of Driving 5 Joy of Driving
Street Survival: June 15, 2019
Registration: The cost for a full day of training, lunch and refreshments is only $125, including Eventbrite fees. Directions to the Calgary Police Training Grounds will be sent to all registered participants. Registration link: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/2019-bmwcsa-tire-rack- street-survival-driving-school-tickets-55160749286
What to Bring for Each Participant A valid Alberta Class 5 Driver’s Licence, or equivalent. A Class 7 (Learner) licence is acceptable with a minimum of 25 hours road experience. A car (alternatively, one car can be shared between 2 participants). Cars are NOT provided. Participants are encouraged to use the car they normally drive so they learn how their car would perform in an emergency. Signed waiver. Registration kit includes a waiver for those over and those under 18. Participants under the age of 18 must have the waiver signed by parents(s) or legal guardian(s). Volunteer: As is typical with club-supported events, volunteers create the foundation on which successful events are built – even if you do not have a student participating, the gift of your time will go a long way towards making a new driver a better driver, and maybe even saving a life down the road. Contact Gary Coleman at [email protected] Volunteers register at: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/2019-tire-rack- street-survival-volunteer-registration-tickets-55293227532
Help Spread the Word: If you know anyone who might like to sign up as a student or a volunteer, please invite them. Consider sponsoring a young friend or loved one—you could give them the gift of a lifetime (literally!). Help publicize TRSS by printing copies of the previous page to post or leave in the lunchroom or coffee room where you work or play. The program is open to the public. Help save lives!
Thanks to Our Local Sponsors of the Street Survival School 2019 Calgary Police Services BMW CCA Foundation The Tire Rack Michelin Tires
Organizers: Gary Coleman and Josh Carter
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BMW CSA Christmas Party QUIZ 10. What is BMW's all-wheel-drive system branded as? o Quattro Source: https://www.zeroto60times.com/quiz/bmw-quiz/ o 4Motion o 4MATIC o X-Drive 1. What does BMW stand for? o Bavarian Motor Works 11. Which of the following has been a BMW slogan? o Brunswick Motor Works o The best never rest. o Berlin Motor Works o The art of performance. o Borgholzhausen Motor Works o Sheer driving pleasure. o Don’t dream it. Drive it. 2. Which 2014 BMW model has the highest starting MSRP? o M6 Convertible 12. What years did the BMW E30 3-Series span? o 760Li o 1982-1992 o ALPINA B7 o 1998-2006 o X6 M o 1990-1999 o 1975-1983
3. Which is NOT a BMW model? 13. How many 1978-1981 BMW M1 cars were built o 2001C and sold to the public? o 1600 o 288 o Z8 o 147 o 2800CS o 456 o 51 4. The 2014 BMW 740i and 750i sedans produce how much horsepower respectively? 14. What does the "M" stand for on BMW's M models o 265 / 325 such as the M6? o 315 / 445 o Munzenberg (German City) o 400 / 560 o Maximum Horsepower o 290 / 375 o Maximum Excitement o Motorsport
5. Which BMW has the quickest 0-60 time? o 1997 BMW M3 Sedan o 2009 BMW ActiveHybrid 7 o 2011 BMW 640i SE Convertible o 1994 BMW M5
6. In 1998 BMW acquired which luxury car brand? o Rolls-Royce o Jaguar o Maserati o Bentley
7. Which BMW model has the most horsepower? o 2014 BMW X5 xDrive50i o 2000 BMW M5 o 1981 BMW M1 o 2013 BMW 335i xDrive
8. The Jaguar F-Type S is the BMW Z4 sDrive35 as the Jaguar XFR-S is to the BMW ______? o M5 o X6 M o 760Li o M3 Convertible
9. In which German city is the BMW headquartered? o Berlin o Nuremberg o Munich o Stuttgart
Questions 10 to 14 continue at right Look for Answers on following pages
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BMW World News
BMW Canada has updated the Club Member Loyalty Program. As of January 2019, a Club Member can still obtain the 2% discount off MRSP but it is now capped at $2000 CDN. However previous restrictions on some specialty models have been lifted. Full details are at www.bmwcsa.ca under membership benefits.
