by Dave Pratt
by Dave Pratt
The racing was blistering. The barbecue was flaming. The vintage race cars were sizzling. But mainly all of the people there were sweltering at the annual AONE gathering at the New Hampshire Vintage Celebration at NHIS
Make sure to check out the video clip of Paul Glynn and his Giulietta by clicking here! |
Still, it would have been nice to be able to dial in some cooler temperatures, especially in the blazing sun with very little breeze and nothing but asphalt around us, with dozens of race car engines running at any given moment.
Undeterred, we all began arriving in late morning and set up camp not far from Kevin Fitzgerald’s race car trailer that had hauled his Arnolt Bristol and Paul Glynn’s Giulietta racers. Camp consisted of our AONE canopy, a couple of Alfa Romeo banners, some tables, chairs, coolers, and a portable barbecue grill. Pretty cushy!
Our gathering was a completely informal affair, with people coming and going as they got the urge. Of course, when it got to be lunch time, the camp became a popular spot, with AONE President Tom Lesko again rounding up some burgers, dogs, pickles, chips, potato salad, soft drinks, and the like, and then performing Head Chef duties as well. (Thanks, Tom!) The canopy proved to be a favorite venue all day long since, for one thing, it provided some of the only shade around. And there was nothing left to drink in the coolers by the end of the day.
The reason we were all there, though, was for the vintage racing! There was a lot of it to take in, with some great pairings and hotly contested duels. Just as much fun was watching all of these terrific old racers (the cars, that is) from a time span of several decades being driven with gusto and listening to the marvelous sounds that they made. It’s also a real rush to get up close and personal with all of the wonderful machines by wandering around the paddock area and checking out the cars as they recuperate and/or get some work done on them between races.
And, as always, it’s a treat to hang out with a bunch of like-minded people (our fellow club members) and jawbone about our favorite topic – Alfa Romeos and driving ‘em fast.
It was this writer’s task to haul the canopy plus two other
people up to Loudon and back, so that meant having to take the 164 instead of one of the
"summer" cars. Gotta say that that cold Italian A/C sure was welcome at the end
of the day’s hot times in Loudon… 
(Click on the thumbnails below for a
larger view,
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Paul Glynn in his
#512 Giulietta, about to overtake a slower car on the outside. Check out a video clip of
Paul in action (driving, that is) by clicking here! Dave Pratt video |
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The AONE canopy, festooned with Alfa Romeo
imagery, marks our spot and provides some shelter from the sun Dave Pratt photo |
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A Giulietta bears down hard on the tail of
a lesser car Doug Fraser photo |
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President Tom Lesko provides sustenance for some while others watch the action out on the track Dave Pratt photo |
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The beautiful blue Giulietta of Anthony
and Lulu Wang takes a between-heat heat break Kevin Murphy photo |
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The bravado (some would call it foolish
recklessness) of the sidecar racers never fails to impress Doug Fraser photo |
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AROC-CT’s Caryl Stratton showing
excellent form attacking a downhill corner Dave Pratt photo |
