We take on the Epic Mini vs. Mustang Race
OMS and the Velocity Invitational at Laguna Seca January - February 2022
Oregon Mini Society Pages Thanks to Jet Motors, Mini Mania, MINI of Portland, Seven Mini Parts, Kings Cross Automotive & Hagerty
M e mor i e s PRESIDENT
by R and y Unsbee
We’ve made many great memories these past months!
Eric Newland eric@hybridmoon.com
Not the least of these was the Velocity Invitational at
vice president
in the epic Mini vs. Mustang race. Also attending were
Joe Munsch jmunsch@slvsoft.com
membership Rowland Cheeks rcheeks@mac.com
Treasurer Mary Wood mypopoki@gmail.com
Historian Burt Reif b.breif@yahoo.com
OMS members Julia Unsbee, Jeremy & Debbie Thorpe,
THE STRANGER RANGER
Does it float?
10 WINTER WONDERLAND TOUR
month we’ll share more of our candid photos from this
14 COMING EVENTS
spectacular gathering.
Mark your calendars now!
Not long after the Mini vs. Mustang race was the
17 OMS HOLIDAY PARTY
amazing Christmas party hosted by Roger & Chris Wooley in their spectacular home with an intimate concert from rock violin-
The Wooley’s pull out the stops for the Christmas Holiday
page 10
18 SUPER BOWL PARTY
page 18
A great way to start off the New Year
ist Aaron Meyer. Rowland
19 BORIS THE MORRIS TECH SESSION
Cheeks hosted the Winter
Our members show off their skills
Wonderland gathering
EDITOR
at the Hyatt Regency
20 MINI VS. MUSTANG AT LAGUNA SECA
Portland At The Oregon
David beats Goliath, twice, at the Velocity Invitational
Convention Center which
Randy Unsbee randy@sponsorpr.com
was a holiday highlight. Your editor in the Mini vs. Mustang race at Weathertech Raceway Laguna Seca
Kicking off the New Year was the first of many Boris
JET Motors - page 5
the Morris tech sessions
Mini Mania - page 7
as we begin wrapping up the club project, while Sean
Hagerty - page 19
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Christmas Holiday gathering and PIR tour
the race from a driver’s perspective on page 20. Next
Nicholas Coker geminate@me.com
MINI of Portland - page 17
page 6
VanRiper. You’ll find the Victory Lane feature article on
web guru
Kings Cross Automotive - page 15
page 4
Eric & Heather Newland, and Wryann and Mallory
Brian & Lynn Copeland bcopeland8667@msn.com
Seven Mini Parts - page 9
We have a great year ahead! OMS member exclusives
Laguna Seca in Monterey, California where we raced
regalia
ADVERTISER INDEX
contents 4 FROM THE DESK OF El PRESIDENTE
O’Hollaren hosted a super Super Bowl party. More OMS memories are on the way with an exciting schedule of events and trips. This Sunday we get together again at the Verdict in Oregon City for a faceto-face membership meeting! Check the calendar on the OMS website for the lates updates and page 14.
page 19
Cover photo by Cindi Racine, insert by Road & Track
Just a sample of coming events includes A Shortcut to Astoria on Sunday, March 20, OMS Sunday Membership Meetings on April 10, May 8, and June 12, the Tour to Oregon Garden on Saturday, April 16, the Willamette Valley Wine Tour on May 28-29, the Mt. Saint Helens Tour on June 11-12, and the Hillsboro Tuesday Market July 19. Mini Meet West returns after the COVID break on July 25-29 in Kingston, WA. I’ve been asked to be a presenter there on the Mini vs. Mustang race. https://peninsulaminisociety.org/2021/10/07/mini-meet-west-2022/#page-content These are just some of the fun activities designed exclusively for OMS members. See you this Sunday at the Membership Meeting at The Verdict in Oregon City, 7 p.m. 3
Fr om the Desk of El Pr esidente
Fr om the Desk of El Pr esidente
road? If you would like to share some of your adventures with the rest of the group, I encourage you to reach out to Joe Munsch so he can prepare a tour where we can take in the sights and sounds of your adventure.