Alas for our Touring aficionados! As of the 2019 model year, the last of the Tourings (or station wagon to the NA motohead) to be available in North America, the 3 series, will no longer be offered. The 3 and 5 Series Touring will be available in other parts of the world but the prediction is that they will soon die out even there. This move follows on the heels of the North American sales demise of the 5 series Touring back in 2011. Consumer trends have pushed SUVs and light trucks to over 70% of the North American market and BMW sees this geography as “X” territory. On our 2018 Swiss Tour, we were surprised at how many X5s and X3s we saw in Europe!
BMW Canada has confirmed that BMW Assist for 2014 and older vehicles with 2G-cell phone technology will be supported to December 31, 2020. If you wish to continue this service (or have later vehicles with various Assist or Connected Drive plans) you have to register at https://www.bmw-connecteddrive.ca. Please be warned that there are no automatic renewals and you should monitor your account and renew before your annual expiration date. Note that BMW Assist works only in Canada on 2G. In the US, telecoms started 2G phase-out in 2016. BMW USA offered COMBOX upgrades, which gave 3G/4G compatibility but it is not clear if BMW Canada will follow suit. Obviously 3G/4G is the norm these days and 5G is being unrolled in the US by Verizon. If you look at BMW’s Connected Drive current and future features, 5G will be a necessity. The good news is that 2019 BMW models will be compatible with 5G technologies. See: https://www.bmwblog.com/2018/04/19/bmw-group-models-are- already-ready-for-5g-connectivity
Driving in the Cloud! And for the intrepid outdoors club members, BMW subsidiary Designworks unveiled a new camper concept and virtual reality experience, in partnership with The North Face. The lightweight camper concept and virtual experience were designed by Designworks to showcase a new fabric innovation from The North Face called FUTURELIGHT™, which uses Nanospinning technology to create the world’s most advanced, breathable, waterproof material. The revolutionary Nanospinning process used to create FUTURELIGHT™, has allowed the The North Face designers to add air permeability into the membrane of a fabric for the first time. The process creates nano-sized holes, allowing for incredible porosity while still maintaining total waterproofness, letting air move through the material and provide more venting than ever before. Continued on page 9
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Continued from page 8
The FUTURELIGHT camper was inspired by the 2008 BMW GINA Light Visionary Model concept car. Like the GINA Concept, the FUTURELIGHT™ Camper is made of a fabric outer shell, consisting of a flexible material stretched over an iconic geodesic dome to demonstrate the potential uses of FUTURELIGHT™ fabric beyond just apparel. “We combined both physical and digital worlds to showcase this material, ensuring the holistic vision of the brand was clearly communicated, while giving people a real ‘hands-on’ experience,” said Laura Robin, Designworks LA Studio Director. “Thinking about extreme performance in new and unexpected ways from our experience of working across multiple industries, helped us to provide consumers with a unique and never before seen insight into the very heart of the material and its key attributes.” The FUTURELIGHT™ Camper, is on display during the global consumer electronics tradeshow, by invite-only January 7 – January 11 in Las Vegas. FUTURELIGHT™ will first become available to consumers in The North Face Fall 2019 product line and will be featured across the brand’s pinnacle performance collections.
ANSWERS to BMW Quiz on page 7 (https://www.zeroto60times.com/quiz/bmw-quiz/)
1. Bavarian Motor Works 8. M5 2. 760Li 9. Munich 3. 2001C 10. X-Drive 4. 315/445 11. Sheer driving pleasure 5. 2009 BMW ActiveHybrid 7 12. 1982-1992 6. Rolls-Royce 13. 456 7. 2014 BMW X5 xDrive50i 14. Motorsport
BMW Designworks is a global creative consultancy offering services that foster innovation and business growth for companies worldwide. Using cross-industry knowledge and experience, its culture of innovation and future-focused approach catalyzes its passion for visionary design. Designworks leverages the power of BMW Group’s culture to advance the goals of its external clients, including John Deere, Virgin Hyperloop One, Siemens, Corsair, HP, Microsoft, Embraer and Singapore Airlines, whilst bringing outside perspectives to the BMW Group through experience gained with client engagements.
Source: BMW News Feed
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Weekends at High Plains Raceway & Brainerd International Raceway ( Track rats on a 2.5-week, 2-track binge )
The trip south After a 2½ day, 1900 km drive from Calgary to Byers, Colorado, four club members and track rats, Gord Anderson, John Bruggeman, Glen Cook and Greg Walsh, were ready for some high-speed fun on High Plains Raceway’s 4 km road course.
