SVRA Fan Mail
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Thanks again to all our competitors, crew members, spectators, and sponsors for making SVRA what it is today. Below are some of the messages we have received over the last few years about our events. If you would like to share your experience, please do not hesitate to contact us today.
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Hi Tony,
Good evening. My name is Aaron and I wanted to reach out to say thank you. My wife and son were out at Road America this weekend and you made a big impact on him. My wife said you stopped them yesterday morning and said hello to him. You even gave my son a car which he loves. He spent the entire day looking for that car and he was overjoyed when he found it (see picture). My wife said you also waved to them again this morning. People like yourself is what is good in this world and from a father standpoint, I wanted to say thank you. Best of luck the rest of the weekend with the SVRA event.
Kind Regards,
Aaron
Tony,
Soooo much fun with so many nice people. Should have done this 30 years ago. See you at Sebring!
Thanks,
Alan
Tony,
I really enjoyed you group and had a great time. We are hoping to make the March Rd Atlanta race. Best of luck with all.
Tad
Thank you, I had a blast in my first SVRA event. Winners are grinners!
Tom
Thank you Tony.
My son and I had a great time. He won the second flag race in Group 8 in our Alfa. Appreciate your leadership in the vintage racing world. Would like to meet sometime and talk about the future of vintage club racing and SVRA. Perhaps at Laguna In May for the Trans Am Speedfest?
Best,
Billy
Tony:
Thank you for welcoming the VARA drivers to your event. We had a great time and hope to participate in more of your events, and certainly this one again next year. It was a well-run event!
Best,
Kevin
Tony,
A little more time has gotten away then I would have liked before sending this email to you. It was a very busy end to the year for us.
I wanted to THANK YOU for a great 2019 vintage race season and we are really looking forward to seeing you and the the rest of the SVRA Team in 2020.
I especially want to thank you and SVRA for the terrific time that we had at Watkins Glen in 2019! In our opinion, the entire event could not have been run any better. We enjoyed every aspect of it and we truly appreciate all the work that the entire SVRA staff put into making it a great weekend.
Registration, getting into the track, the amount of high quality green flag
track time, Friday evening at IMHF, the re-enactment, the Saturday track
dinner (with the GREAT band) and the feature mark race all went as well as we could ever hope for. It was really refreshing to have a feature mark race run under SVRA vintage racing rules and supervision. We have great memories from the time that spent at Watkins Glen with SVRA that will not fade easily.
We look forward to seeing you and the SVRA Team at Road America in the spring, and few other SVRA events around the country in 2020.
Again, thank you for everything that you and SVRA are doing to provide great vintage racing experiences.Sincerely,
Paul Ricco
To Tony and the SVRA Team,
I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the award presented to me at the Savannah Speed Classic as the 2019 Amateur Mechanic. What a total surprise! I just never associated “mechanic” with my name at all. Now that I think of it, I guess I should, as I have been wrenching for Duke for over 50 years. Thank you for this great honor.
I have had many amusing and congratulatory comments about my award, The first to congratulate me was Lyn St. James. How special is that! A memorable comment was, “It is about time a woman was recognized for all we do. Most of us do not drive, but we keep our guy racing,” Duke and I have thought about this and would like to sponsor an annual award honoring the “SVRA Woman of the Year”. We will draft some criteria and will sponsor the trophy each year, if you agree, as long as we continue to race. Please let me know if this meets with your approval.
We love competing in SVRA and look forward to many more years of fun, competition, and camaraderie.
Regards,
Fay Waldrop
Thank you for the fabulous event that you put on at Lime Rock. I really enjoyed the event. We had a blast running my Audi ttrs .
Thank you again sir for your organization.Tony Esposito
Thanks for a great weekend you are doing. Super job!!!
Frank Cioppettini
Tony,
We just wanted to express our thanks and appreciation for the effort that you and the entire SVRA staff put into the Road America Spring Vintage Festival. We can truly say that everyone that we interacted with from SVRA did a great job making the event a good experience for us. We appreciate the way that all of you treat us and I always enjoy shaking your hand on the grid. Thank you for coming to see us on our way out to the track. We hope to see you at more SVRA events this season and please pass our appreciation on to your staff. They do a great job!
Sincerely,
Paul Ricco
Thank you Tony I had a good time despite the weather for my first time in the car and a race.
Best Regards,
John Goeden
Kathy. Thanks to you and the entire SVRA organization for a terrific weekend at Laguna Seca. We greatly appreciate all the effort and coordination that goes into these events and the Saturday party was a nice touch.
Please send my thanks on to the rest of the organization.
See you at Walkins Glen.
Eric Inkrott
Thank you & your team, Tony.
I had a great time and especially enjoyed the modern (v. fast) Trans Am race.
Dean Collins
MGB #20A
Tony,
I wanted thank you all for a great weekend. From an entrant’s perspective, it was very well organized and there were some fantastic cars and people in attendance.
I’ve been doing the Reunion for the past 8 years, and have been going to special events at Laguna since I first moved to California in 1982. It is a very special place.
There are a couple other vintage club events at Laguna that I never seem to be able to attend due to scheduling conflicts, sometimes against other race/track events down south.
So – the timing for this event was great! (For me, at least!)
Thanks everyone,
Pen
Hi Tony,
Wanted to thank you for one getting the date for SVRA at Laguna Seca and two runninga great race. It was one of the best racing events that I’ve done in years. Keep upthe good work.
Best regards,
Tom Diaz
Tony,Thanks to you and your team for accommodating a late entry, and hosting a welcoming and professionally run event accepting of semi-modern cars typically forgotten about, or assumed too new to compete here on the west coast.All the best,Spencer Trenery
Tony,
Awesome job by your team including Kathy back in Texas. This was my first SVRAevent and although we broke early and our weekend ended, I thoroughly enjoyedthe event. Nice to meet you in person and look forward to the next event.
Regards,
John Cavanaugh
Hey Tony,Congratulations on your inaugural presentation of this event!!! From an entrant'sperspective it was very successful and a great experience!!!The pre-filled Tech Forms were a terrific bonus!! One of the tedious items for entering an event is always the repetitious completion of Tech Forms to include thesame information over and over again. The pre-filled Tech Forms were a greatsolution. And it made the Tech Inspection process much smoother and quicker.See you in Portland!!!Rick
Tony,
I would like to thank you and the entire SVRA team for putting on such a great event! I know that it takes a lot of time, effort and dedication to run an event this big. My team had a great weekend, we enjoyed the people coming over to our car asking questions about the history and taking pictures. We also walked through the pits checking out all the beautiful cars. I look forward to being part of more SVRA events in the future.
Sincerely,
Steve Toth
Good morning Tony;
I just want to drop you a note this morning and thank you for the great event that you created for us at Sonoma. The amount of effort that you and the staff put into every detail of the race weekend is amazing and evident to anyone that has participated in a race before. The skill of resolving problems and adapting to constantly changing scenarios created by the course of events was truly impressive. We racers are fortunate that someone of your stature and success in business is willing to devote themselves so thoroughly and with such passion to our passion. Vintage racing’s future is safe in the hands of SVRA as long as you’re at the helm. You stood on your head for us so here’s the doc returning the favor.
