Event Coverage TROG Bonneville ??

Man this is a crazy thread. The Race of Gentlemen is just that. It's not a timed race, it's meant to have fun and see if you can beat the guy next to you going as fast as u can in the sand with really neat bitchin' cars and bikes. I just want to have fun with my buddies who like all kinds of old stuff that includes, artwork, architecture, music, clothes and most importantly hot rods, customs & bikes.

Hats off to Mel and all the Oilers and every person who helps put on TROG. It is a huge undertaking. We had a killer time on the east coast this year.

On the other hand it's a whole other animal racing in the Bonneville time trials. I have huge respect for every racer out there. As long as the salt isn't put in jeopardy why not let guys have some fun running on the salt in this event since these early style cars could never meet today's safety requirements required to run in the sanctioned races. Hence that's why at TROG they aren't trying to beat/make record speed passes. On the other hand I saw a lot of people pushing their speeds to the max at Wildwood.

-Aaron


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The BLM is usually reasonable and fair with the groups that race at Bonneville, but how they may react to any issue is never certain.

Ummm someone has not been to a SCTA Board meeting that discusses the latest BLM requirements for El Mirage

 

The key word is "usually".

A 400 mile drive on a Friday evening to attend an SCTA board meeting is not likely to happen for me (although it did happen once), so I reckon I'll find out about it all soon enough, when I get the e-mail from SDRC containing the meeting minutes.

 

"POSTPONED UNTIL 2018"

You'll all have plenty of discussion time now....

 

Slick,
Did you have your car at TROG this year? I think I met you o/side the main gate?

 

I saw that on IG and wondered if this discussion had anything to do with it.

 

Ya, a silvery blue Honda cr-v!
But I was there getting a nice tan!

 

Just found out this event has been postponed till 2018. Oh well. At least now I have time to finish my roadster.

 

Message from Mel...



Breaking news from @theraceofgentlemen.. Pass it on!!! Unfortunately we are postponing to 2018! Timing just isn't right, we have been flooded with emails and we are still getting through all of our Race Of Gentleman stuff to make Bonneville perfect. We feel we won't be able to go back and fourth with racers quick enough and it just makes more sense to take more time to do it right. We will have time to prove we are not going to disturb any salt either! Ha... The Gents out there doing 200 and 300 mph said you guys are fine, your only running 40 horse power flatties! We run rocket cars! Thanks all for your support!!! @yeoleghost

 

Gives me plenty time to finish mine and go !


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What Mel should do next time is not make a flyer and do an invite ONLY event so that the event isn't posted on a public forum...it'll save lots of needless bickering and allow him to work out the details and logistics with the correct officials. This could have been a great event.

With all the traffic that the SCTA generates on the salt you would think a small gathering a mile or two away would essentially go unnoticed. But there's so many alarmist in the world today that you really don't have a chance to even make proposals or considerations. We're all gonna die someday and I'm sure it won't be from the lack of salt.

 

Shame, I would've liked to attend this event. Any kind of racing on the salt is good!

 

I wanted to go so bad!

 

I say once again. The TROG meet was to have been run in conjunction with the World of Speed. Which is a Utah Salt Flats Assn. Meet. Not SCTA. It's worth knowing the difference if you wish to sound knowledgeable on the subject. There are 6 meets scheduled a year on the salt. Only two of which are BNI/SCTA events,

 

Mr fox

I understand that trog has nothing to do with the scta...I was merely making a comparison about traffic on the salt.

 

Oh my. My point is that the event that TROG was going to run with is put on by the Utah Salt Flats Racing Assn. Which anybody reading my post should be able to understand. The SC in SCTA is for Southern California Timing Assn. Which is a club whose members put on speed trials at El Mirage dry lake. Which is in Southern California. Participants in these speed trials must belong to one of the member clubs. I belong to the Rod Riders. The clubs have to provide workers to set up, Tear down and otherwise run the speed trials. Speedweek and The World Finals at Bonneville are put on by Bonneville Nationals Inc. A group very closely aligned with SCTA. But different and without the member club duty requirements. Anybody can run at Bonneville. The July Test and Tune and World Of Speed are two events held on the salt Flats be the Utah Salt Flats Racing Assn. An entirely separate group located in Salt Lake City, Utah, of all places. It is with the USFRA that the TROG meet was going to be held. TROG is not a part of either SCAT, BNI, or USFRA. There is also the BMST meet which used to be run by Dennis Manning but someone else now runs that. And the Cook High Speed Shootout. Also separate organizations. Traffic during the TROG meet would have had nothing what so ever to do with the SCTA. I hope that I have made the various groups involved in speed trials clear to all.

