Season Awards This Month!

The Massachusetts BMW Dealers Group Autocross Series will culminate with the spectacular awards ceremony during the Fourth Quarter General Meeting at BMW Peabody on November 18th!

Fred and John (photo by Aimee Reveno)

Trophies and awards will be presented to the top finishers in each of the 9 qualified classes, and to the most-improved BMW novice driver of the season. In addition, a brand new BMW mountain bike (with awesome road holding capabilities) will be awarded to the winner of the E36 M3/Z3 Challenge drawing that very night! This will be a great event, and the last one of the autocross season, so be sure to be there.

Autocross 6 Report

An attendance of 79 cars on September 13 made this the largest Boston Chapter autocross turnout ever! The weather was cloudy and threatened rain, but it held off all day except for a few isolated sprinkles. Even with this many cars the event ran smoothly and every driver received 5 runs.

At the very end of the day mechanical problems sidelined John Bradshaw. A huge plume of smoke billowing from his engine, along with an oil fire under the 1979 Porsche 911, ended his day... but not until after he posted non-BMW FTD of 57.968 seconds! Stan Jackson Jr. also had an unfortunate incident at the finish line in his modified 3 Series, but he was OK and his car was back on the track at the Ultimate Fall Festival the following weekend. Francis O'Connor once again posted BMW FTD with a 56.761 second run!

Autocross 7 Report

A beautiful, crisp and sunny October morning greeted the 64 drivers who attended Autocross 7. The weather was great all day, the BMW turnout excellent, and the enthusiasm level very high. With this event season-to-date BMW attendance is 51.1%, and the number of BMW's participating in the series is double that of last year (see graph)!

Autocross 7 was graced by the presence of 20 children from the Andover area (future BMW owners and BMW CCA members) who came with their elementary school teacher and parents to experience autocross fever firsthand. And what better way to do this than by experiencing a riveting ride around the course in the seat of our own chapter President's beautiful red 535is. Mike Webb took three kids at a time, and still achieved sub 1:03 times! These kids definitely had a blast!

In addition to this attraction, the fearless Jackson's brought their purpose-built 1972 Lotus-powered autocross championship race car and shattered the current course record with astoundingly quick times. Steve Jackson was the eminent driver of the day, with an awesome 52.909 second run. (Fred and John say that if they also had a power to weight ratio of 1:5 (450 hp in a 2002) they too could easily achieve sub-53 second runs. Fred is even confident that with a blown 850+ HP M1 engine in his 1973 2002tii he would bring in sub-25 second times if he could stick to the track and not end up buried in the center of the Rockingham Mall atrium.) But we digress... Alas, we again had a mechanical failure on course, as Fred Beck sheared his CV joint from the wheel flange just before crossing the finish line. But in the true spirit of BMW camaraderie, fellow member Mike DeSorgo zipped home, pulled the required parts off his 2002, and brought them back so that Fred could finish the day.

The BMW FTD of 57.799 seconds was posted by Mark Miller, who trailered his beautiful black 1988 M535 down from Maine for the event. We hope to see Mark and his brother Scott again!

What's Next?

We are really touched to see the strong bond that has grown between the many club members who participated in the autocross season this year. We saw that it doesn't matter what kind of car you drive, or what your times are. All participants were genuinely willing to give advice, assistance, and encouragement to those who needed it. If you want to feel the absolute closeness of this autocross family again, you will have to wait until next year.

However, the next best thing will be the rosy glow on your cheeks from the bitter cold we all yearn to experience at Newfound Lake during this season's upcoming Ice Time Trials series. (HINT: ice racing will improve your autocrossing abilities!)

We are looking forward to providing you with an even higher level of driving excitement in the 1999 Boston Chapter Autocross Series. Stay tuned to the BIMMER for more details. Final 1998 season results will be published in the January 1999 BIMMER, and will be available on the Chapter website at http://www.boston-bmwcca.org by the time you read this. But for the most up-to-date news, be sure to attend the Fourth Quarter General Meeting Wednesday, November 18th. See you there!

Fred and John

Don't miss Ron Sisco's Autocross 6 Photo Gallery.

November/December 1998 BIMMER

Behind the Wheel: Great Year! Let's Do It Again! by Mike Webb

Under the Hood: Snow and Statistics by Greg Scott

Crushing The Cones: Season Awards This Month! by Fred Beck and John Mansfield

November/December 1998 New Members by Barry Tarr

The Road Ahead: Driving Events Coming Up by Fred Beck

Zymöl/Foreign Motors West Concours d'Elegance by Dan Mull

The Mystery of the New 3 Series Headlights by Betty Lou McClanahan

Castle Hill Photo Gallery by Dan Mull

Boston Chapter Autocross Series: Autocross 6 Photo Gallery by Ron Sisco

Holiday Gift Ideas by Robyn Webb

1999 Boston Chapter Elections by Greg Scott

1999 Boston Chapter Elections: Candidacy Statements by Greg Scott

Ultimate Fall Festival Photo Gallery by Ron Sisco

Ultimate Fall Festival Driving School Photo Gallery by Don Heileman

Boston Chapter Board Meeting Minutes: November 1998 by Espen Frank

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President's Page: Calling All Members October 2000 Bimmer

President's Page: Bonjour, Chapitre de Boston! September 2000 Bimmer

President's Page July/August 2000 Bimmer

President's Page June 2000 Bimmer

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Crushing The Cones: A Spectacular Autocross Season January 1999 BIMMER

Crushing The Cones: Driver Satisfaction Quotient October 1998 BIMMER

Crushing The Cones: Sun and Fast Times! September 1998 BIMMER

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