Best regards Mark and Dr. Keri
Mark Furcini
Hey Tony,
Robbie and I had a great time at Road America. Darn we wish the car would have made it thru the Enduro and Feature Race! In practice Thursday Robbie showed the driver you identified at Mid Ohio a couple of years ago as the future of SVRA – rockin’ it!
The SVRA Road America event was a perfect example why we continue to gravitate to vintage events: the social component. We love seeing friends new and old – several people Robbie’s age (early 20’s) who we had not seen since they were kid “track rats”! But the real point is there is plenty to do and see even if the race car craps out.
As always, we felt a part of the SVRA family with you, Kim, the
Registration, Grid and Tech people and all the other helpful friends and faces. Even saw each other at the local favorite restaurants and watering holes.Take care and see you soon!
Rick and Robbie Gurolnick
Tony, another great event. Your staff continues to shine. Everyone I deal with is outstanding. How Billy Mitchell keeps his sanity is beyond me. He is a great ambassador for SVRA. Cool to have a corner at RA named for him. ? The oil downs are a royal pain but you guys adapt and overcome. The corner workers did a fantastic job seeing the oil in one particular session where we got only a couple of laps but they were on it early to prevent mayhem.
Looking forward to Indy. All the best.
Tom Lehmkuhl
Tony,
It was a pleasure meeting you and the SVRA Team this past weekend. I look forward to attending many more SVRA events!!!!
Best Regards,
Paul Subject
Tony,
We just wanted to express our appreciation for the overall experience that we had at Road America during the SVRA Spring Vintage Festival. We currently run the blue 1962 Triumph TR4. Emily and I value the experience that you delivered last weekend. For starters, the entire SVRA registration process runs very efficiently. Kim and the entire registration team continues to get us through the process and into the track quickly and professionally. Additionally, we appreciate that the technical inspection team takes the time to look at the cars, do a thorough inspection and provide constructive feedback about the set-up. It is good process from our point of view. Rick Parent leads the process very well. Dave Kettering and the rest of the Tech staff contribute to a great event. It makes us feel better about the cars that we are on the track racing with. The team of people that you have assembled to the run the grid, as well as timing and scoring do an excellent job. They make the weekend more enjoyable for us. The grid staff is very engaging and fun to interact with while waiting to get onto the track. It was special to have two of timing and scoring staff stop by our paddock to recognize the lap times that were achieving with the car. We are not all the way there to where we want to be yet, but the car has been improving a lot over the last 3 years and we surpassed a goal that we had set for the weekend by 3 seconds a lap. They knew about our goal and stopped by to say congratulations on the way out on Sunday. Very nice of them!! It is also good to shake your hand on the grid at each event and thank you for the kind words about our car. It is humbling that you take the time to notice the car. It is a little fish in a sea of big ones when we show up at your events. There are always a lot of special cars at SVRA events.
We have come to realize that we get more green flag track time at SVRA events than the others that we attend. We appreciate that very much. We spend many days prepping our car for each event (sometimes weeks) and green flag track time is what is all about. You and SVRA continue to deliver that.
On a final note, we have really enjoyed getting to know Rick Parent over the last 3 years. You could not have found a better Technical Director for SVRA. He is a great ambassador of the SVRA brand.
Thanks for a great weekend at Road America and we hope to see you soon,Sincerely,
Paul Ricco
Tony,
Thank you for putting this event together, this was my second SVRA event after getting the license at Roebling, and I got to grid next to Bill Elliott and Ray Evernham- incredible experience that I will never forget. I appreciate all that you do in organizing this and look forward to seeing you at more events.
Brian Thompson
Tony,
I give you and your staff nothing but the highest of marks! My first experience as a racer was top rate. From faxing in my registration, to showing up at the front gate, to going through tech, and the excellent instruction. Everyone I had contact with helped me and treated me like I was the only person in the world they had to deal with. Peter did a great job of taking a bunch of scared wannabes with varied driving backgrounds and cars molding us into a bunch of smiling racers with confidence in our abilities. Also thank you for allowing us to race with our
contemporaries in a real race. I started my little red Miata dead last and finished in the same position but was thrilled (and a bit surprised) to get passed by two cars at the same time. My crew was impressed with the friendly nature of all the other racers and really liked your Saturday night get together. Please pass along to the facilities staff on their excellent job of maintaining the grounds too. The only problem I had was that the end came too quick.. I am already registered for the Road Atlanta event in March. The only improvement I could suggest is if the instructor could review in car cameras for those that had them to help refine the line needed to race on.Thank you again for helping vintage road racing to grow
Mike Slusarz
Hi Tony,
Many thanks for the email and for giving us the opportunity to listen, learn and have fun alongside fellow students at the recent SVRA Roebling Road School. I am pretty sure that I can say that we ALL had a great time. Peter and the team did a fantastic job providing us with enthusiastic training and support which I certainly found to be of great help in getting back into motorsports after a 45-year break. I am really looking forward to meeting with you all again in Sebring next week for my first of, I hope, many racing weekends with my new found friends.
My Very Best Regards
John Nash
Britannia Racing
1962 Lotus Super Seven #7
This was my first SVRA event, I’m a die-hard VARA Racer. I left so impressed and welcome. Great worker and official assistance. Made a lot of new friends and remain impressed at the quality of the racing. Love VARA but will look forward to running with SVRA again. Thank for a fun weekend.
Rick Titus
Thank you Tony for a fun weekend for the Miata’s. I truly enjoyed the test day and schedule. All Miata drivers decided to make it 4 races on Sat and Sun instead of just going out and doing laps. We all enjoyed the competition.
Again, thanks to you and all your staff (Ed and Pam to name two) who made it a great weekend at AutoClub. THANKS (Miata #67).
Sincerely yours,
Paul Seiferth
Kathy
Thanks to SVRA for a wonderful weekend. Great races and well organized from my perspective. I know you and the team put a lot into the event and I hope to be able make SVRA events in the future. Good luck on the next outing!
Regards,
Mike
Tony,
I know you already know this, but Kathy Swinford is an exceptional asset for SVRA. I have come to rely on her for questions and glitchy things that need attention for things to go smoothly. Always helpful, always polite, always responsive… even responding to weekend e-mails which is frequently the time I am working on our racing agenda. Like me, you are a lucky man to surround yourself with competent, caring people.
John Cloud
Hi Tony,
Just wanted to let you know, during the Land Rover/Range Rover showcase/program, my wife fell in love with the Evoque Convertible first seen at Indy, Then Later at COTA, talked and visited with LR people. We were later contacted by the Oklahoma City Dealer. These Convertibles are very rare,
the dealer is expecting 5 in all of 2018. The first was to arrive in early December, but did not arrive until December 22. We were first in line and Gail picked up her dream car.Thanks for making the show happen!
Jack Donnellan
Tony,
What a class act the whole weekend was! You can’t do better than Pete Argetsinger for the lead instructor, hands down. Roebling may be “down home” but it’s perfect for introducing people to racing with the generous run-off spaces, great choice. February is a roll of the dice and we came up with the best weather I’ve seen in a year. Great mix of folks in the
class, fine manners on track and off. Oh yeah, classy professionalism by the entire SVRA staff was impressive for sure.
