Doernbecher Dash this weekend at Portland Int'l Raceway!

It’s time for the 25th Annual Doernbecher Dash, an event put on by Cascade Sports Car Club that benefits OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. It will be another perfect weekend for racing with temps expected to reach in the low to mid 80’s.

Saturday September 12 will be a day full of practices and qualifying; and Sunday September 13 will be a day of more qualifying… and of course – afternoon races!! The races will start at 2pm on Sunday and will consist of various makes and models of cars. There will be race car rides available for purchase both Saturday and Sunday. A race memorabilia silent auction will take place both days with bidding closing at 12:30pm Sunday. The Doernbecher Kids Karavan will be held on Sunday during the lunch break.

I am not 100% sure of the entry fee to this event, but do know all proceeds benefit Doernbecher Children’s Hospital…. Which is always worth every penny.

Hope to see you there!

Kimmie SERIOUSLY Goes Racing!

I am so excited and anxious for tomorrow to get here. I am taking my first race car driving school tomorrow, August 14, at Portland International Raceway. While I've done hot laps in my own personal vehicle (VW Jetta GLX VR6), this opportunity was presented to me by my good friend and race car driver Joe Harlan.

It is a Nissan 240SX that happens to be Joe's favorite race car. I am honored and touched that he's allowing me the opportunity to drive it. It will be interesting for me to feel how this car navigates around PIR versus that of my Jetta. Should be quite the stark comparison!

And thanks to the generousity of race car driver Cindi Lux, I will have the best looking outfit at the track tomorrow! Take a look at that photo.... Cindi has never worn the suit because of sponsorship obligations, so it's fresh and clean. The helmet is one of her many personal helmets and I plan on guarding it with my life.

First things first though- Tonight is the obligated "ground school," which I will be attending with my race instructor Mark Schue. Another talented driver from the Portland, Oregon area. So tomorrow, bright and early at 7:45am, I will be out at PIR fine-tuning my racing skills. I will post how I do - good or bad.

Besides the drivers school I am participating in, this weekend is also the Cascade Sports Car Club races both Saturday August 15 and Sunday August 16. So come on out!! If not for the Friday drivers school, then for part of the weekend full of races!

This Weekend!- SCCA Races

I cannot believe it is already August and the season is starting to wind down at Portland International Raceway. What's on tap for this weekend? SCCA regional and vintage races. Looking at the schedule, cars will be on course starting at 9am both Saturday August 8 and Sunday August 9..... and there will be some sprint races both days.... Whahoo!

Extra bonus information--
Quite a few of the racers and teams are fans of the Grateful Dead and will be remembering Jerry Garcia on Sunday, the anniversary of his death. So don't be surprised to see extra tie-dye shirts through the paddock area that day.

In Remembrance - Don Souter

There are several things that draw me to auto racing. Yes, fast and beautiful cars is indeed one of them, but more importantly it is the people. I have met so many interesting people over the years and each of them brings a unique thread to the fiber of my life. One of those people was Don Souter.

When I first met Don, I have to be honest - I did not know what to think of him. He simply walked right up to me with a big smile on his face and said, "Hi! I'm Don. You are?" I remember stepping back a bit and shyly saying my name while thinking to myself, "who is this guy?" But that was just how Don was. He was always the first to make an introduction and ask you how your day was going.

The last time I saw Don was Rose Cups weekend this last June at Portland International Raceway. I worked the turns on Friday, but Saturday was my graduation day from Marylhurst University so I could only join my fellow workers in the morning. I told everyone on Friday night that I would show up to the morning fire school and meeting even if I was walking in my commencement that day.

As I pulled up to the morning meeting, Don was one of the first to say "Hi Kim! Is that your cap and gown? You should put it on!" And I did.... walking right up to the morning meeting with all my cap/gown glory. Everyone was all smiles and I got some flowers and a big balloon. I then heard, "Kim - look over here" and I could see Don focusing his camera. Not sure where that picture went, but he generous enough to take another one of me using the camera I brought that day. Again, that was Don - always smiling and generous to help. That evening when I returned to the track, Don took me to the side and showed me pictures of his private plane. You could tell it was his pride and joy.