The drive down isn’t as arduous as it sounds: we keep in touch with CB radios and never drive more than 2.5 hours without a break. The first day was the longest: we left the Shawnessy Tim Hortons at 7:30 a.m. and stopped at Lethbridge, the Coutts border crossing, Great Falls, Eddie’s Corner and Lavina, before we arrived in Billings MT by 7:30 p.m. and went for dinner. After a good night’s sleep, breakfast, filling the tanks and hitting an ATM at 9 a.m., we stopped at Sheridan and Casper and reached Cheyenne WY at 6 p.m. with dinner a walk away. The third day was a short four-hour run, including lunch at a Mexican grill in Strasburg, to our temporary home at the Longhorn Motel in Byers CO, about 15 minutes from the track.
Glen Cook’s black 2014 M235 and Greg Walsh’s ‘pumpkin’ (2011 1M) at Brainerd International Raceway
The Cars Wheels & Tires Enhancements Greg Walsh Staggered set-up Dinan (Intercooler, Oil Cooler, cold air intake, 2011 1M (the Pumpkin) Tires: Toyo R888R tires exhaust, stage 3 software) with 100+ hp boost over Wheels: Apex EC7 stock BMW. The aero enhancements that Greg Front: 265/40–18; 18x9 rims Stoptech big brake kit, ordered months before arrived in Rear: 295/35-18; 18x10.5 rims Vorschlag camber/caster plates (front), Calgary about a week after we left. Rain & street tires: Mishimoto Aluminium Race Radiator, Michelin Pilot Super Sport (PSS) Schroth QuickFit Pro Harnesses, & an Awron Multi Gauge that can’t stand the heat. Glen Cook Square set-up Stock power plant 2014 M235i Wheels: 18x8.5 ET45 Apex ARC 8 Tires: Ground Control camber plates 245/40–18 Nitto NT01 Rain & street tires: Michelin Pilot Super Sport (PSS) Gord Anderson Staggered set-up Dinan Stage 3 suspension system, 2011 M3 (E92) Wheels: Apex ARC 8 Brembo GT Big Brake Kit with slotted rotors: Tires: Michelin Pilot Super Sport 365mm front & 345mm rear John Bruggeman Square set-up Equipped with: 6-speed, 2015 Mustang GT500 Wheels: 9.5” wide, 45mm offset Performance Package option, Tires: Michelin PS-4S, 275-40 x 19 Recaro seats and Brembo brake option
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Continued from page 10 The track at High Plains Raceway (HPR) The High Plains track is 4 km long with 15 turns and 90 m of elevation changes—a challenging, interesting and fun track. From the start/finish line to the turn-in for corner 5 (about 1600 m), the track is essentially flat. At Turn 5 (Niagara), the apex and track-out are downhill and can’t be seen until after you’ve turned in. The track drops about 16 m in the next 360 m to the apex of Turn 6 (Danny’s Lesson). After about 80 laps, I was rarely consistent and hadn’t found the best line through these corners. The track is flat between Turns 6 and 7 (High Plains Drifter), which is a sweeping, high-speed, uphill right. If you turn in too early, you run out of track and have a short chat with the safety marshal. Get it right and it feels great! From Turn 7, the track climbs 14 m before the short flat straights into and out of Turn 8. It drops 20 m through Turns 9a and 9b (To Hell on a Bobsled) to the turn-in for corner 10, follows a flat valley bottom between 10 and the 11 turn in, and then climbs back 18 m through Turn 12 (Ladder to Heaven). After a short straight to corner 13, the track drops 8 m through 13, 14 and 15, then climbs back up about 9 m in the first third of the start/finish straight. The whole track is monitored from the control room by a track manager. The track uses coloured lights at corner stations and both lights and flags at the start/finish station.