OK, so much for the gushing compliments….now here are my
complaints:Get it?
Regards,
John Perry
Tony,
Thanks so much for the email. I am right at one year out of SVRA Racing school. It was great to stand on the fence and watch the new students learn and reflect on what I have learned since last year. Looking forward to many more laps at many more tracks. Thanks again,
Scott Fraser
Tony,
Thanks for the email. It was a pleasure chatting briefly with you on the grid prior to Race 2. We had met previously at Circuit of the Americas two to three years ago and had a very nice chat. I am looking forward to participating and more Mazda Heritage races in the coming year.
I look forward to having a more extended chat at upcoming events.
Thanks again for all your hard work and the ongoing development of SVRA.
Best regards,
Rich Fohl
Alex,
Thank you for the opportunity to enjoy a beautiful fun weekend.
I appreciate your trust in me and for giving me the time to get back into the fun of racing and getting my license.
The little Formula Ford had a few issues but we will have it all sorted and ready for Indianapolis and Mid Ohio.
Take care,
Daniel Becker_____________________________________________
Mr. Handy,
Ken Mennella here. Just wanted to send a note to tell you about an experience I had at Roebling Road this weekend involving a couple of your folks. I had serious carb problems at the SVRA Driving School this weekend to the point that I thought my son was not going to be able to run my car and get his SVRA license. As you know, that is a once a year opportunity. After watching me make a fool of myself working on the carb for the better part of the day William came over and asked if he could help. Probably out of pity for “Pop” as my son calls me. He then worked on the problem until he solved it even though I kept telling him that it was “ok, we’ll muddle through”. Well “muddling through” wasn’t in William’s vocabulary if you know what I mean. Solving the problem was very difficult. At one point I thought William was going to actually strangle the uncooperative carb, if that’s possible. Even Ben got involved by making an unsuccessful but valiant attempt to get a Holley float bowl from a family relative in North Carolina! He drove for over three hours just to help me! That is the spirit of SVRA vintage racing and Sascosports. Anyway, making a long story not so short, my son has his SVRA License. Thank you Sascosports. Watch out because he’s pretty slow but we’ll work on that too. I love you guys!
Ken
000_____________________________________________
Dear Tony,
I’ve been an active member of SVRA since 1994, and have 60 some SVRA race medallions, mostly 1st place ones, hanging in my trophy area. Since you took over and transformed SVRA I have enjoyed our occasional discussions at race events. However, after 69 years of racing I have decided the time has come to retire. It has been a good run, including professional drives on four continents, induction into the Road Racing Drivers Club for my pre-vintage racing, and great fun and consistent wins in 19 years of vintage racing. I have been honored in recent years, for example, by the first Canadian Victory Lane Spirit of Vintage Racing and Sportsmanship award, SVRA Driver of the Year, HSR Mitty Challenge Cup, Rolex award from the Lime Rock Vintage Festival, and to cap it, the Spirit of Monterey Award from the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion last year. I will be 88 this coming season and I still feel frisky, but it seems to make sense to retire while I’m on top. But I will certainly continue to follow the great sport of vintage racing and I hope to maintain contact with my good friends from the sport.
I greatly appreciate the tremendous improvements you have made and continue to make in SVRA and in our sport. Even though I will not be actively driving, I will continue to follow them with the greatest interest.
Please give my best wishes to your great staff, many of whom I have known for some years, and express my appreciation for their encouragement and assistance.
Thank you again, and all best wishes,
Lee Talbot
Dear Kathy,
It is time for me to hang up my helmet. It has been more than 20 years in Vintage Racing. Some time was spent in Professional Racing. You have been the “best” ambassador and “fixer” I have ever dealt with. That includes the bureaucracy issues on the three continents I have raced on. It will be sad and difficult to say goodbye but it is time.
I wish you success in all your future endeavors and I hope our paths will cross on some racing circuit in the future.
Cheers and Best Wishes in all your future adventures.
Paul Morgan
Hello Tony,
Just want to thank you for a great event at COTA. Holly and I look forward to other events throughout North America in 2018.
Thanks,
Robert
Tony,
Thanks for a great event at COTA!
And, thanks for the discount opportunity and “frequent flyer” privileges with early registration. I signed up for 4 events next year: Road Atlanta, Indy, Watkins Glen, and COTA. I hope to add another one or two, but the travel from Austin is a barrier. I hope you can bring back the NOLA event some day. We love that race!
Stay the course…and thanks again!
Best,
Glenn Bilawsky
Hi Tony,
Did I have a ball at COTA! After shearing off my front spindle (and wheel, etc) on track Friday morning, I thought my weekend was over. I drove to Arlington (420 miles round trip) that afternoon to buy all the parts I needed and with the generous help of the Sasco mechanics, I was up and running for Saturday and Sunday races.Thanks for a great experience – and to all your officials who made me feel right at home.
Regards, Simon (typed as I sit at home in cold but sunny England)
Tony –
Thank you for inviting CVAR again to join SVRA at the COTA racing weekend. I was one of the many CVAR Formula Vee participants. This was my first time to race at COTA and the TOP school on Thursday was a huge help. After running eight times on the track I can truly say that “I raced at COTA.”This was also a double-pleasure weekend for me. I serve on the national Board of Directors for Jaguar Clubs of North America. We had many Texas Region club members enjoy both the SVRA races and JLR’s Jaguar Experience. Your staff and JLR’s representatives were all very cordial, helpful and accommodating during the weekend. The racing was a lot of fun, as well. Thank you for putting on a great show. I look forward to next year.
Best regards,
Dave McDowell
Hi Tony,
Another great COTA! Hats off to you and your amazing staff for pulling these events together with track challenges. Hope you get some much needed time off before it all starts again. Looking forward to playing with you more in 2018!
Cheers,
Lou
Tony, once again you have given us an opportunity to enjoy our passion and cars on one of the world class tracks that you and your team provide us. Barron Racing wishes to thank all of you for another great experience. We will be racing with you next year. Happy holidays. Jim
Congratulations Kathy on the well-deserved award! While we have known you for just a short time, you have blessed us and many others greatly. We wish you all the best and look forward to seeing you again soon. God Speed.
George and Maricarmen
Dear Tony,
I want to thank you for a wonderful weekend. That was such an incredible weekend. I am sure by now you are happy to be able to take a little break and I want you to know you that all of the work you put into all of this really makes a difference. You are really doing this all the right way and making a difference in our sport. Thanks for all you do.
David
Hi Tony,
Just wanted to let you know that adding Road Atlanta to the schedule was a great move- see you there for sure. So was your ownership of Trans am and adding to most of the 2018 events. A great plan!
Keep up the great work.
John and Cheryl
Hi Tony
It was a pleasure meeting you at the hillclimb. Thank you so much for taking a chance on a new event and trusting Ted to make it happen. My wife Nadine and I had a great time. Thank you for putting on the hillclimb. We hope to be back again next year!-Bob Saville
Tony,
Thanks to you and SVRA for arranging this hill climb in NC. Interesting cars and people indeed. Very well organized. We had a blast and hope to see you guys again next year.