When I heard of Don's passing early yesterday, it simply did not sink in. I was told it was a plane crash happened at 5pm Sunday August 2, but I kept saying to myself, "Don was so meticulous - this can't be real." By the end of the day yesterday, it was indeed real and I sat there shocked. As I cried last night thinking about his death, I then turned my sorrow to thoughts about how brave he must have been as the plane went down. I am 100% sure he fought that plane as it disintegrated in the air and spiraled downward toward the ground. I believe he fought the plane to ensure it would crash between the 2 houses in Courtenay, B.C. rather than hitting one of them and possibly killing people in the homes.

So while I am sad, I am remembering Don Souter as a hero. And the picture attached captures exactly who he was - a generous and sweet soul. Pictured l. to r.- Mark, Francois and Don (picture taken by Sandy Meggyesi).

On Tap This Weekend - Pacific Raceways!

This weekend I'll be heading up to Kent, Washington to play with race cars at Pacific Raceways - a track that I believe is most comparable to a forest service road due to a steep, wooded terrain and hairpin turns. To quote the race track web site, "The Pacific Raceways Road Course is a world-class, SCCA and NASCAR certified, 10-turn (9 turns with a "kink" in the main straightaway), 2.25-mile course. The 170 MPH front straight is at an elevation of 150 feet above sea level. There is a total elevation change of 125 feet, of which 100 feet occurs in 1/2 mile, between turn 2 and turn 3B. Winding through natural wooded terrain, it's sweeping curves and hairpin turns make it one of the most unique and challenging courses in the United States." Yep - you can bet I'm going to have some fun this weekend!

So what's running up there? This weekend it is the International Race Drivers Club (IRDC) 4th Annual Car Tender Challenge. I have not officially heard how many cars are on the entry list, but from what I understand the car counts from previous years were pretty significant. And with the outstanding weather forecast for the Kent, Washington area (19 miles south of Seattle), it looks to be a perfect racing weekend.

July Will Be a Month to Remember

Last weekend was my first weekend to sleep in for 3 weeks. I worked three back-to-back 3-day race weekends starting with Oregon Region's SCCA double national at Portland International Raceway (July 3-5), followed by the Portland Historic races (July 10-12) and then finally the Portland NASCAR Camping Series West event (July 17-19). Each weekend had it's own set of memories and learning experiences, but the Historics weekend will stand out in my mind forever.

Portland Historic Races weekend is, hands down, one of my favorite weekends at Portland International Raceway (PIR). If you have never been to such an event, come on out! It's great fun and where else can you salivate over gorgeous works of art crafted in to race cars.

That Friday, July 10, was fairly uneventful for me. While I was supposed to be station on Chase, I ended up being on turn 6 handling flags and communication due to the low worker turn out. For those who don’t know what Chase is, it is the vehicle that responds to cars that have gone off course in the in-field between turns 4-8 at PIR. While I was bummed to not be responding to cars that day, I had a blast hanging out with a few of my favorite track buddies. Plus, I had a militia parked next to me with Safety II, a flat bed truck and an ambulance…. More on that ambulance later. And it is also probably good to mention that Safety II was a brand new vehicle for the track donated from a local auto dealership.

Saturday, July 11, the workers came out in full force, so it was my first full day to be assigned to Chase. I was to be the person in the back of Chase who jumps out and assesses cars, drivers and situations. Chase is a smaller Nissan truck owned by PIR, with the goal of quickly assessing and fetching cars while the track is still hot. When an uglier situation occurs either Safety or Safety II, which are big trucks, are dispatched from race control. That day cars were on course at 8:30am and by 12n we had a couple minor incidents, but nothing significant. The afternoon was quite a different story.

With 2 sessions left in the day, the Big Bore Production cars were being released for a 25-minute heat race. This group consists of 1960’s Shelby Mustangs, 1970’s Corvettes, and an assortment of other bigger cars including a smaller Studebaker and a Sunbeam Tiger. Since this group was one of my favorite, I stepped off the back bed of Chase to watch the start of the race with one of the workers on Safety II because the truck’s back bed sat up higher and I could get a better view of the Chicane.