HPR lapping sessions BMWCCA Rocky Mountain Chapter Greg and Glen opted to participate in the Thursday evening and Performance Driving School Friday open-lapping sessions. It took about an hour to swap street Following the Thursday and Friday lapping sessions, we joined the wheels and tires for dedicated ‘track boots’ and adjust our front camber BMWCCA Rocky Mountain Chapter Performance Driving School on settings. Saturday and Sunday, May 26–27. The drivers’ meeting was a repeat The pre-track drivers’ meeting was pretty typical, with emphasis on of the lapping session ones with a couple of variations: the light safety and courtesy. Any car-to-car contact would result in both drivers system was not used, only flags at the corner stations. Passing rules being sent home with no refunds. All passes must be by contract: the were similar but only allowed on the straights between corners 3-4, passee must wave the faster car through; the passer must wait until 5-6, 6-7 and 13-1. Group A (experienced drivers) could be signed off waved by. Passing was by open-window point-by, anywhere on the to drive without an instructor after the first session each day. Groups track, and high-powered cars must back off. After any four-wheels-off- B (advanced intermediate), C (intermediate) and D (track novices) track incident or on-track spin, the driver was required to pit and have a must go out with an instructor. There was also a time-trials group for short talk with the safety marshal. Anyone who failed to pit following the most experienced drivers, competing based on lap times. an off-track or spin event would be black-flagged and the chat with the Greg and Glen opted to run in Group A; Gord and John, for safety marshal would become a very long talk at best, and you might be Group B. Each group did two rotations each morning and two each sent home, again with no refund. Driver meetings were mandatory for afternoon, moving between 50-minute classroom sessions, 25 all drivers and held before the Thursday evening session and both minutes on the track and 25-minute relax times. Total track time was Friday morning and afternoon sessions. Drivers were divided into two an hour and 35 minutes each day, enough for about 35 laps. In run groups, experienced-intermediate (i.e. faster) and novice- addition to the regular rotation, each day included a 10-minute intermediate. Each group was on the track for 25 minutes of each hour. drivers’ meeting before the afternoon rotations and a 25-minute Greg and I did about 30 laps on Thursday evening, another 25+ laps session for the instructors to drive and show us the correct brake Friday morning before driving into Byers for gas during noon break, and points and driving line through each corner—which was VERY helpful! another 25+ laps in the afternoon. John joined the fun during the My instructors were Fox Chung on Saturday and Dennis Kyle on Friday lapping sessions. Greg ran into a common HPR problem: over- Sunday. (Fox is also a Rocky Mountain Chapter VP.) Greg had Doug heating in the hot, very dry, high-altitude air. This usually happened Tabb on Saturday and Mark Doran on Sunday; Gord’s were Gary after 5 or 6 laps—just as he was passing someone on the long straight. Odehnal and John Fornarola, while John’s instructors on Saturday The Pumpkin went into limp mode for about half a lap as it cooled were Ryan Graham and Alex Green and Matt Stattman on Sunday. All down. were excellent. Continued on page 12 *Joy of Driving 11 Joy of Driving
Continued from page 11 The Brainerd International Raceway (BIR) track On Saturday, I turned in too early on corner 7, ran out of pavement, The 4-km (2.5-mile) competition course at BIR is basically flat, and got four wheels off the track. After I had a brief talk with Bruce running clockwise for 13 turns. Turn 1 is a sweeping, banked, flat-out Leggett (the chief safety steward), the track manager, who had watched corner. The apex of turn 10 is about a meter from a concrete retaining the whole thing on his monitors, came out and congratulated me on wall. After a short straight under a bridge, turn 13 leads into the how well I had handled the situation: keeping the car going straight and straight to turn 1 of the next lap. (Note: Although we used the 2.5 mile coming to a controlled stop before waiting for the corner worker to competition circuit, the original Donnybrooke track is still available wave us back on track. when there is only one event at BIR. It is a 3.1 mile (5 km), 10-turn Greg and I were both signed off to run solo on Saturday morning – clockwise circuit. Three fast turns and the old 3/4 mi (1200 m) straight always good for the ego! During the first Sunday afternoon session, replace turns 8 through 13 of the competition circuit.) Dennis pointed out an inconsistency in my driving: I was pre-positioning my hands and was much smoother for the very tight left at turn 8, but not doing it at the equally-tight right at turn 6, and I wasn’t as smooth through it. For the rest of the day I worked at pre-positioning for both turns. Turn 6 got smoother and faster.