Ciao / Lars, SPO # 17
Tony:
I want to let you know how much I appreciate what you and your hard working staff do to keep vintage racing great.
I compete in other sanctioning body events and nobody comes close to SVRA. Please keep working hard, being tough and driving forward to make SVRA the best. And somehow you do it with a smile and humor.
It looks as if I’ll get my 4th SVRA group 1 championship at COTA. One of these days I will stop working so hard and enter enough races to qualify for Driver of the Year. See you on your home turf in Texas.
Dave Nicholas and Rosemary Gardner
Hi Tony,
Thank you for the note and your passion for the sport. I like what you have done for SVRA and Vintage racing. I enjoy the Vintage magazine and look forward to its arrival. I would have raced in Georgia at the beginning of the season but my car was not quite ready. I raced at Indy and had a great time. My wife really enjoyed “The Guess Who” and my in-laws, nieces and nephews enjoyed the racing. You are very accessible, listen to issues and your team is really focused on putting on a class event. I hope the investment you made in Trans Am is a good one and brings more attention to the events.
Paul Bacon
Hi Tony. We had the best time ever at VIR – see you at COTA. Regards Simon
Tony,
My wife and I had a great time. Fantastic event, fantastic organization. I plan to enter future events and my wife Debra, who competed in SCCA and NASA club races for 13 years, is considering competing with the SVRA.
Thank you and best regards,
Dennis
Tony, a great event at WG and an amazing organization of planning to get so many cars on the track. All I heard were great comments. Kudos to you and the team. Check Victory Lane for full coverage! Thanks for what you do.
Ed Kovalchick
Thank You, Tony. The weekend was great, your staff are out of this world. I had the pleasure of meeting your daughter and granddaughter. What a great ambassador to your company. You have to be very proud of them… The re-enactment race was great as usual. I will be there again next year.
Yellow Porsche 911 RS #72
Douglas Kurtin
Mr. Parella! This was an outstanding race car weekend. Absolutely exceptional vintage car venue! Great history and very competitive racers! I had a wonderful weekend full of challenge and ended up on the podium! Cannot ask for more! I will try the Austin, Texas venue! Many many thanks and what a great group of people and staff that is so accommodating and ready to make your weekend the most enjoyable! Congratulation SVRA! Sincerely, Alain Matrat
Hello Tony
Thanks for a great 5 days at The Glen. I’ve not been racing all that long and really appreciated Peter K and the TOP session. I felt really lost the first time out, was finally beginning to feel comfortable by my first qualifying race when I broke a universal joint and had to become a spectator. I’ll be back with my Morgan to conquer next year. I was about to catch you at the Saturday night party to thank you when someone else caught me and when I got free I couldn’t see you anywhere. Great time, great venue, even the loading in Wednesday morning worked about as well as you can handle a mob like that.
Cheers,
Rick
Had a fun time and nice to visit with you. Keep up the good work!
Dan
Tony,
Thanks for taking great care of my customer and I at Watkins. Your team at SVRA and Trans Am are not only professional but very cohesive. Congratulations on another well conducted event.
Regards,
David Russell
Tony,
Great event! The call on cancelling the Friday afternoon schedule was the right one. No complaint here.
Thanks,
E.Z.
Hi Tony,
Just landed back in Australia after enjoying both Indy and Mid-Ohio SVRA events. I know from first-hand experience the effort that goes into managing categories and events, and just wanted to say thank you to you personally and your team for running a great show.
Your staff are always so customer focused and pleasant to deal with, and I love the fact I can going racing and bring home a straight car. Yes I know it takes two drivers to pay attention to keep them straight, however I find that much simpler in your SVRA events.
Again, Congratulations and Many Thanks,
Kind Regards,
Chris
Tony,
As with all SVRA events… fantastic! The weather was almost completely cooperative, the food was great as was the comradery that was shared.Mike
Tony…
Thank you and your team for all the hard work. Long haul… great job.
Frank Dwayne Marcum
Hi Tony,
Great event, you have put together a great bunch of people. I’m planning on running more events next year.
Thanks,
Bob
Tony & Pam. Thank you so much for the Indy event, we enjoyed all of the activities. The Party was special and watching all the racing was exciting and particularly the track time that we had. Thanks again to you Tony, Pam and all of the other SVRA people.
Bud & Connie Taylor
Dear Tony,
You’re doing the impossible every day. Thank you for providing a safe, well-run, smart series of races for gearheads of all income and lifestyle levels.
When you extended the hand of friendship to come to Mid-Ohio after breaking my engine at Indy, you gave me the impetus to scrape together a replacement powerplant and get in gear!
I’ve met so many nice persons – many on your staff too – at SVRA events, it feels like “family”. I have been taken in and accepted as part of the community, and it reflects your values and the tone you set.
Again, deepest thanks and appreciation.
Put me into your Rolodex of “helpers” if you need someone to do something for the Association in Columbus or Central Ohio, you know I would do anything to help you out personally or professionally.
Cheers,
Norm Murdock
Thank you Tony-you and your team do such a great job to make everyone feel welcomed by the SVRA. I had a “pinch me” moment in practice going down the back straight side by side with Al Unser… what? Al Unser at Indy and me? I did have a chance to thank Al afterwards for a memory milestone, and want to pass this thanks on to you for making it possible.
God Speed-
George
Tony,
Indy was my first SVRA event, I usually run with HSR and others. The event was wonderful, congratulations! That was by far the best run, organized and friendliest event I’ve ever been to. I’m signed-up for COTA and cannot wait to run with y’all again.
Best regards,
Carlos Dominguez
Just a note to let you know how much I enjoyed Indy. It was truly a once in a lifetime type of an event. All of your staff was over the top professional and easy to work with. In just my third event in your series, when I have questions on policies or rules every one is great to work with. I will definitely be back again. We had several groups of spectators that stopped at our pit and made the comment that this was their favorite event that happens each year at the track. That speaks volumes on what a job you guys do. So glad Bobby A. got me involved in your series.
Thanks again
See ya at The Glen
Jerry Robinson
Thanks for your message Tony. Please extend to all of your staff and volunteers what a wonderful event you all put on. Especially the folks in registration. They solved every problem and explained all the needed info absolutely flawlessly.
And speaking of flawless, it was my privilege to bring 1984 Gebhardt BMW JC853 out of its 30 year nap for its first race of this century. Everything went perfectly. Learning the car on this track was a delight. All in all probably the most enjoyable historic event I have run in the USA over the last 28 years of such racing. Kudos to you!
And please extend my special thanks to Rick Parent for tolerating my pestering him about getting the Gold Medallion inspection done during his very busy weekend. He was great and I have proudly affixed my badge to the car already.
Good morning Tony,
My family and I just cannot thank you enough for the phenomenal Pro-Am event that you staged this past weekend at Indy.
For us, the sun, the moon and the stars were all aligned just perfectly (and… Kirk & Sarah drove the wheels off of our Corvette)!
We are still grinning from ear to ear and I know that this particular event and the memories therein, will last our lifetimes.
Again – from the bottom of our racer hearts – THANK YOU!!!