 

Its actually a good thing it was postponed IMO. It gives the organizers time to make it perfect and no details will be left out. At the same time it gives more people a chance to come to the Hot Rod Hill Climb in Colorado!!!

 

I'm planning on going to the TROG salt meet.

Your right, it gives more folks time to prep.

 

I will make the Hill Climb and was wishing I could do both events as I love the salt. Hope they have them in 18 on a different weekend

 

I'm assuming they postponed it because they can't get their own website right on the flyer...

 

^^^^^
This pretty much sums up my experience with Mel too.

 

I met Mel in 2015 at TROG, and had some dealings with him afterward- he's OK in my book. Some things to do with the events needed to be ironed out, but he has been catapulted into the "stratosphere of vintage", and I'm sure that's a mind bender. Still smiling, still running around barefoot, and cruising in his COE monster truck, he's like an overgrown 12 year old- I give him all the credit for coming up with these shows and actually pulling it off.
Bonneville is like Mt. Everest to climbers- now I've got a reason to stay alive !
And thanks to "Elrod" for posting the change; that separates reality from rumor.

 

Here's a thought: There are sand drag tracks all over the country. Why not hold TROG events at one of these? You get a ready-made track with bleachers, concessions, rest rooms, parking space, equipment to groom the track, etc.
Plus you can avoid the rabid wild-eyed tree huggers bloviating about save-the-nematodes or whatever their latest rant is. No worries about the tide coming in. No worries about getting your car full of salt. There is a separate return road so you don't have to stop the action to let cars come back down the race course. Having TROG events scattered across the country will make it possible for more to attend.
What do you think?

 

I think the idea was to have more "Historic" locations for the events. Or at least traditional types of events. Beach racing. Hill climbs. Bonneville. Sand drags might be for somebody else to run.

 

It'll happen at Bonneville once the kinks are worked out.

I'm looking forward to it.

 

Every fuckin car venue is "elitist" by nature. Think about it for a moment. NHRA? Rules, safety, TV needs, corporate, elitist. Bonneville Speed Week? While I met the nicest people on Earth there (I really mean that) there's still rules, safety, structured events, and again with the several speed "clubs", elitist. Billetproof? Yeah, we know. TROG? Sure, same/same. Amelia Island Concours? So elite you best not pick up your can of Pabst without a pinky raised. Exponentially elitist. Pebble Beach and others the same too. Woodward Cruise? Pockets of elitist douche bags and posers mixed in with genuine elitist participants over several miles. Yeah, genuine elitist, I said it. Anyone who tends to keep within a specific style, time, look, whatever, you too are an elitist. You have focus and discipline to get what you want. Here it's old hot rods sucking up fossil fuel like an endless commodity (which it is). Some like "patina" (talk about elitist! I hate that term!), some like vintage radical kustoms, some like everything fully finished, some are just too busy to sweat the details and we let them get a pass for it because we know who they are in spirit. This whole vintage rod gig we love has reshaped an entire segment of the specialty car market. It gave us events like TROG and Hot Rod Hillclimb, made billet a dirty word, kicked sand in the face of the "1-800-STREET ROD" (quite by accident ), and it brought to the fold pieces of history that were buried under the disposable garbage piling up around us.

And some wanna dis that? What the fuck are you? An elitist? Oh wait a min...

 

On the 6th USFRA will begin their first meet of the year on the salt. Test and tune. Very laid back 3 mile meet. No records. Just a chance to run on the salt Maybe next year TROG can run with this July meet and avoid the conflict with the hill climb.

 

I am waiting for the hill climb event on the salt flats.

 

How tall is the deck on your trailer? Bob