Between performance driving schools On Monday morning, Gord and John headed back to Calgary while Greg and I started toward Minnesota for the BMWCCA North Star Chapter performance driving school at Brainerd International Raceway (BIR). After loading everything into our cars, strapping the tires in the back seat, and gassing up, we hit the road about 10 a.m. About 750 km later, after stops for gas and lunch in Big Springs and gas in Alda, we were in Lincoln, Nebraska, where we had appointments on Tuesday morning with Ben Kerwood at European Auto Tech to check out both cars, get minor maintenance (oil changes and brake fluid flushes) and Brainerd International Raceway (BIR) order any parts that they didn’t have in stock. It turned out that I needed new front brake pads for the M235i—not a big surprise. Casey BMWCCA North Star Chapter Wheeler, the service manager at European Auto Tech, phoned ahead to Performance Driving School euroTECH in New Brighton MN to make sure they could get the brake The gates opened at 7 a.m. on Friday, June 1 and registration ran pads before we arrived there on Friday for our service and tech- from 7:30 to 8:30. Since registration took only a few minutes, we had inspection appointments. Ben Kerwood also showed us an easier way almost 1.5 hours to unload both cars and swap street and track rims to change camber settings—something Greg has been fighting with for and tires before the mandatory drivers’ meeting from 8:30 to 9 a.m. almost 3 years: use two jacks to lift both front wheels off the ground. when the track was opened. We were ready to get re-acquainted with Suddenly the job was dead easy. the BIR. The Friday session is limited to instructors and A-group drivers: After lunch, when Greg got his technical inspection report from just over two dozen were signed up–80% instructors–so the track Ben, we were on the road again. A couple of gas stops, some heavy wasn’t crowded. The track was open for one 1¼-hour session and four rain, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota and 700 km later, we arrived in 1½-hour sessions, with three 15-minute breaks for track workers and a New Brighton MN, our home for two nights. We dropped off my M235i 1 hour lunch break. Lots of track time! at euroTECH for new front brake pads, dialing in another degree of camber and a clean-bill-of-health technical inspection report. At about 2 p.m. Thursday, we headed toward Rapid River Lodge in Baxter MN, about two hours from New Brighton and just five minutes from Brainerd International Raceway.
JP Tennier (Greg’s nephew), Glen Cook & Greg Walsh at BIR I got in 18 laps (72 km) before the first refueling and lunch at noon. After lunch I did another 31 laps (126 km) before discovering that the last 7 or 8 litres don’t get picked up reliably by my fuel pump! My clues were the fuel warning light with only 4 km of range left, and my car in limp-home mode with various fuel-pressure fault codes. Fortunately, Motorwerks BMW were providing technical support for the weekend. Tony Stoy, their technician, was able to reset all the fault codes. After that, and almost 45 litres of non-oxy 91 RON gas, I was back on the track. I can be a slow learner: 31 laps later another Motorwerks technician reset the fault codes again and I called it a day—the track Greg Walsh drives ‘the pumpkin’ on Brainerd International Raceway was closing in 5 minutes. Continued on page 13 *Joy of Driving 12 Joy of Driving
Continued from page 12 Late Friday afternoon we were joined by Greg’s nephew, JP Tennier, The Pantera was brought in by a long term customer and had been from Thunder Bay, who would be sharing Greg’s 1M for the next two through a specialty shop in the US. However many details were poorly days. JP’s F250 crew cab also provided our transportation to and from done. The new shocks had been installed with 7/16” bolts rather than the track for the next two days. the proper but much harder to install ½” bolts. The shocks were Saturday morning was cloudy, damp and threatening rain. Being an rattling around and the excuse was that “nobody drives these optimist, I chose to leave the NT01s on the car—by now they were collector cars”. The body area under the brake master cylinder had nearly slicks—when we went to the drivers’ meeting and the classroom. been sprayed with body undercoating, which looked great until brake It started raining as we came out of the classroom. So I spent the first fluid drips turned it to a gooey mess. A complete rebuild of the brake track session putting the PSS-shod stock wheels back on the car. Greg, system, and replacing the undercoating mess with a high quality trunk with instructor Cas Sienkiewiczran, drove the session tiptoeing around bed lining material, fixed that situation. Similarly, the air conditioning on his R888Rs, then switched back to his PSSs before JP and instructor condenser, which had been strapped into the front compartment, was Greg Swenson went out with C group. The PSS tires make great rain relocated to the back of the car and the engine cover and trunk tray tires with amazing grip (my instructor Dave Miller was impressed), so modified to fit properly and look factory correct. The car was also the rest of the day was great fun. Another upside to running in the rain rewired to fix other issues. New rims were found that better matched was that fuel consumption dropped dramatically: 30 laps (120 km) only the Pantera’s lineage. They posed a refinishing challenge, as they were used 26 litres, so no ‘limp mode’ nor frantic re-fueling on this day. magnesium. Careful bead blasting and recoating of the porous surface Sunday arrived cool, but dry. Our three-man crew with two jacks restored the wheels. Then the challenge was to find appropriate 15- was able to put Greg’s R888Rs back on the 1M in less than 20 minutes inch tires. (not quite a Formula 1 pit stop, but pretty fast for amateurs). So JP didn’t miss his first session at 9:55. With only a two-man crew, it took 30 minutes to get the M235i running on NT01s again. But then, before the first A-group session, someone dumped their transmission oil all over turn 2. The track was shut down for over an hour while the BIR maintenance crew cleaned it up. Driving Schools Coordinator, Tim Oudin, and Chief Driving Instructor, Tyler Arvig, did a good job of rescheduling and combining groups, so we still got 49+ laps (200 km).
