Busy Bee Weekend

Another beautiful summer weekend has come and gone, and it was a busy one for me.

Friday evening, June 15 - Seaway Mall Cruise

For the 2nd time this year, I attended the Welland Seaway Mall cruise and it was quite busy this time compared to the first one. Last I heard, the announcer said there was 306 cars. There were also quite a few very nice ones, including a very nice custom Chevy S10. Speaking with the young owner, he said it was painted by himself and his father in their garage. They also installed Caddy rear lights which added a nice touch. The color was a custom mixture but it was very nice in the sun. You can see pics of that truck and some of the other cars HERE.

Saturday, June 16 - Wildgoose Open House

Saturday was Wildgoose Performance's Open House celebrating 30 years in the business. It was a pretty good turnout. They had dyno sessions almost every hour on a small block Chevy 383...until about 2:30 when one of the head gaskets blew. The burnout contest was entertaining, plenty of prizes, and someone even walked away with a $1000 set of Konig wheels. You can see pictures HERE. I also took a video of one of the dyno session which you can view HERE. And finally, you can see the burnout competition video HERE.

After I got home from the Open House, I went and picked up a used adjustable BMR Panhard Bar for my car to replace the cheesy OEM unit. I then proceeded to install the bar, and also changed 2 small rubber gas lines that are just over the rear axle just in case that might be causing my fuel problem...but it didn't help in the end.

Sunday, June 17 - CASC Provincial Event #3

I decided to do some racing today to try out the new front alignment. The event was hosted by the Competition Corvette Club. I always enjoy their events because they have big, open course layouts to accommodate the big HP of the Corvette. Most courses are tight and cater to the smaller cars. But it didn't matter because of the following equation;

375 HP + 3400 lb car + 3 year old street tires = NO TRACTION & SLOW

Translation: I got annihilated...wasn't even close in my class or alot of slower classes simply because I can't put the power down or use the cars suspension to the fullest without sticky race tires. I'm on the outside looking in. Oh well...like the saying goes: A bad day at the races is still better than a good day at work.

It's not 1st...

...but I'll take it. That's right; The ol' beast got 3rd Place in the "82-92 Mild Modified" class at the 19th Annual Ontario Camaro Club Nationals this weekend, and I couldn't be happier. This car show stuff is starting to get to me. I might actually have to start cleaning the car more.

You can click on the image to get a clearer version.

Weatherwise, you couldn't have asked for better...mid to high 70s with a light breeze for both Saturday and Sunday. There was over 200 Camaros for 1967s to 2002, and there was also a 2009. Yes, the 2009 Camaro concept car made an appearance for Friday and Saturday only. I got some video footage of it, but forgot to take pictures. I'll post the video in the VIDEO section shortly.

One of the clubs I belong to, Camaro Country F-Body Group, took the Club Award for a second year in a row. We had 44 club cars (but we counted 47) at the show.

I added a whole bunch of pictures HERE. Also, my car made it onto the RodandPiston.com website. Once HERE while in the judging tent, and another HERE just in the parking area.

I'm looking forward to next years show already. Now that I have a general idea how things work, I'll be better prepared and maybe go for gold! ;)

Next weekend I'm off to the Wildgoose Performance Open House on Saturday, then on Sunday I might go race at the CASC Solo2 Provincial series at Bronte. We'll see how the weather holds up.

Another alignment come & gone...

The alignment is now complete along with the new billet aluminum tie rod ends. The following are the specs on the alignment;

• Camber: -1.8 deg (-2.3 available)
• Caster: 4.5 deg (Maxed out)
• Toe out: 0.125"
  

I want to thank Scott over at Can-Alignments for the great service once again. If anyone needs an alignment done RIGHT, then you'd be crazy to go anywhere else. Hey, I drove from Welland to Milton for it (1 hour drive).

Here's a little plug for you Scott:

http://www.canalignment.com

About Us

My wheel alignment experience ranges from your daily driver to Ferrari's and full WINNING race cars. The following article is taken from SSGM magazine on May 1997:

"Canada's first shop recognized by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) as a Blue Seal of Excellence facility is operated by an owner who is hungry for knowledge. Scott Murfin, 30, believes there is no limit to the amount of education, training and knowledge required to repair today's vehicles. But he does everything he can to learn as much as possible. An alignment and brake specialist who owns Can-Alignment & Brake Service in Milton, Ont., Murfin has a lot to be grateful for and he can thank himself for just about everything. As the first Canadian recipient of the Blue Seal of Excellence, the prestigious recognition for the skilled and talented auto service professional. To be eligible for the program, a facility must have 75% of its repair technician ASE-certified. In addition, there must be a certified technician in each area of service offered by the facility."

CCFBG Show & Shine

The 5th Annual CCFBG Show & Shine was another great success. The weather was hot, and so were the cars.

I got to meet a lot of new people...well, new in person. Most of them I have exchanged conversations with over at the CCFBG forums, but it was interesting putting faces to forum names.

At the end of the day, there was 100+ Camaro/Firebirds of all generations at the show.

I just want to thank all the organizers at CCFBG for a great setup, and I'm looking forward to next year.

You can see some pictures I took by CLICKING HERE.

Pictures from others HERE and HERE.