Eric at the Velocity Invitational with F1 World Champion Mika Hakkinen (top left) and NTT IndyCar star Pato O’Ward (top right.)
Greetings OMS Members! We have a great year ahead of us. The next tour will be March 20, where we will drive to Astoria to explore a museum and have lunch before returning to our homes. Thank you to everyone who has renewed their 2022 membership. If you haven’t, Membership Director Rowland Cheeks will be contacting you. I hope you’ve been able to properly care for your car over the winter 4
months and possibly take it out on a few adventures. January and February are traditionally not the best times to be driving, and I know many of you have stored your classics. Hopefully, you have been able to keep your battery on a Smart Charger. Your last fill-up in 2021 was of good quality non-ethanol fuel, or you had enough premonition to add a gas stabilizer. Have you had an exhilarating drive lately and know of an extraordinary
The All British Field Meet is scheduled to take place at Portland International Raceway on September 9, 10th, and 11th, where we will salute everything Triumph. This includes bikes, motorcycles, and cars. This event is our largest and only fundraising event of the year. I have always been highly enthusiastic about supporting this event personally. I hope you all can join in on the fun, whether it’s simply bringing a car to the event or becoming more involved, as other OMS members have been able to do over the years. This year’s OMS representatives are Roger Wooley and Joe Munsch. Roger Wooley and Chris Wooley will lead the art display, Burt Reif commands the giant slalom, and Joe Munsch directs the rally. We have lots of opportunities to get involved, and I would highly recommend that you reach
out to other people or me, as I have mentioned above, to learn more about this exciting event. Oregon Mini Society has long stood for having fun with our little cars, whether they are classic or new, that you may have purchased from MINI of Portland. We look forward to your participation as we enter the busy event months ahead. El, OMS El Presidente
Parts, sales & service for the classic Mini Cooper 9766 SE City View Drive Happy Valley, OR 97086 www.jetmotorsmini.com sales@jetmotorsmini.com
jet-motors-full-advert.indd 1
For social media content, check out: https://www.youtube.com/user/JetMotorsCreations
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The Stranger Ranger by Burt Reif are simple cut-outs. With the optional top and side curtains, ease of entry and exit would be like that of a similarly attired Lotus Seven. But this car no longer has its top or side curtains, just some oddly shaped holes and lots of snaps.
“Does it float?” “No” “What is it?” “A Ranger Cub” “Oh. Where’s it from?” “England” “Can I take a picture?”
The driver controls things from the sidewalk side of the car, so a passenger is not needed for conversation, just a stoplight and pedestrians. As with any Mini, however, it is nice to have a passenger to do the smiling and waving while the driver is driving.
Drivers from nearby vehicles also strike up conversations using their Then the light changes, and I’m off to the passenger as an intermediary or next stoplight conversation. shouting from their perches on the far In its present configuration, the only protec- side of their voice muffling vehicles equipped with windows, tops and soft tion from the elements is the windshield. So the interior is controlled by the climate interiors. rather than climate controlled. According to Maximum Mini, the authoritative website and three volume The doors have no moving parts, as they book set for information on hundreds, 6
yes hundreds, of vehicles containing rounds on the internet: The Pandemic motivating bits from a Mini, about 18 Project. I had caught the Mini variant. Ranger Cub three wheelers and 2 four wheelers were produced. Also, I wanted to save the little fiberglass, boat-looking, three-wheeled car This particular one is very photogenic, from Jeremy and Paul’s fantasies of appearing in “googled” images from making it actually float. Floating cars both sides of the pond. and flying cars are a lot like the concept of multi-tasking ; they do many Jeff Drago provided for its passage things in a lackluster manner. along with a four-wheeled Hustler (Hustler’s other option was six (continued on page 8) wheels) to the U.S. After their tenure with Jeff, they both ended up with Jeremy because, well you know, he’s Jeremy. I had been ogling it for a while, finding it quite stylish from some angles and totally ridiculous from others. It disappeared into some kind of quasi ownership/storage for a while, but then was back taking up room again at JET Motors. In the spring of 2020 an idea more contagious than COVID 19 was making the 7
(continued from page 7) Paul, who actually has a boat, and is knowledgeable about floaty things, is still convinced that he could get enough foam into the hollow parts of the body to not only make it float, but
Getting the foamy Ranger Cub into Jeremy’s spacious above ground pool would require either a crane or a ramp, as well as booms to contain the oil slick. Accessorizing was the most enjoyable
They hadn’t noticed how low an Amphicar or a VW Schwimmwagen sat in the water on the calm days they were filmed for Youtube videos.
