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sport
Maltese driver making a name in the US
Team Southwest European Racing, owned and managed by Maltese Victor
Felice, originally from Sliema, finished the 2001 National Auto
Sports Association - Phoenix region with six class wins and numerous
new track records.
Victor drives a Lola T333 CanAm which won the Open Unlimited
class and set new track records at 4 Firebird International Raceway
tracks, the Grand Prix of St. Johns as well as NASA-SoCal at Las
Vegas Speedway. Victor and the Lola also won the Arizona Sports
Racing Association's annual 100 minute enduro with a first overall
and first in the GT-A class. Victor was the 1999 and 2000 NASA
champion driving a Formula Atlantic powered Toyota MR2 in the
Pro Sedan and Super Unlimited classes. Team Southwest European
went on to win Super Unlimited, Pro Focus, ProMazda 2nd Generation,
Formula Mazda and Formula Ford classes. This was by far the largest
sweep by a single team in Arizona.
Team SWE Racing is housed at SWE in Scottsdale, Arizona. SWE
is a high end car facility that specialises in European exotics
as well as competition and race cars. The team also provides high
performance driving instruction as well as race car prep and rental.
Although Victor never raced in Malta, his cars always have a
Maltese flag on the left front fender and his helmet is painted
with the Maltese cross on the left side and the Arizona star on
the right.
On 30 September, Victor married Priska Varadyova, of Prague and
Modena at Firebird International Raceway. This was the first Track
Wedding in the association's history. Since the 30th was also
the USGP, Victor drove a Formula Mazda painted exactly like a
Ferrari F1 and wore a genuine Ferrari OMP race suite.
Team SWE racing will be competing in 2002 in the NASA, ASRA and
other associations, accumulating more wins and setting the standard
for club racing in Arizona.
A
piece of history about ASRA
The Arizona Sports Racing Association (ASRA) was conceived in 1959
as a grassroots not-for-profit motorsports organisation. ASRA consists
entirely of privateers and volunteers who organise the racing events
for the benefit of all members. With the motto "Run what you
brung!", ASRA provides an opportunity for drivers to compete
in high-speed events on competition rules established by the Sports
Car Club of America, but with greater flexibility except with regard
to safety. With 2001 being their 42nd year in operation, they are
proud to say ASRA’s insurance claims have been next to nil.
Driver safety is the bottom line.
The ASRA format classifies run groups into either Street Groups
or Race Groups. Street Group cars are vehicles licensed for use
on public roads, and are mostly unmodified using DOT tires. These
are your everyday domestic and import cars, and the occasional exotic
or rare vintage cars. Race-prepared cars are vehicles modified for
improved performance and handling, and are typically unlicensed
for street use. Race cars require additional safety equipment such
as roll bars or roll cages, and drivers in the Race Groups are required
to have personal safety equipment such as Nomex suits, driving gloves,
and window safety nets. These are your not so everyday Fords and
Chevys, Mazdas and Datsuns, right up to the specialised purpose-built
mono-cockpit tube frame formula cars.
Both of these groups have several run sessions per race day-on an
average totalling one-hour for streetcars and slightly more for
racecars. This unique format, in its efforts to maintain the tradition
of being a truly user-friendly motorsports club, has enjoyed undeniable
success in it’s increasingly popular Street Group. Notwithstanding
dire predictions to the contrary, with careful regulation (such
as restricting passing zones), street metal has pretty well remained
intact, with many of these vehicles transporting their operators
back to the office on Monday morning.
In addition to surviving as an independent wheel-to-wheel racing
organisation for over 40 years, ASRA’s accomplishments include
planning and organising a yearly 100-minute endurance race, which
is usually held in November or December of each year. Other claims
to fame include the now defunct Eloy Grand Prix, an annual through-the-streets
race enjoyed by the entire Southwestern United States motorsports
community for over ten years. Additionally, ASRA planned and organised
a popular and well-attended vintage racing series. |
