Welcome to the Opel Motorsport Club The Opel Motorsport Club is celebrating its 36th year of dedication to the preservation and appreciation of all German Opels, with special emphasis on models imported into the United States. We are headquartered on the west coast and have chapters across the country, in Europe, as well as members in Canada and Mexico. Membership benefits include subscription to this, listings for parts and service suppliers, the Blitz index and tech tip index (1985-date), free classified ads (3 per year), club items, a member roster, owner support and activities, including meetings and our annual picnic and car show. Officers President: Paul Kaman VP/Secretary: Matt Newman Activities: Gil Wesson Treasurer: Dick Counsil Blitz Editor: Mike Meier Web Master: Richard Kavadas To Join OMC: Write to Contents OMC TREASURER Official Club Business.................................... 1 c/o Dick Counsil 3824 Franklin Street 2016 Calender .......................................... 2 La Crescenta, CA 91214-1607 From the Archives....................................... 3 Bench Racing........................................... 4 Membership Dues: Murphy................................................ 5 Regular: $45 ($47 via PayPal) annually. Nineteen............................................... 5 Online: $20 ($21 via PayPal) annually. Conrero Opel GT Tribute.................................. 7 Name of Car............................................ 8 Check or money order (US funds only, made Jet Black Silk........................................... 9 payable to Opel Motorsport Club) Tinyvette ............................................. 10 PayPal to [email protected] Zooms Just Fine........................................ 11 Include your name and address information. Orange Monster........................................ 12 Luxus ................................................ 13 Meetings: Bill Ward ............................................. 14 The OMC meetings are as announced, at The OMC Library ...................................... 15 varying locations. Please consult the OMC Blitz calendar or the OMC website to find out The OMC Mall......................................... 16 who is hosting the next meeting or event. The Business Page ...................................... 17 The Blitz The Blitz is the official publication of the Opel Motorsport Club (OMC). It is published This Issue four times a year. Circulation is limited to Here are a few numbers to summarize this issue: club members and prospective club members. Pages: ? The Blitz is copyrighted © by the OMC. Words: ? Articles, photographs, drawings, technical tips, and other materials appearing in The Illustrations: ? Blitz may not be reproduced without the Print Cost: $ expressed, written permission of the OMC. Discounted Print Cost: $ Views expressed are not necessarily those of the officers or members of the OMC. Cover Photo: People who attended the 35th anniversary meeting of OMC were able to take home a number of commemorative items, including the shirt pictured on the cover, along with coffee mugs, decals, and hats. Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz Official Club Business About This Issue Ever since to became editor of The Blitz I’ve wanted to do an issue about the Opel people own and driver, or race, or I guess, live in. Finally, this is that issue. In late 2016 I put out a call on the OpelGT.com forum for a photo of and a few words about everyone’s cars, and that I’d give them a whole page in The Blitz just for them. In the January issue of The Blitz I asked our members to do the car. I even used our Facebook page to asked people to participate in this. At that point I started to worry that I might get more submissions than OMC can afford to put in a single issue. And so here we are at the end of 2016 and it has happened. We have photos submitted by XX people from all over North America and also from... 2017 Ballot This issue includes the 2017 membership ballot. ... 2017 Activities 2016 Treasurer’s Report 2016 Membership Report October - December 2016 Page 1 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club September 2016 Calender 2 - 4 The Maine Event (Loring Timing Assoc.), Loring AFB, Limestone, Maine 10 - 13 World of Speed, Bonneville Salt Flats Here is your 2016 calendar of Opel events along with 23 - 25 International Route 66 Mother Road Festival, motorsports events that inspire us plus a few that Springfield, Illinois members of OMC will be participating in. October January 1 - 2 Button Turrible (24HOL, Tinyvette), 3 - 16 Dakar Rally, Argentina – Bolivia Buttonwillow Raceway, Buttonwillow, 10 OMC ballots and survey are due California February November 13 - 14 Sears Pointless (24HOL, Tinyvette), Somona 1 - 4 SEMA, Las Vegas, Nevada Raceway, Sonoma, California 16 - 20 Baja 1000, Ensenada, Baja Mexico March December TBA Texas Mile, Chase Field Industrial Complex, 3 - 4 Arse-Freeze-Apalooza (24HOL, Tinyvette, Beeville, Texas Phoenix Racing), Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma, CA May 1 -8 Europatreffen in Nuremberg TBA NorCal Opeler’s Gold Country Fun Run/OMC meeting 20 - 22 Carlisle Import & Kit Car Nationals, Carlisle, Pennsylvania 21 - 22 Vodden the Hell Are We Doing (24HOL, Tinyvette, Phoenix Racing), Thunderhill