Approximately 5-10 minutes into the race, the #111 cream colored Studebaker spun off drivers right just prior to turn 4 and was facing counter course just off the racing surface. Within an instant Safety II was en-route with me along for the ride (the truck moved so quickly I had no time to get off the back bed). Approaching the scene, #15 blue NASCAR spun off drivers left and hit the wall but continued on. As Safety II shielded the #111 car, the worker in the back of Safety II with me yelled “You – Stay!” as he jumped off the truck.

I moved toward the cab of the truck, crouching near a race car seat that was positioned in the back bed and leaned in to the back sliding window to give commentary to the driver of Safety II what was happening behind us. The cars were still racing hard and I yelled at the Safety II driver, “They’re not lifting! They’re not lifting!” and he put the palm of his hand on the horn. Just as I saw the pace car come out, I yelled, “Pace has the leader” - it was then that I saw the #45 black Sunbeam Tiger start to lose it just behind us. I yelled “Incoming” and the Safety II driver laid on the horn…. Thankfully that action sent the two workers and the #111 driver running in to the infield. At the same time I yelled I shoved myself into the race seat and braced for impact. The car hit us at approx. 70 mph at the left-side rear wheel well, shoving Safety II approx. 6-8” and jarring me in the Safety II back bed. Total time that elapsed from the #111 car spinning off to the #45 car hitting Safety II?..... 15 seconds.

What I didn’t know and see was that #111 car spun off track in his own oil; which resulted in the #15 car spinning and hitting the wall and (obviously) the #45 car hitting Safety II. What I also did not see were the yellow flags, which starter and turn 1 were frantically waving. From all the assessments and statements, everything was done properly from a workers standpoint. It was an unfortunately incident for both drivers involved. Due to the fact that the rest of the group were still racing as the incident was taking place, all the drivers got a stern talking to by the race officials for not observing the waving yellow flags. Thank God Safety II shielded the two workers and driver who were near the #111 car - that saved their lives. The race car seat in the back of Safety II definitely saved my life because without it I would have either been thrown from the vehicle, suffered head trauma or worse. So while I’m tired today, I am thankful I only have soreness and bruises…. It could have been a lot worse of an outcome.

Yes - An ambulance checked me out right after the incident. And yes - I will still continue working the races.

Okay.... it's been a while

But Hey! I've graduated from Marylhurst University with a BA in Communications and have been out playing with race cars! Can't get much better then that!

I got a ton of photos and memories to share from the past 4 weeks of racing.... I plan on uploading those and provide commentary by this weekend. Stay Tuned!

This Weekend - Portland Int'l Raceway!

Oregon Region SCCA National & Regional Races are this weekend!! Come on out this Friday, Saturday and Sunday to Portland International Raceway! I will be out Saturday and Sunday.. although not 100% sure which turn I will be assigned to. If you come out, just find a course official (typically dressed in white) and ask which turn Kim "School Girl" is on.... they'll point you in the right direction.

Racing in Maui?

One of the great things about traveling is that when I least expect it, I find out about a new racing venues. Case in point- Not long ago, I was in Maui for a wedding. As I enjoyed the scenery I could not help but think.... "this place would be even better if SCCA ran here!" Being the curious type, I hit google. BINGO!!! There is a Maui SCCA!

While I am not 100% sure this region is active, at least it gives me hope that I can be in a beautiful location AND play with race cars.

Oregon Region SCCA Regional with Vintage Races - This Weekend!

If you're in Portland this weekend, plan on hitting the SCCA races being held at Portland International Raceway! The weather will be perfect for racing.... as of today, weather.com reports the temps should be--

Saturday, April 18 - Partly cloudy with a high of 72 degrees
Sunday, April 19 - Partly cloudy with a high of 78 degrees

To review the race schedule, visit oregonscca.com for more information.

Welcome to my blog!

I provide flagging and communications for my local race track, Portland International Raceway through my work with Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). "What exactly do you do out there?" is often the question; with my answer, "I play with race cars!"

I have provided flagging and communications for not only SCCA, but also Champ Car, American Le Mans, NASCAR and a host of other series. My main goal to ensure that drivers, other corner workers, and spectators have a safe and fun weekend. While I will bring forward my unique perspective to this blog, I will also document my journey through various tracks, as well as my experience in learning to drive a real race car this summer.

My professional goal: To land a public relations/communications job with a premier race team within SCCA, IRL, NHRA, American Le Mans or NASCAR.