BIR Performance Driving School (PDS) The BIR PDS started the same way as BMW schools: registration, drivers’ meeting, and instructor/student assignments. Passing rules were essentially the same: contract passing only. They have four run groups: A–Advanced (7+ track days), B –Intermediate (3 to 6 track Oh – yes – back to Bimmers! Todd’s personal restoration project is a days), C–Novice (0 to 2 track days), all in their own cars; and the Spec 750i that he bought from a customer. The V12 powered machine, Racer group, in single-seat Formula Fords. originally imported from Japan had been through the AC Schnitzer Although both Greg and I have over 7 days on the BIR competition rework process and carries the Schnitzer badge. The car has some course, neither of us had ever participated in a BIR PDS. So we were 50,000 miles on it and just needs some brake and detail work before it initially assigned to Group C. This was a sign to us that they took safety hits the road. seriously: until their instructors agree that you are capable, courteous and safety conscious, you stay in group C. Greg’s instructor Chris www.scpautomotive.ca or find us on Facebook Anderson moved him to B before lunch and I moved up after lunch when I explained to Mike Soltis, my instructor, that my apparent reluctance to pass was based on not getting point-bys, particularly from the Spec Racers, many of whom were on the track for their first time. Another of the instructors mentioned that since there is no instructor with them (Formula Ford’s are single-seaters) and their cars are much slower than our street cars, we could pass whenever it was safe to do so. After lunch I ran one more C group session, followed by a hot pit switch from red wrist band (C group) to yellow (B group) and straight back onto the track for another 25 minutes on my own. Between the sessions, two of the instructors, Chris and Mike, encouraged me to stop braking for turn 2 and hold a steady speed that I knew I could easily enter the turn at, and then, on the next lap, increase the speed slightly. Following this advice, I increased my entry speed from 150 km/hr to over 185 km/hr in the last session. The car’s limit on that corner is probably about 210-220 km/hr (which may be faster than its horsepower will allow), so I still have a way to go. And I do know how and where to keep on lapping and learning! It won’t be long until the track rats are planning their next trip and I sure hope to join them. Why don’t you load up your helmet and some tires and come along, too?
Article by Glen Cook; Photos by Greg Walsh
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2019 Canadian Rockies Road Trip
September 6--15, 2019 Total distance of the planned route, Calgary to Calgary, is 2067 kilometers or 1285 miles. Accumulated driving time of the planned route is 26 hours over 10 days. Planned daily drives vary between 172 and 441 kilometers / 107 and 274 miles.
This breathtaking 10 day scenic drive in the Canadian Rockies takes us through boundless wilderness with some of the most picturesque mountain-scapes in the country. The route encompasses one of the “top 10 drives on the planet” according to National Geographic.