Rick Blaha
Hi Tony,
Thank you for allowing my son John to race this past weekend at Indianapolis. This event was a great opportunity for an 18 year old. You and your staff created lifetime memories for us.
The SVRA staff could not have been better. From registration, tech, grid, dinner, your staff was welcoming and helped us have a perfect weekend.
From the bottom of my heart, and with tears in my eyes, THANK YOU SIR!
Sincerely,
Bob Vining
Thank You for well run event. We’ll be back.
Kathy,
Just a little note to let you know that my brother-in-law, father-in-law, wife, and I attended the Indy SVRA event again this year. We were able to put our camper on 4th street inside the track and had a close and wonderful view of the track and pit in that was within 30 feet of our camper. A big screen TV on the other side of camper about 30 feet away and both were wonderful. I purchased food and concert tickets for all four of us and both food and concert were absolutely great! I really believe that this was the most fun I have had in all 4 years of attending this event. I realize that a lot of hard work is involved in putting on an event like this and please pass my gratitude and appreciation on to all involved in making this event such a fun way to spend Father’s day weekend each year.
Thanks for all your help each year also.
Kim Boyd and Family
I thought I’d wait until after the Brickyard event and give you a chance to catch your collective breaths.
I want to thank you for all the effort and hard work that went into the All Formula Car weekend to make it the success it was. You and your staff went out of your way to help FRP, and it showed. I have received nothing but great comments and thank you’s from our competitors about the experience.
I want to particularly thank Alex Miller, Rick Parent and Kathy Swinford for your efforts on our behalf. From the paddock space, to the ease of registration, to the co-operation in the control tower, it all made a difference for the success of the event. Working three big events in a row has to be incredibly time consuming and difficult, yet you were always available and helpful to my staff and competitors.
Again, Thank you!
Bob Wright
Hi Tony, It was great to be part of the Open Wheel Challenge, got to meet some really neat people from lots of places in the world. The SVRA staff show their excellence one more time. A huge thank you to you for one more great event, you are a class act.
Best regards,
Phil Gumpert
Tony,
Had a great time at the Sonoma Historic and I hope we can do the same next year by again including the Formula B cars. It was also a nice gesture for you to come out to the grid and personally shake hands with the drivers and wish them well, at the start of their race.
Regards,
Tom Schnurbusch
Tony and staff,
Very difficult to improve on the 4 days… Thank you for accepting us FFord drivers. All great. Thank you.
Adom Moutafian
I enjoyed the event. Thanks to you and your staff for all the effort.
Jim
Hi Tony,
Thank you very much for letting my dad and I race at the event again! It was another successful event, in our eyes, and we had a very enjoyable weekend. Thank you very much for all the work in putting on and managing the event!
See you at Indianapolis in a few days!
Thank you,
Alex MacAllister
Tony,
It was a great event. We left just after the race for Indy and are now just 300 miles away. Should be there tonight. Look forward to being there for a couple of weeks. By the way, I took the DOP/TOP class at Sonoma and it was very good and helpful. Jim did a great job.Take care,
Geir
Thanks Tony – great weekend. Compliments to your organization and management of events like this. SVRA is the BEST!
Also followed through and did all the Jag/LR programs, with wife and son signing up too so the sponsors feel loved – as you wisely urged us. And, honestly, they work. I would now consider the LR for our next SUV based on the test.
Thanks again for great events, and hope to see you in Austin!
Tony,
You and your team made the weekend an exceptional event… as usual! From check-in to daily operations and all the friendships… just fantastic! This was our first SVRA venture west and it was everything we have come to know from our mid-west to Eastern events!Looking forward to our next event when we can muster up a couple of crippled cars!
Meanwhile, be safe in your travels and find some time for R&R!
Cheers, Mike
Thank you for another fun Sonoma weekend! Best of luck at Indy.
Tony,
I wanted to let you know what a great job you and your team did at the Wine country Race last weekend. It was smooth, coordinated and very enjoyable.
Again, great job and look forward to the next race
Best,
Jeffrey H. Tamkin
It was a great event and I look forward to the next. Hopefully we’ll see you at COTA.
Luca
I enjoyed the event. Thanks to you and your staff for all the effort.
Jim
Tony,
Thanks for the great weekend, enjoyed running with you guys. Good luck on your upcoming events at Indy.
Greg Vroman
Hi Tony,
Just a note of thanks for a good weekend. You and your staff did a great job. Good luck with your heavy 3-week schedule coming up.
Best,
Allen Nicholas
Dear Tony,
Yesterday I attended the Sonoma TOP program led by Jim Malone. I cannot imagine a more efficient or more enjoyable way to learn a track. The combination of classroom instruction, track sessions, and personal coaching was invaluable and unparalleled. What a great way to kick off a race weekend at a new track.
William C. Rooklidge
Hey, I just wanted to thank you for showing me something I never knew about and it’s opened my eyes to something I could get into in the future. Not to mention seeing behind the scenes of the action was amazing, I never got to do that, I learned more about racing, car building and what it’s like on race day. So, thank you so much.
Sincerely, Matt Stock
Tony,
…We had a wonderful time and look forward to competing in SVRA again in the future.
Respectfully Yours,
Jacques N. Dresang
Had a great time Tony. Thanks to all involved. -John Coyle
Very enjoyable weekend event. Thank you guys. -Chad J
From one Piasanno to another you do a great job! Looking forward to June at INDY!
-Ralph
This was our first SVRA event and you guys put on a great event. We ran our 1990 1.6L Miata taking 2nd by just a few feet VS one of Advanced Autosports top drivers. We have now decided to do your Mid-Ohio event and VIR and just maybe, Portland. We were running the SCCA majors series but will back out of that, too much body contact and too little SCCA action on the 1.6L cars is our opinion. Look forward to more participation in your excellent program!!!
Mike Fornetti Crew
First-time trip to Road America. My husband Brad, my son Chandler, and I have thoroughly enjoyed every experience that we have had here. Yes, that includes the wind, rain, the sun and also the 360 I got to experience out of turn 1. Wouldn’t trade anything for the memories of this weekend! Thanks for all that you do Tony.
Debbie Briscoe
Hi Tony,
I just wanted to let you know I think what your doing with Vintage racing is good. It took me a little while to figure out it ain’t easy! Hope to see you at Mid Ohio next year as this year started out with a not so good Bang! Have a great season!
Mike Levine
Thanks Ed for running a safe, fun and on-time event last weekend. I know you have lots of pictures and would like to share one candid shot from the podium in Group 2.
This handshake on the podium characterizes what I love about racing with SVRA, there is no doubt we respect each others abilities and are having a great time. Further we did not meet each other until this event.
I would also say that while this shot was taken on the podium I have had similar handshakes with other racers while racing in the middle of the pack.
Great people and great cars, looking forward to Sonoma.
Mark Pladson
Hey there Tony!
