Start Your Engines

For those of you who missed the very successful Ice Racing Series this year, now is the time to dust off your driving gloves and get your BMW ready for the events to come this year.

To whet your palette, come to the annual Dent Wizard Tech Session and their facility in Danvers on Saturday, April 10. Paintless dent and ding removal is their specialty, and BMW CCA members will receive a 23% discount on the first panel fixed that day. Get those door dings fixed in one day!

Fred Beck

Saturday, April 17, the Spring Driving School Prep Tech Session will be held at HMS Motorsport in Marblehead. If you would like to learn what a Driving School is, are planning to attend your first school this year, or have just begun your driving school career, this tech session is a really great way to get an overview of the driving school experience. Joe Marko, Boston Chapter Director, past President, and Bimmers Across the Border Driving School Chair, will cover all the basics. Joe will  tell you about the inspection and preparation of your car for the track, safety equipment, basic driving techniques, safety flags, and tips for getting the most out of a driver's school, with plenty of time for questions and answers. Veteran driving school participants are also encouraged to attend.

Driving enthusiasts take note! The 1999 Boston Chapter Autocross Series, sponsored by the Massachusetts BMW Retailers, kicks off this month! Our first event is Sunday, April 18, again at the Rockingham Park horse racetrack in Salem, NH. John Mansfield and I have devised a great new course for this year, and plan to continue the tradition of providing a great time for everyone at the Autocross Series. For those of you who haven’t tried autocrossing yet, come on up and check it out. Except for some wear on your tires, autocrossing is not too hard on your car, is a great deal of fun, and is an excellent way to improve your driving skills and car control capabilities. We will run rain or shine (and maybe even snow!), and will look forward to seeing you there.

Less than a week after the first autocross, the White Mountain Chapter Cabin Fever Driving School will take place on Friday, April 23. As of this writing spaces are still available, so if you have the last-minute urge to hit the track, you might try calling Mario Langsten of the WMC to see if you can still get in.

If there is an event you would like to attend that is not already on the Ultimate Calendar, take the initiative to create a new event. As a great example of this, Club Member and avid autocrosser/ice racer Justin Hughes has volunteered to coordinate a gathering for E21 BMW enthusiasts later this year. The E21 is the first generation 3 Series, model years '77-83. These include the 320i (US), 320i/6, 316, 318, and 323i. This will most likely be held at a local park, possibly as a picnic or BQ event. For more information on the E21 gathering, or to give him a hand in setting it up, contact Justin Hughes at hughes@boston-bmwcca.org.

If you have any questions or comments about Boston Chapter events, or want to start a new one yourself, please feel free to contact me at fbeck@boston-bmwcca.org. Now, put your bimmer in gear and come join us for some new adventures!

Fred

April 1999 BIMMER

1999 Ice Race 3 Photo Gallery by Ron Sisco

Behind the Wheel: Glorious Sun and Convertibles by Mike Webb

Under the Hood: Do You Have A Favorite Road? by Greg Scott

Crushing The Cones: One Down, Seven to Go! by Fred Beck and John Mansfield

April 1999 New Members by Barry Tarr

Keys In Hand: Start Your Engines by Fred Beck

On The Ice: New Name, Same Event by Stan Jackson Jr.

First Quarter 1999 General Meeting: New Members Night by Tom Farnsworth

1999 Boston Chapter Driving School Voluneers Needed: One Down, Seven to Go! by Luka Serdar

Favorite Road: Hot Dog Annie's and Route 56 by Greg Scott

Boston Chapter Board Meeting Minutes: February 1999 by Will Farnsworth

More Boston Bimmer articles by Fred Beck

President's Page: Mr. Beck Goes To Washington November/December 2000 Bimmer

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

There are 51 more Boston Bimmer articles by Fred Beck