banffjaspercollection.com The route has been carefully selected for driving enjoyment, with ample opportunity for Rest Stops and Photo Ops, Points of Interest and Tourist attractions. Each day travelers have the option of taking the (A) High River AB Highway 93 via Ta Ta Creek, BC prescribed route or choosing their own path to visit additional (B) Kimberley BC 3A via Grey Creek, BC, attractions or for faster arrival to the next destination. (C) Nelson, BC Highway 6 via Nakusp, BC (D) Kelowna, BC Highway 97A via Sicamous, BC With breathtaking scenery, and a variety of sites and attractions, this (E) Kamloops, BC trip promises to have mass appeal. There are 6 overnight destinations, (F) Jasper, AB three of which include two-night stays, offering opportunities for rest, (G) Columbia Ice Fields relaxation, exploration and enjoying the local scene. (H) Lake Louise, AB
Some of the attractions along the way: Frank Slide Please email Expressions of Interest to [email protected] no later Fort Steele than February 28th, 2019. Ainsworth Hot Springs The September 6th to 15th trip will proceed with a minimum Kaslo Historic Mining Town & Kaslo Hotel commitment of 10 cars/10 rooms, and the trip will be capped at Jasper Skytram 15 cars/15 rooms. Miette Hot Springs Pool Athabasca Falls BMWCSA trips generate wonderful memories and extraordinary Maligne Lake & Canyon – Boat Tours friendships. Columbia Ice Fields We hope you will join us. Glacier Skywalk Experience Moraine Lake Lake Louise Gondola & Wildlife Interpretive Centre Banff Townsite Banff Hot Springs
Accommodations are rated 3-stars and greater with positive reviews on travel sites. Every attempt will be made to accommodate the group at a single location.
The estimated cost of accommodations is $1500.00 CDN per person based on double occupancy. Adjusted rates may be available at some locations for families travelling with 3 or more members. Food and fuel are not included in the estimate. lonelyplanet.com
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Progress at Motorsport Tracks fees and debt financing, was intended to provide the capital Don’t forget our free Rocky Mountain MotorSports evening on February necessary for the phased multi-year construction of the driving 21st. Free event but registration required. See Kalender for registration facilities: these being the North Track, Valley Track, Skidpad, and Kart link. Hopefully, Rocky will still be starting construction this year. Track. But such an approach required a large amount of capital, and The following is a letter from Jay Zelazo, presented a degree of risk, that would likely prove to be a difficult sell CEO - Badlands Recreation Development Corporation in the current financial climate. Dear Future Members, As we turn over calendars to 2019, the team at Badlands Motorsports Resort would like to wish everyone a happy new year. When we announced our development plans early in 2018, it was our objective to commence construction on our first track, the 4.8 km North Track, in the summer of that year and to open the track to the public in July of 2019. We realized at the time that this was an ambitious schedule but were optimistic that we could make it happen. Regrettably, this turned out to not be the case. Our team has accomplished a great deal so far such as completing the design of the overall facility, getting construction estimates, and developing key partnerships. Most notably, we have had great success working with the province of Alberta and Kneehill County to be granted all the necessary development approvals, which remain in place. Our present challenge is to acquire the necessary funds to complete construction of the North Track and necessary facilities and to finance track operations for the critical first three years to achieve operational sustainability.
After careful review, our team came to the conclusion that a more acceptable approach would be to focus on the building of the North Track first in order to reduce the initial funding requirements and lower the overall project risk to investors and lenders. The future development of the Valley Track, Skidpad, Kart Track and larger facilities would follow in succession. Each future addition would be selected and pursued based on input of the track users, track management, financial position and availability of financing. This is the current course of action and we are aiming to be in a position to present the new plan to investors and lenders very soon. If all goes well, we hope to break ground this year and have the track open during the 2020 racing season. We would like to offer our appreciation to all Badlands Motorsport Club Membership Deposit holders for their patience and support as we push forward. This is not an easy project to get off the ground and the current financial climate is not helping matters. But we remain fully committed to bring this project to life and believe wholeheartedly in its potential. To this end, your deposits will continue to be an important tool in our discussions with potential For the past year our executive team, along with our advisors, has been partners and investors. More than 273 deposits are currently being working to refine the business model, construction estimates and held in in trust, reserving your memberships for the future opening of management team required to secure that funding. There has been Badlands Motorsports Resort. significant progress made over the past few months, but as of yet we Thank you again for your patience and we will commit to providing have not yet secured the funding needed so the work continues. regular progress updates as events unfold in the coming months. To further clarify the picture, for the most part of 2018, our target was to Best Regards, raise enough equity financing for several components of the project to commence. This equity funding, combined with membership initiation Jay Zelazo, CEO - Badlands Recreation Development Corporation
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