make it float like a boat rather than like a buoy with the two front wheels and the lump under water and the third little wheel way up in the air all alone. Then there were always the logistics of testing the seaworthiness. 8
part of the scheme; stick-on mailbox numbers for the registration, marine lighting, little flags, life rings, and the propeller of the electric trolling motor sticking out the rear. (It floats AND it’s a hybrid.) No one had any concerns about the door cut-outs.
I plan to take the easy way out; maybe a life ring with ‘Land Dinghy’ lettered on it and a propeller that fits into a trailer hitch receiver. At the next stoplight: “Does it float” “Yes….”
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Wi nt e r Wo n d e rl a n d To u r
The OMS Holiday celebration included the Winter Wonderland Tour at Portland International Raceway, but it kicked off at the Hyatt Regency Portland At The Oregon Convention Center. Thanks to our membership director, Rowland Cheeks, the tour began with Holiday cookies and hot chocolate, along with optional cocktails in the lobby bar.
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Then, it was off to PIR and the expansive holiday light display which is an annual tradition at the race circuit.
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Paul See, MINI of Portland Zach Ruhs, Rowland Cheeks
The OMS fleet gathers before cruising PIR
Portland International Raceway was lit up for the occasion and greeted our fleet of OMS members Classic and NEW Minis were on hand for the tour
Heather Newland, Rowland Cheeks, & Dave & Tracy Walmer 12
Classic Mini ready for the tour
There was chill in the air but conditions were just slightly damp
Our intrepid VP, Joe Munsch
Lily Pham & co-driver. 13
Future Ahead
Mt. Saint Helens Tour
OMS Membership Meeting
Sat - Sun June 11-12 40th Anniversary • Mt. Saint Helens Tour With Optional McMenamins Kalama Harbor Lodge Overnighter OMS Membership Update Mount St. Helens is an excellent day trip driving through the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument. We will depart from McMenamins Kalama Harbor Lodge.
Sunday, March 13, 2022, 7pm – 8pm The Verdict Bar And Grill, 110 8th St., Oregon City, OR 97045 Club meetings are generally held the third Sunday of the month. A Shortcut to Astoria Sunday, March 20, 2022, 9 am - 12:30 pm Depart from Fred Meyer, 7355 NE Imbrie Dr., Hillsboro, OR 97124, USA A fun little jaunt from Hillsboro to Astoria via the backroads. Is there any other way worth taking? We’ll meet at Fred Meyer at 9, head out through the hills between Hwy30 and Hwy26. About a hundred miles later (2.5 hours) we’ll arrive in Astoria, at the Columbia River Maritime Museum.
Attractions: Johnston Ridge Observatory McMenamins Kalama Harbor Lodge OMS Meeting Sunday, June 12, 2022, 7pm – 8pm To be Determined Forest Grove Concourse Sunday, July 17, 2022 https://forestgroveconcours.org/Willamette Valley Wine Tour
OMS Membership Meeting
Hillsboro Tuesday Market
Sunday, April 10, 2022, 7pm – 8pm MINI of Portland, 9134 SW Canyon Rd., Portland, OR 97225 Club meetings are generally held the third Sunday of the month.