Raceway Park, Willows, California 28 Isle of Man (runs through June 11) 28 Opels in My Yard, Colfax, Indiana 29 Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis International Raceway, Indianapolis, Indiana June 11 International Opel Festival and Picnic, Perris, CA. 15 - 19 24 Hours of Le Mans, Le Mans, France 18 - 26 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, Pikes Peak, near Colorado Springs, Colorado July 13 -17 The Maine Event (Loring Timing Assoc.), Loring AFB, Limestone, Maine 30 The Tacoma Meet, Tacoma, Washington 30 - 31 Arse-Sweat Apalooza (24HOL, Tinyvette, Phoenix Racing), Thunderhill Raceway Park, Willows, California August 15 - 21 Monterey Car Week, Monterey, CA 13 - 19 Speed Week, Bonneville Salt Flats Page 2 October - December 2016 Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz From the Archives My Story of Inspiration By Dennis Gardiner, September-October 2008 October - December 2016 Page 3 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club Bench Racing Another Tall Tale By Whomever Tell it! Page 4 October - December 2016 Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz Murphy Matt Schinelli’s 197x Opel GT This is the car that was the Yellow Baron. About... October - December 2016 Page 5 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club Nineteen Kyler Norman’s 197x Opel GT About... Page 6 October - December 2016 Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz Conrero Opel GT Tribute Gil Wesson’s Conrero Opel GT Tribute About... October - December 2016 Page 7 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club Name of Car Don Michaelson’s 197x Opel Sport Wagon Don’s wagon... Page 8 October - December 2016 Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz Jet Black Silk Irfan’s 197x Opel Manta Irfan’s Manta... October - December 2016 Page 9 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club Tinyvette Mike Meier’s 1969 Opel GT run at Bonneville twice, been in shows at Monterey Car Alan Brattesani and Mike purchased this ran-when- Week, and has made the 1,500 round trip to the Tacoma parked field-find for $200, and nine weeks later had meet. Yes, it is street-legal. revived it and were racing in the 24 Hours of LeMons. That was back in 2010. Since then the car has competed in 17 races and logged over 12,000 race miles. It has also Page 10 October - December 2016 Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz Zooms Just Fine Roy Moulton’s 1969 GT Roy’s car is unique in that is has a 1.1L motor. More... October - December 2016 Page 11 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club Orange Monster Troy Moore’s 1968 Rallye Kadett Troy’s Kadett was featured in ... Page 12 October - December 2016 Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz Luxus Jeffery Widder’s 1973 Opel Manta Luxus This is a 42,000 original mile survivor car, with original paint, vinyl top, and most of the interior. The photo was taken at Ambler’s Texaco Gas Station on Historic Route 66 in Dwight, Illinois. October - December 2016 Page 13 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club Bill Ward Bill Ward Racing’s Bonneville GT Bill Ward campaigned this car at Bonneville for xx year, bringing home xx land speed records. With driver John “Rocket Man” Paxon at the wheel the car completed a 265 mph pass. Page 14 October - December 2016 Opel Motorsport Club The Blitz The OMC Library “Opel - so wird er schneller: leistungssteigerung am Opel Ascona, Manta, Kadett, GT : (1968 - 1972)”, Gert Hack: Motorbuch Verlag, 127 pages, 1972. OMC does not have an official library, but we are keeping a list of books and other items that deal with “Opel Wheels to the World”, Karl Ludvigsen: Automobile classic Opels as well as Opel (the company) itself. Quarterly & Princeton Publishing, 112 pages, 1979. “Nur Filegen ist Schöner”, S.W. Lukas, K.J. Hause: Verlag Video Jungjohann, 1985. “Opel GT, Driving the Dream”, El Dorado Productions, Mike Siegel, 2008. “Das Grosse Opel GT Buch”, Wolf Dieter; Walter Günther: Heel Verlag GmbH, 144 pages, 1990. Books “Opel GT - Gold Portfolio, 1968-1973", R.M. “Opel GT Projekt 1484", Etienne Henrion, Stefan Müller: Clark:Brooklands Books, 172 pages, 1996. Podszun GmbH, 191 pages, 1997. “Opel GT, Ultimate Portfolio, 1968-1973", R.M. Clark: “Opel Ascona - Mit jedem Kilometer wächst die Freundschaft”, Brooklands Books, Ltd., 200 pages, 2007. Peter Kurze, Rainer Manthey: Delius Klasing, 112 pages, 2011. “Opel Manta, 1970-1975", R.M. Clark: Brooklands Books, “Jahrbuch 2012 - Opel” Ltd., 92 pages, 1997. Eckhart Bartels, Rainer Manthey: Podszun GmbH, 2011. “Opel GT Motorsport, 1968-1975", Maurice Van Sevecotte, Detlef Kurzrock, Stefan Müller: Petrolpics GbR, 2008. “Opel Kadett GT/E”, Antonio Biasioli: Editrice Elzeviro, 144 pages, 2010. October - December 2016 Page 15 The Blitz Opel Motorsport Club to Original GT stock exhaust. Also comes with 2½” bolt- The OMC Mall on collector. Bruce Baxter, Missoula, MT 59802, 406- 728-9327, [email protected]. Will ship for the right price. Classifieds For Sale; for an Opel GT – Revolution aluminum OMC Swag wheels (4). 13x6, 3 inch backspace. For off-road use These items used to be available through OMC. Is there only. $200.00. Sport lowering front spring with poly any interest in them today? bushings. $125.00.