I just wanted to share my appreciation for what you are doing for our sport. It’s a relief to finally see somebody in charge that gets it! I realize it’s mostly an uphill battle for you have been fighting, but you are shining a light of hope that vintage racing may one day actually flourish as a sport. Sadly, the people in charge of the vintage sanctioning bodies are out of date with what makes sense to us as racers, and tend to put so much effort into resisting change, that they are slowly strangling the sport to death… Keep up the great work and thanks for again for coming up to seattle to speak today!I’ll see you in Portland – John Levitt
Thank you for including the Pre-War guys. We appreciate it! I’ve signed up for the Hill Climb and I’m looking forward to it. Bill Stelcher
Tony,
I would like to thank you and your entire team. Everyone could not have been nicer or more efficient. I’m sure little things happened, as they always will, but let me assure you that your team handled everything with professionalism and minimized any effect the issue may have created.
Our group a great time and we are looking forward to the next SVRA event.
Once again thanks,
Bob Piccione
Thank you for including the Pre-War guys. We appreciate it! I’ve signed up for the Hill Climb and I’m looking forward to it. Bill Stelcher
Kathy,
I just wanted to give compliments to you and the entire team that conducted the Amelia Island Vintage Gran Prix. My family and I had a great time and we are already looking forward to next year’s events.
Best Regards,
Paul Dillard
We had a wonderful time at Sebring. Each year we go it gets better. Your staff did a good job of coordinating the event. Hope to go again next year and maybe take the drive to VIR.
Thank you.
George and Diana Rizzo
It was a great weekend, lots of track time and very well organized. I was driving a new car not up to full speed yet but I love Sebring.
Your staff is fantastic, a very dedicated group of very nice people.
All the best
Horace Ott. (Chip)
Peter,
The driver’s school at Roebling was fantastic. Even though I had driven competitively, over 40 years ago, your instruction and the assistants, with all of their experience and knowledge was outstanding. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire weekend and look forward to racing with SVRA. If the track weren’t so far away, I would try to go there for more events, very nice facility with some shade and lots of runoff areas. Thank you and the SVRA staff for all of their assistance.
Rick Ortman
Dear Peter,
Thank you for all that you did to make the school a great success. Best school ever. I deeply appreciate your skills as a teacher, motivator, mentor, cheerleader, and chief hand holder but most of all inspiring us to come up with more every session. You were kind and courteous and clear in your expectations.
I also am grateful for Scott and the rest of the instructors. Getting the certificate of completion was icing on the cake. But the cake, the total experience, was priceless. Thank you so much for being who you are.
Isaac
Dear Tony and the SVRA Team,
Congratulations on the completion of the exciting 2016 SVRA season. What a great season with 16 events in 11 states, 7 events within a week of another, and two events on the same weekend. Returning to Amelia Island and running the airport race after 48 years was extra special. “High fives” to every one!
You and your organization are due a huge applause for your great hospitality, organizational skills, and a staff with smiling faces and a willingness to help answer any question or request. This coupled with great races at great venues, great Saturday night food and fun, and exceptional concerts made for an impressive completion.
The outstanding SVRA sponsors are a credit to the growing vintage racing sport. SVRA is on the racing map, and I am sure will continue with positive growth in 2017 and beyond.
We thank you, and as we say in Texas, “our hats are off to y’all.”
We look forward to the 2017 season.
Cheers,
Fay and Duke Waldrop
Tony,
COTA, was my first time to participate in an SVRA event. It was a fantastic experience! Your group deserves a big thank you, for making this happen. Also, from my view, it was planned and executed with precision. I am already thinking about Indy!
John Kish
Thanks Tony for everything!
It was a great weekend. See you the next one.
You went to my car before my qualification to tell me hi and thanks!
Hector
Dear Tony and Kathy-
The kindness and grace that the SVRA gave our YMCA guests at COTA was above and beyond expectations. Thank you, and especially Kim, for putting huge smiles on the faces of the children when they were given Gold Medallions. You made a big impact in their day!
Look forward to see you all again soon.
God Speed-
George
Tony,
It was my first visit and I thank you and the whole SVRA staff and volunteers. Great experience- I will shoot for next year.
Warmest Regards To All,
Bob Wagner
Again thank you for a fantastic weekend. It was SOOOOO much fun and Peter was the BEST instructor!!!
Lisa
Thanks for the help on learning the COTA track. Your info is priceless in getting up to speed at a new to me track. Thanks for the coaching! With your help, I scored a second and a third place at Indy and got from 22nd in qualifying to 6th in my class!
Keep up the good work!
Thanks again,
Richard Wall
From all of us at Barron Racing we want to thank you and all of your fabulous crew for all that y’all do to make vintage racing what is today. It’s always such a pleasure racing with SVRA. I personally want to thank you for everything you’ve done to welcome the FV bunch to SVRA, I hope to help promote more races and really think we will have 40+ FVs at COTA next year.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, Elliott Barron/Barron Racing
Hi Tony, thank you for putting on a great event. I am running Trans AM2 with my buddy in a 69 Vintage Corvette. The combined race events are great and give both of us a chance to race with one tow.
My buddy was totally impressed when you walked up to him and thanked him while telling him you liked his Elkhart Green corvette! We are both looking forward to being at several events next year.
Thanks again and have a great winter.Chris Pedersen
Tony,
Thanks for adding this to your schedule. You definitely are thinking out of the box with an all formula car event and new Miata group at select events… I’m 48 years old and SVRA always appealed to me, but now even more.
Mike Winebrenner
Good evening Tony,
I would like to thank you for a great race event at COTA! It was a privilege to race on this prestigious track again as well as a privilege to belong to SVRA.Also, thank you for organizing Peter Krause to have his Drivers Orientation Program available to us drivers. Peter’s instruction was invaluable and his methods to get information through was outstanding.
Best Regards,
David Putz
Tony, didn’t know who to send this to so why not the the top. What a weekend my family and friends had. We are members of the British Motoring Club of New Orleans, and really went to the event to put our TR3 and TR6 in the Hagerty car show on Saturday. Before it was over we had all driven a Jaguar on an autocross course, a Land Rover over a obstacle course, hot lap in a F Type with a pro driver. 4 Laps on the track with the my sons Z4 and my TR6, I was the last one in line, Now my son is send me emails from grad school telling me he is looking into a racing license.
I must tell you that the staff, and members treated us as friends whether they were in a semi car carrier or a drag behind trailer. Special thanks to Toni who ran the car show, took great care of us, Shea my pro driver, Jaguar for being so generous with their equipment, staff and crew, and to you sir for running such a wonderful organization.
Jim, Donna, and Justin Clark
Hello Kathy,
It was a pleasure talking with you. You are the best at this with any organization I have raced with over the last 20+ years. You make everything easy.Sincerely,
Dick
Dear Mr. Parella,
This past weekend my 9 year old son and I attended the Heacock Classic Gold Cup Event as spectators in Virginia. This was my son’s first time attending any auto event and it has been well over 20 years since I last attended a vintage auto race at Laguna Seca, California. I wanted to write and say thank you for a fantastic event and weekend! I’m sure my son would tell you this was one of the top 5 weekends, if not the best weekend of his life! He was thrilled by the access he was allowed to cars, drivers and crews who were universally excited to show and share their machines and knowledge with him. The uniqueness of each division and the diversity of cars kept him interested and excited, which is saying a lot for a 9 year old rambunctious child. We spent our time roaming the infield, watching the race from different vantage points, and observing the cars as they left the paddock and lined up in preparation of getting on the track. I don’t think he or I have the patience and attention span to sit in bleachers for hours at a NASCAR or similar oval track race, despite our shared love of cars and all things automotive.