Tuesday, July 19, 2022 Opportunity to show our cars to the kids, old and young.
Tour to Oregon Garden Saturday, April 16, 2022 Details to come - Check the OMS Website Calendar OMS Membership Meeting Sunday, May 8, 2022, 7pm – 8pm MINI of Portland, 9134 SW Canyon Rd., Portland, OR 97225 Club meetings are generally held the third Sunday of the month. Willamette Valley Wine Tour Sat - Sun, May 28-29 Depart from Starbucks, 14600 SW Murray Scholls Dr., Beaverton, OR 97007, USA Proposed schedule is to sample a couple of Chehalem Mountain wineries on Saturday. Then tour down to McMinnville for an overnight at one of the nice inns. Sunday we’ll visit a couple of wineries further south in Willamette Valley. Tour is hosted by Hagerty. 14
Mini Meet West ‘22 Monday, July 25 to Friday, July 29, 2022 The Point Casino & Hotel, 7989 NE Salish Ln., Kingston, WA 98346, USA Save the date all you Miniacs. Venue is The Point Casino & Hotel in Kingston, WA. https:// www.thepointcasinoandhotel.com/ Details to follow. Oregon Gardens & FL Wright House Saturday, August 13, 2022 Details to come. OMS Membership Meeting Sunday, August 14, 2022, 7pm – 8pm MINI of Portland, 9134 SW Canyon Rd., Portland, OR 97225 Club meetings are generally held the third Sunday of the month. 15
OMS H o liday Part y Roger and Chris Wooley kindly opened their gorgeous Portland home to host the first OMS Holiday Party since COVID began. OMS members were feted with a grand food layout, a tour of Roger’s private car collection, and a great evening of revelry and even a raffle draw. One of the highlights of the evening was an intimate concert provided by rock concert violinist Aaron Meyer right in the Wooley’s living room. It was a Christmas party not to be missed, and a grateful respite from the lengthy lockdowns.
Mt. Saint Helens Tour with McMenamins Kalama Harbor Lodge Overnighter We will meet at MINI of Portland at 9 AM for a drive to Kalama Harbor Lodge via the Wahkiakum County Ferry. Be prepared to pack in food, snacks and water. Columbia Ferry Crossing - In its heyday, there were as many as 50 ferry crossings over the Columbia River. The Wahkiakum County Ferry remains near Westport, Oregon, to Cathlamet on the Washington side. McMenamins Kalama Harbor Lodge - Inspired by the Hawaiian heritage of John Kalama, the property is reminiscent of the Pioneer Inn in Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii. Hammocks Trail 229 - A 2.3 mile loop through hummocks and mini canyons with streams, ponds and remarkable views. Make sure you make your reservation at McMenamins Kalama Harbor Lodge for the night of June 11th. The King Town views are $280 and regular Kings are $285 for that night. The hotel will apply a 15% discount on our group of 5 rooms. Let Eric Newland know once you made your reservation so we can receive this discount. Book Your Overnight Room at: https://www.mcmenamins.com/kalama-harbor-lodge. We receive 15% off once we have 5 rooms booked. Right now we have 2 rooms booked and 3 more to go. Please contact The Kalama Harbor Lodge ASAP and reserve your Room. Let Eric Newland know once you made your reservation so we can receive this discount. eric@hybridmoon.com 16
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Super Bowl Party
Boris the Morris Tech Session
Sean O’Hollaren volunteered his Historic Letson’s Garage for this special meeting! OMS screened The Italian Job while football fans enjoyed the Super Bowl playing at the same time in another room. Thanks Sean for the great hospitality and Jeremy Thorpe for the photos. Lets do it again next year!
Progress is being made on the Club Mini during the first tech session of the New Year in February. What a great opportunity to get an idea on how these classic cars are built.
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We installed some Windows and headlights. Stay tuned for the next date to get your hands on this classic! Thanks to Ron and Kathleen Peters for hosting this!
