Motorsports History Archives - Page 2 of 2

Datsun Matsuri a celebration of vintage Japanese tin

By Dave S. Clark

Every Victoria Day long weekend, Datsuns from across Western Canada converge on Kelowna, BC for Datsun Matsuri (which translates to Festival in Japanese), a car show honouring the Japanese classics that is run alongside the historic Knox Mountain Hill Climb.

Despite decades of snowy Canadian winters doing their best to rot away the rust-prone Datsuns, many of them survived and got into the hands of enthusiastic owners. This year, I was able to join those owners in Kelowna with my friend Dave Myers from MyAutoProject.com, who hosts the show.

This is the third year Dave has hosted the show and I was pretty excited since I hadn’t been able to make any of Dave’s Datsun meets since I drove my old 280z to the All Alberta Datsun Meet in 2011. It was a memorable day as it was barely above zero and my driver’s side window had been smashed out two days prior to the meet, which meant I had to drive to the meet windowless in order to buy a spare one off a fellow Datsun owner. Continue reading “Datsun Matsuri a celebration of vintage Japanese tin”

Automotive oddities at Iceland’s Ystafell Transportation Museum

Dave S. Clark

I never imagined I would see a Kewet EL Jet or a Matra-Simca Begheera in a car museum in northern Iceland just a short jaunt south of Arctic Circle. It would have been impossible to imagine because I had no idea that either of those cars had even existed.

The Danish electric microcar and the polyester-bodied French sports car are just two of the many oddball cars that have been given a home at the Ystafell Transportation Museum. Continue reading “Automotive oddities at Iceland’s Ystafell Transportation Museum”

Stumbled across an incredible collection at Legendary Motorcar Company

Dave S. Clark

Driving down Southern Ontario’s 401 highway, en route to Cambridge for a business meeting in an econobox rental car, I stumbled upon something very cool and unexpected.

As I drove through the monotonous traffic on the busy freeway, I spotted a sign for Legendary Motorcar Company and an arrow pointing me to take the next exit. I had no idea what it was, but I had to stop. What I found was better than I could have imagined. Continue reading “Stumbled across an incredible collection at Legendary Motorcar Company”

Volvo Museum an exciting mix of history and future

By Dave S. Clark

To me, Volvo and Sweden are synonymous so when my wife and I made a trip to Gothenburg, we had to visit the Volvo Museum.

Like most manufacturer’s museums, it’s very well put together and features a whole range of cars, starting out with the humble beginnings and ending with concepts of what the future of the marque holds. The Volvo Museum fit that bill perfectly. Continue reading “Volvo Museum an exciting mix of history and future”

Speed Week on the beautiful Bonneville Salt Flats

By Dave S. Clark

There are few places in the world of motorsports that are as legendary as the Bonneville Salt Flats. The massive bed of salt flats are home to some amazing land speed records and an incredible amount of motoring history.

For car lovers, motorcycle fans and even those who just get excited about engineering, it is a must-see destination. Continue reading “Speed Week on the beautiful Bonneville Salt Flats”

Behind the wheel of a Ferrari in Maranello

By Dave S. Clark

The sleepy Italian town of Maranello was forever changed in 1943, when Enzo Ferrari moved his automobile company in and built what would soon become the Ferrari factory.

Ever since then, the town, nestled between Modena and Bologna, has been the birthplace of every Ferrari car as well as the home of the company’s F1 operations. Although it’s kind of out of the way in the northern countryside, you’ll know the town when you see it. Yeah, it’s the one with bright red supercars driving around everywhere you look. Continue reading “Behind the wheel of a Ferrari in Maranello”

One-on-one with the fabled Nürburgring

Our ride for the day was a bright, race-prepped BMW M3.

By Dave S. Clark

Catholics have the Vatican. Baseball fans have Yankee Stadium. Racing fans have the Nürburgring. This is the story of my first trip to the Holy Land.

Continue reading “One-on-one with the fabled Nürburgring”

The little known car collections of Belgium

By Dave S. Clark

When people think of Belgium they are probably more likely to think of waffles than amazing car collections, but TravelDriveRace.com reader Koen De Beer knows of two collections that will change that perception.

Continue reading “The little known car collections of Belgium”

A pilgrimage to Italy’s supercars

Pagani's showroom is one of the stops on the Motorstars tour through Supercar Alley. — Pagani’s showroom is one of the stops on the Motorstars tour through Supercar Alley.

By Dave S. Clark

Nestled in the middle of the northern Italian countryside between the cities of Bologna and Modena are sleepy towns, wineries and farms. There are also the factories and museums of some legendary Italian auto manufacturers. Continue reading “A pilgrimage to Italy’s supercars”