We drove up Friday in our RV and reserved a premium camping site on the infield. Being able to stay on the grounds was a huge bonus as we were there at 8:00am as the cars roared to life and watched as the last car exited the track in the evening. We were spared the drudgery of sitting in traffic waiting to enter or exit crowded parking lots as is the case in so many sporting events.
Saturday night we grilled and then walked and talked to owners and mechanics. I enjoyed my conversations with crew members of the large, polished professional teams as much as my conversations with the retirees sleeping in their car trailers just out having a good time. Perhaps in my later years, once my kids are grown and the demands of work lessen, I’ll join their ranks.
These are great events and I can only hope you are successful in growing your organization. I cannot imagine a better way to enjoy that special father, son time than an event like this and hope to attend more in the future.
Thank you and good luck.
Rick Demolina
Tony,
Not much I can say at this point. It has been another wonderful SVRA racing season. I am still stunned with the Driver of the Year award and will be for some time. It has capped off my racing career.The Zenith watch is spectacular as is the gorgeous oil painting of my car. It is sitting on the mantle as I type this. Thank you. My wife has already confiscated the watch!
As I so poorly tried to say at the awards dinner, I consider it a privilege and an honor to race with the members of SVRA.
Have a good winter and I’ll see you next season.
Regards,
Ken Mennella
Hi Tony,
I wanted to thank you for a wonderful event. My wife and I had the best time. We camped at the track Thursday through Sunday.
It started with my Karmann Ghia being the feature car in the program under Group 1. I was so surprised and excited. I actually had little kids ask for my autograph, too fun. I enjoyed running the service members around the track on Friday morning. The Lt Dan Band’s performance was so great, and I had two days of racing in my car, with lots of time chatting in the pits with friends, old and new. I can’t wait for next year.
Wishing you all the best,
Joe
Thanks for hosting a great event. The event improvements over last year were very noticeable and I look forward to joining you again next year. GC
Thanks Tony and the wonderful staff, Ed especially. He is such an understated hands-on guy that works his butt off! Always loved how he ran HSR West. This event was first class. See you next year!
Alan #544 Volvo
Tony,
Thanks for another great event! It doesn’t get better than this event for most of us West Coast racers. Perfect Weather, LT. Dan Band concert, tons of kids in the cars, grandstands with fans, military equipment to check out, the awesome dinner at the Admiral’s home on Friday, etc, etc.
Best regards,
Bret Gann
Tony – Super great job by your entire staff. Thank you for a great time. Jeanne
Thanks, Tony. Had a great time. You and your staff did an amazing job. I will be there next year!
Jim
Tony – everyone –
Thanks so much for the great weekend! We had a great time and I know the effort that goes into this one is “huge” / probably more than anyone expected. As former military I really appreciate it.
Robert / CairyAnn Merritt
Hi Tony,
I’d just like to say a thank you to you and your staff for a great experience at The Glen. So, “Thank You.”
For 2016, I managed to complete Road America, Lime Rock and The Glen. The thing that stands out from the typical events I do in Australia are;
– How welcoming and accommodating the event staff and officials are.
– How much harmony and comradery there is in the paddock
– How clean and damage free the driving is, although the abilities of the drivers is quite mixed.
– The quality and scale of the extra activity. Like the drive to Watkins Glen township was just great.I look forward to joining more of your events for 2017 and 2018.
Kind Regards,
Chris Stillwell
Tony,
Another terrific job by the SVRA staff at The Glen. Great weekend.Ken
Tony and Team SVRA,
Great weekend and thank you very much for all your dedication to a wonderful, eclectic and historic weekend.
Michael and the WGI Team
Tony,
My name is Gerry Felix and I live in Watkins Glen, NY. In June of this year I contacted Pam Shatraw about arranging a pace car ride for my friend Alan Thompson who was coming for a visit from Northern Ireland.
Alan is passionate about cars and scheduled his visit to coincide with Watkins Glen’s vintage car race of 2016. Although we never met face to face- Pam was wonderful in arranging for Alan’s pace car ride. In fact everyone of the SVRA family went out of their way to make it a memorable experience for Alan.
Thank you so much!!! Alan will return home as a very happy Irishman!!!
Gerry Felix
Tony, I really appreciate the TOP program. It makes all of us safer, better drivers when we experience “new” tracks. This track is incredible!
Cheers, Chip Fudge
Tony,
Kudos and thanks to you and the SVRA staff for four great days of fun and friendly competition at the Portland Vintage Racing Festival. Virtually everything went off without a hitch, despite the threatening clouds that spared us from all but a few light showers. It was our first visit to PIR and the layout proved to be both challenging and fun, and the track operations were superb. Receiving our Gold Medallion, taking hot laps in a new Jaguar, and meeting Al Unser and Al Unser, Jr. helped to make for a very memorable event. Simply put, we had a blast!
Karl and Renorise (Ren) Krause
#6, 1965 Turner MkIII Speciale
Mr. Parella,
I wanted to express how much I (and my family) enjoyed the event. We thought it was a spectacular event overall and Mid-Ohio is a great venue. Considering it was my 1st event driving a 1960 Porsche 356, I was not quite sure what to expect. In addition, I had about 10 family members attend from Michigan, Texas, Ohio and Tennessee – this was also their 1st time to such an event.
Everyone had a great time!
After competing and Mid-Ohio, I am hooked and think the world of SVRA and would like to participate for years to come. I would like to get others hooked as well (I can tell you that the 10 family members I brought to Mid-Ohio are now hooked as well from a spectator perspective – they are looking for other SVRA type of events in their areas).
Regards,
Marcus Pillion
Tony, just wanted to say what a great time we had at both Indy and Mid Ohio. Indy was the spectacle we have come to expect with the auction, concert, fireworks, Pro-am, etc. and the dinner was once again top notch this year. The racing in group 2 was great with many close battles.
For the first time (for me anyway) a group of us from CA stayed over for Mid Ohio. What a fantastic track and a whole different feel to the event. A little more low profile, similar to many of our west coast events but still a great experience. Really enjoyed trying to learn the track and the racing was very competitive. Have not experienced the dinner at the track, but KC steakhouse was very good and the opportunity to get inside out of the Sun was great. As you said the dry weather was more than we expected and ended up battling some heat, not the rain.
I continue to be impressed with your Eastern staff (and Western, but I am used to them). They are a little more formal than we are used to in CA, but I feel they truly want to make it a positive experience for us as drivers. From registration, to Tech, to Grid everyone seems to be enjoying themselves and doing everything in their power to keep us “whiney” drivers happy. I really appreciate that attitude as this is a hobby that we do for fun. If it is not fun, or too hard we won’t do it. Thanks again for building a great staff and providing wonderful events.
Todd Strong FF#16
Mr. Parella,
I just wanted to reach out and introduce myself. My name is Marcus Pillion and I participated in my 1st SVRA event at Mid-Ohio last month (1st of many I hope).