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. THE VINTAGE AND HISTORIC RACING NEWS MAGAZINE lu e
ed ore h c M .s S n d rt s a o p ion e R ct e c , Au a R le e a at g r S n o Vi rs f Ca
® January 2022: Volume 37, No. 1 $6.95 USA, $7.95 Canada
VDCA Season Finale
photo by Cindi Racine
Taking to the Corkscrew after dark.
Mini vs. Mustang at Velocity David Beats Goliath, Again – story by Randy Unsbee
Velocity Invitational
WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca
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VRG Turkey Bowl
Don and Dennis entered nine Minis and Mustangs and the lone Ford Falcon. The two one-hour enduro races took place 18 drivers in the 33-car field. Altogether, 26 To be fair, the Davids greatly outnumbered with a mandatory five-minute pit the Goliaths at the first-ever Mini vs. Mustang stop to change drivers and refuel. night enduros during the Nov.11-14 Velocity The ultimate winners both nights Invitational at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna were Dennis Racine and Dylan Seca in Monterey. Nonetheless, the Mustangs Wittenauer in their #177 1966 put up a heck of a fight and nearly pulled off Morris Mini Cooper S, but the result belies the titanic battles among a a win. Mini races usually consist of three or four pack of extremely fast Minis with separate classes based on preparation and ground-pounding Shelby GTs and performance. At Laguna, all the Minis were other Fords interspersed throughout. lumped into the same class as the Mustangs, The Fords frequently led. Accomplished vintage Mini racer so there were perhaps only a half dozen Minis that could realistically compete with the Dennis is the son of Don Racine, photo by Jim Rose himself a Mini racing legend and founder #52 Andrew Nelson, 1963 Austin Mini of MiniMania.com. Cooper S. Along with the organizers of the 2019 Sonoma Minis faced seven Fords, including four GT Speed Festival at Sears Point, 350s, a Mustang GT, a Mustang, and Ford who were also behind this year’s Falcon. Velocity Invitational at Laguna How is it possible that tiny four-cylinder Seca, Don created the faceoff Mini Coopers could compete with V8 between these two marques. The horsepower? As broadcaster Adam Andretti clashes harken back to epic Ford explained, “Road America is a horsepower and Mini races and rallies in track. You couldn’t have the Mustang vs. Monte Carlo, Australia, Canada, Mini Cooper at Road America. It wouldn’t photo by Jim Rose Goodwood in England, and the be a contest. But here where there is a great SCCA Trans-Am Series of the balance of handling and horsepower you could #88 Greg Wold, 1964 Austin Cooper S; #10 1960s and ‘70s. come with a better handling car and surely James Biscoe, 1967 Austin Mini Cooper S. 40
January 2022
• Victory Lane
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show up the Americans with big horsepower and heavy cars. Finding the balance between the two...seems to be the magic.” Don was approached by the Sonoma Speed Festival/Velocity Invitational organizers at a CSRG event in early 2021. I previously asked Velocity’s Ardelle Lind in December 2020 if Minis would be invited to the 2021 invitational. Frankly, I was selfishly looking for an opportunity to race with the Racines again after missing 1.5 years due to COVID precautions. Don Racine soon created the whole format that we and the fans got to enjoy. “People who didn’t understand what Mini racing was all about are now ready to jump into these cars,” Don explained. Mini vs. Mustang “is far more fun with far more crowd appeal. It’s really a David vs. Goliath story.” Mustang driver Matt Johnson #6 said about racing against the Minis, “It’s a blast running with them. You come onto the front straight and there’s a pack of five of them. You have to figure out which way you’re going to split them up. We’re having a lot of fun out there and there are some quick little cars. It’s making it fun running in the dark. You couldn’t ask for a better event.”
