MG Sports Cars

From Burt Levy's latest email:

Well, I'm chock-full of Sudafed and antibiotics right now (and all I was drinking last night was Robitussin!) so this may come out a little garbled. A little woozy. A little like my prose is being strained through wet cheesecloth. But it's been a long time since the last e-blast and I've been all over the map and back doing whatever it is I do to stay involved with the sport I love and sell enough bloody books and magazine articles to keep beans on the table. OK, and maybe a little steak, lobster or take-out Thai or sushi now and then. But my head is more-or-less spinning right now and a lot of it is pure, unadulterated exhaustion. I'm like the guy who just couldn't stop eating at a damn buffet, and it's pretty clear that I've somewhat over-supplied myself with good times, great events, long-distance travel and even a little racecar driving & instructing now and then all stacked one on top of the other like a sandwich you can't even get your blessed mouth around. You want to know how worn-down, beat-to-crap & used up I feel right now?
Lemme tell you....
Last weekend I was at VIR (probably my very favorite racetrack when it comes to the pure pleasure of fast driving) and I was moreover slated to co-drive with my buddy (in fact, his nickname is "Buddy"--imagine that!) George Wright in his newly finished, immaculately prepared, easy-to-get-along-with and genuinely bullet-fast Bob Sharp-"tribute" Datsun 240Z (see below with George & wife Linda). Sharp-eyed nit-pickers will note that it's wearing my late, great friend, Sharp-and-Newman teammate Jim Fitzgerald's #38 on account of somebody else had glommed Sharps' familiar #33. But that was fine with me. Jim was sadly killed at St. Pete many years back, but he was my very first Road Atlanta instructor (I was driving one of Mr. Hertz's $39.95-per-day Lincoln Continentals, but that's another story...especially about the brake linings and the tire sidewalls) and he became a great racing pal over the years. There's a lovely little shaded park and gazebo behind the tower at Road Atlanta ("Fitzy Park") to mark his memory. Good guy and a truly memorable character as you so often find in racing. Anyhow, George's Z turned out to be a hell of a sweet car and the Virginia weather was fine as can be what with moderate temperatures, glorious golden fall sunlight, gentle breezes and one of the really great racetracks on earth out there waiting to be enjoyed. Only I felt like @#$%&. No fever I don't think, but my chest was full, my sinuses were set up like concrete, my nose was running, my head was all light & teetery, I'd go on coughing jags out of nowhere and I worked up a heavy sweat just meandering around the paddock. Not good. Still, like I said, it was a perfect day and a fine car was waiting, so I went out on Friday to get some laps in and spent most of it (see below) chasing my good pal Les Gonda in his MGBGTV8 (just try saying that three times fast!).

Missed seeing Burt at the Glen as well as Les Gonda and all the other MGBV8 racers - guess they opted for VIR this year but expect to see them back at WGI for next year's 60th Collier cup anniversary.
Another notable figure was John Targett who was in attendance at WGI but not as a driver while recovering from a health issue. John fully expected to be in attendance at VIR - again, not as a racer but probably throwing his support behind the Flying Circus Boys (Max Fulton and the B-Stingers group).
Wish VIR wasn't such a haul from here - great race venue!