I wanted to express how much I (and my family) enjoyed the event. We thought it was a spectacular event overall and Mid-Ohio is a great venue. Considering it was my 1st event driving a 1960 Porsche 356, I was not quite sure what to expect. In addition, I had about 10 family members attend from Michigan, Texas, Ohio and Tennessee – this was also their 1st time to such an event.
Everyone had a great time!
After competing and Mid-Ohio, I am hooked and think the world of SVRA and would like to participate for years to come. I would like to get others hooked as well.
Regards,
Marcus Pillion
Tony,
Another great event!
Thanks to you and the entire SVRA crew for your efforts.
See you at Watkins Glen.Regards,
Ken
Tony,
Just wanted to let you know that we had a great time at Indy with SVRA. Thank you for allowing us to come play with you. Everyone was so friendly and helpful, it really made for a wonderful experience. I will be looking forward to the next time that we can come race with you.
Dave Ruegsegger
Tony:
On behalf of Rowdie Racing, I would like to thank you, Kathy Swinford and Kim Hoxie for a well-organized event. In addition to my race crew, the staff quickly accommodated wife Chari and my Daughter Laura and husband for the Saturday Banquet.
The opportunity to race my 1962 MGA at the Brickyard was a great experience and we look forward to future SVRA races too.
David Smith
Rowdie Racing
Tony – just wanted to thank you for another great event at Mid-Ohio. The weather was perfect and you and your staff ran everything right on time. Unfortunately I don’t race with SVRA like I did back in the mid-90’s but hopefully that will change.
Thank you and I hope you had a safe tow home.
Erick Zanner
Tony,
Jacqulyn and I had a fabulous time in Indianapolis, the event was truly first cabin! Thanks a million to you and your staff for making
a dream a reality! We will back next year to keep living / re-living the dream!
See you in Portland!
Jeff and Jacqulyn Mincheff
Hey Tony,
Wanted to take a minute of your time to thank you for allowing me to run in the Indy Exhibition group with my F5000. It meant EVERYTHING to me, having been an Indy 500 guy my whole life. It has been my dream. The car was fast and smooth and no drama was created. I drove it pretty quick, waiting to see if that would be an issue, but it wasn’t… so good. Quite frankly the car felt glued to the track in the corners.
I also wanted to comment on how nice your staff was. Being a 40 year member in SCCA, I know controversy can sometimes occur with the sanctioning body. Your folks seemed to balance me having fun and safety very well. The dynamic inside the SCCA volunteer system is “complex” so it was nice to start anew with a fresh bunch. And of course the banquet, auction, and concert were amazing.
One positive result of the Indy weekend is I have a renewed interest in getting my Penske PC10 operational. Maybe I’ll be back at Indy in that one next year… a proper CHAMP CAR!
Thanks again, Ross
The SVRA family is alive and well. Our family extends to all involved in our sport from the corner workers, volunteers, car owners, drivers, crew and all others. The fantastic cars bring us together but the camaraderie and friendship keep us together. SVRA weekends are the family reunions you don’t want to miss!
Firemen Jim and Bob Caudle are two racers that embody the spirit of the SVRA. After the heavy wind and rain storm at Indy Wednesday evening our paddock looked rough. Our large canopy was on the roof of the trailer, the car cover gone and the car full of water. Before we could get back to the track to start clean up Jim and Bob climbed up on our trailer and removed the damaged canopy and disassembled it thus eliminating the hazard of it blowing around any further and creating more damage to us or our fellow paddock neighbors.
The cars bring us together but it is great people like Jim and Bob Caudle that keep us together as an SVRA family.
Thanks Guys, we are proud to know you.
Woody Smith and family
Tony,
My third SVRA Indy and the best. Your team does a great job and shares a great attitude. I was lucky enough to win my class in the enduro and drink the milk, incredible experience! As I stood up there I looked across the track at the seats my father and I sat in for the 1964 500. What a special Father’s Day.Thanks to all at SVRA.
Chip Halverson
Cheers Tony another great Brickyard Event!! Thanks for all you and your staff do to get this organized so well.
Kent
ALOHA Tony,
My name is Nelson Lampert and I drove car #88 in group 9. I traveled to the event from Hawaii after applying for and receiving an invitation. I had to write to tell you that this was the greatest event I have been part of in my 40 years of racing. All the workers and volunteers were extremely friendly and helpful. Although I live far away, I plan on attending more of your events in the future.
Regards,
Nelson Lampert
Hello Tony,
I just want to say “Thank You” from the bottom of my heart. What a great weekend, you continue to improve the event, it was another great experience for the teams and drivers. I think IndyCar should hire you to be the race director! Great job in laying down the law and sticking to your guns, it was crystal clear of what was expected from the drivers and I think things went really well!
I especially appreciate you spending time with my daughter, she felt honored and welcomed by you to be there. It’s fun to watch a kid develop with hopes to expand her world through racing.
I sincerely appreciate what you have done and honored to be a small part of it.
Johnny Unser
Tony and Mark,
Had a great time in the event with you guys and would like to thank for the invitation! Congratulations for having so many great names together in this race.
Kind regards,
Bia Figueiredo
Tony,
I can’t thank you enough for such a wonderful and exciting weekend. It was my first time at the Brickyard. A truly amazing place. I hope next year is even better.
Thanks again,
John Ash
Thank you for an amazing experience this weekend at Indy. You and the entire SVRA team are incredible and put on a spectacular event. Thank you on behalf of all racers for all that you do.
Eric
Tony,
I am back at home at still have a smile on my face, thank you and your great organization for inviting me to such a special event! I cannot say enough or be grateful enough!
Bob Lima and his crew where top notch and very accommodating to the fans to make it a successful weekend for all involved.
I hope to be part of SVRA in the future and don’t hesitate to contact me if I can be of any assistance.
Your friend,
Josele
Hi Kathy,
It was great to finally meet you in person at Indy. Thanks for all your help in guiding me along and being so patient.
I had an absolute blast at Indy! Dan was spot on with sound suggestions and warnings at the drivers meeting. Peter was critical in the Road course learning curve. Pam was and is a scream and was perfect in explaining the Oval rules although a couple folks didn’t listen. Her emphasis on passing rules and avoiding fast lane hogging were right on. Also, Billy helped me for Sunday’s race as, despite running second on Saturday, my engine quit via an electrical problem resulting in me being placed last on Sunday’s Starting Grid. Billy realized I’d be climbing all over the slower cars trying to get to the front and placed me in back of the fast cars.
In sum I appreciate all you, Tony, and the SVRA crew do to make all this fun possible!
Best regards,
Jim
Thank You for putting on another wonderful event at IMS. The cars were great to see, the drivers and owners were polite, weather was excellent, the tent camping was fun, the fireworks were awesome, food was good, and the concert was the best one yet.
Looking forward to attending again next year.
Thanks Again,
Kim Boyd and Family
Tony,
I would like to thank you, your staff, and Steve Earl for the group presentation and performance award it was a total surprise when I was asked if I was going to the awards ceremony I said that I always go to support my fellow racers, I thought you were going to honor all of the recipients of the Gold Medallion status that were approved at Sonoma. I am very happy to be a Gold Medallion member and extremely happy to have won the Sonoma Award.
Don