photo by Cindi Racine
#969 Randy Unsbee, 1960 Austin Mini Cooper S; #76 Mike Kimball, 1965 Austin Mini; #17 Graham Reid, 1962 Austin Mini. At the pit stop driver exchange, the #61A Don Racine/Richard Patterson Mini had lost its brakes and had to retire. Also discovered later was the winning #26 Mustang did not stop for the full five minutes in the pits and was penalized back to 13th. The final podium consisted of the Racine/ Wi t t e n h a u e r # 1 7 7 Mini, the Harindra and Timothy de Silva #30 Mini second, and the Nelson/Swift #52 Mini third. Three of the fastest times on track were by Minis.
head gasket and had to retire after previously setting the fastest lap of the race. When the Mustang pitted, Dennis still stayed out until a full course yellow for stalled cars on track was displayed with just 15 minutes to go. Dennis then pitted. This resulted in his #177 Mini taking the lead and holding it to the end with Dylan Wittenauer behind the wheel. Following Dennis and Dylan across the line were two Fords: the #111 1966 Mustang of Mike Baccioccos and Ken Adams, and the #6 1966 Shelby GT350 of Matt Johnson and Ryan Turri. My fastest lap in Julie Racine’s #969 Mini was at the start of the second enduro, moving up to 13th overall from 19th and briefly chasing down a Mustang, having never previously raced at Laguna Seca. However, a few laps later my right side mirror broke and the 180 degrees Wink mirror inside came loose and was useless. I was virtually driving blind as to who was behind or alongside and could only see blindingly bright lights surrounding me while trying to listen for engine noises to avoid collisions. At our pit stop crew chief Andy Hoffman taped up the mirrors for my faster co-driver David Cooper while Anita Weemaes timed our five-minute stop to make sure we didn’t leave too soon and receive a penalty, and Tom
photo by Cindi Racine
Race #2 Six Minis paced the field before the first of the Mustangs in the Sunday feature. Dennis Racine jumped to the photo by Jim Rose lead followed by the de #22 Ron Cox, 1965 Austin Mini Cooper S. Silva #30, the Nelson/ Swift #52, the Wait/ Race #1 Lauber #62, and Bacciocco/Adams Mustang The #52 Andrew Nelson/Nick Swift Mini #111. The de Silva Mini took over the lead took the early lead over the #177 Dennis from Dennis and then Nelson got by as well. Racine/Dylan Wittenauer Mini, followed by The #111 Bacciocco/Adams Mustang the #30 Mini of the de Silva brothers, the #5 methodically picked its way through the Mustang of Taylor and Chip Fudge, and the Minis to take the lead #61 of Don Racine/Richard Patterson Mini. in corner five just as The top three Minis gradually pulled away the sun set behind the from the Mustang. Monterey foothills. After the five-minute mandatory pitstop W h e n e v e r y o n e and driver exchange the #26 Mustang of John eventually pitted the Linfest/Chris Hines took the lead, followed #111 Mustang and by Dylan Wittenhauer in the #177, the #30 #177 Mini stayed out, de Silva brothers, the #52 Swift Mini, then with Dennis Racine’s #5 Fudge Mustang, the #62 Andrew Wait/ M i n i c l o s i n g t o Martin Lauber Mini, the #88 Greg Wold/Dave within 1.5 seconds Morgan Mini, the #6 Matt Johnson/Ryan Turri of the lead. At the Shelby Mustang, the John Sherer/Brian Levin driver exchange, the photo by Jim Rose #166 Mustang GT, and the #66 Levin and Nelson/Swift team 16-year-old Seth Huntley Mini. discovered a blown #00 Chris Locke, 1965 Austin Mini Cooper S. www.victorylane.com
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Victory Lane
• January 2022
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SECTION NAME
The largest and oldest annual gathering of Classic Minis and New MINIS west of the Mississippi River. Be sure to register now while there are still openings and reserve your room at the fabulous The Point Casino and Hotel in Kingston, Washington, July 25-29, 2022 https://peninsulaminisociety.org/2021/10/07/mini-meet-west-2022/ https://www.thepointcasinoandhotel.com/
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