steve! that is too cool! makes me wanna throw a digital video camera in my race car. i know richard has one...richard, when we gonna see that crazy race you had from portland.

thanks again steve.

 

Great footage Steve! And love the sound of your GTA!

 

Steve,

That's an awesome video...looks like you were hanging back a bit to keep your car from tangling with the others though!

 

Sweet!

Ok, I promise to finish my wife's sprint so I can make my own vintage race car...

Eric

 

Hanging back

No no no!! I was truly balls to the wall, it was so much fun. Straightaways are usually boring, but just imagine hitting redline in all gears, and the surrounding cars are right there with you, lap after lap. Nobody got hurt, nobody did anything stupid. It was very memorable.
I was indicating 7400rpm in 5th gear at the end of the straight. Probably around 125mph.

My next goal is to find the 911 driver and have him burn the entire sequence to CD, if possible!

Steve S.

 

Steve,

OK, I believe you...I was just teasing you anyway.

That's a great video, and given the rarity of your car, especially out there "balls to the wall"...it is something that is of significant historical importance.

Well done! I am SO envious!

Cheers,

 

That looked excellent

 

just like alex said,

"That's a great video, and given the rarity of your car, especially out there "balls to the wall"...it is something that is of significant historical importance."

steve,
i can't stop thanking you for RACING your gta. i know of too many gta's sitting, not being used. when i get my gta, i wanna be just like you...race the piss out of it and have a smile from ear to ear doing it! gta's have been my favorite car since my first vintage race. my dad said i only cared to look at gtas in the paddock (probably sat in more gta's as a kid than most people ever will) and when it was time for them to go on the track, i just watched in awe. thanks a lot man, one day we can race our gta's together here on the west coast.

 

If you know me at all, you know the huge amount of enjoyment I get out of pleasing others, and I'm really glad I'm able to share the enjoyment of racing such a historical Alfa. I let two people drive it around the Bremerton race course last week! I can't promise I'll let just anybody drive it, but hey, it gave me great pleasure to do so. If it wrecks, I do not have the money to fix it, but you only live once.

What will Anthony do when he finds his GTA is slower than his 2.5 Challenge car? It won't matter, will it! Well, with his experience and resources, he may be able to work some real wonders.

The boys overseas in the Top Hat series have got their GTA's running up to 200lbs. lighter than mine (I'm 1860lbs with water and oil). I'm guessing they're allowed to run fiberglass bonnets and bootlids. I'm not sure how they're getting their cars so bloody light, but there's not a ton more that I'm willing to do and sacrifice the car's character. It is an FIA Appendix K car, with working lights, turn signals, and all that. I'd like to experience what a 100lb loss feels like! It's all pick and shovel work, as Wes Ingram puts it.

Cheers!

Steve Schaeffer
Seattle, WA

 

The thing that I love about Steve is that he gets all giddy like a little kid about his GTA, Alfas and cars in general. That and the fact that he does race the s**t out of his GTA.

I love the PIR track as well. It's a great. Watching the cars battle through 3a and 3b is awesome and then roaring out to 4 and 5...

Great viddy...I would love to see the whole thing.

 

Great viddy...I would love to see the whole thing.

Really! Can we pay someone to follow Steve around the track with a video camera onboard?

Say Damian, I'm still waiting for pictures of your new Berlina!

 

I know, I know...I've got to wash and wax her first. Perhaps this week. I'v been swamped with work lately.

I should do a nice photo shoot with Steve's GTA too.

Hrmmm...hey Steve, maybe sometime in the near future, if you wouldn't mind, I could snap a bunch of photos of your GTA...up close and personal.

 

That video is cool, four 911's and one alfa.

May I ask why you pulled to the right, and let that 911 get by you? I'm not trying to criticize you're driving, but was that 911 faster and that's why you pulled to the right?

 

Hello!
Why did I pull to the right? I'm still trying to figure that out. I was kinda amazed to see that blooper on the video.

Note how far behind that black 911 I was before the straightaway, I reeled him in slowly down the straight, so I think I actually have more true hp than his 1991cc mill. That's also a good example of having a higher exit speed from the last big turn. You maintain that 1 or 2mph advantage. It can overcome a hp deficit.

I think the only reason I have is that we went into the turn together, and we both gave each other a ton of leeway. I probably braked too late, and he hugged the inside. We are polite in vintage racing overall, and that may be a good example. My visibility is pretty limited, and I just didn't want to hit anyone. So, I went wide, and got on the marbles a bit, then those damned 911's pull me out of the turn consistently. I am in 4th gear exiting the turn, which is too low an rpm. If I had a close ratio box, then 3rd could be used, and that would help a lot. I'm not crying, 'cause that was just an epic battle, great for me, great for the other 911's, and great for the crowd.

I have contacted the 911 owner, who says he is copying that entire race sequence to a cd and is sending it to me. He wasn't behind me the entire time, but I'm very curious to see what he's got. If it is stellar, I can burn a copy of the cd for anyone who wants.

Cheers!

Steve S.

 

I could'nt believe how the GTA was keeping up. Those 911 guy's have 1991 cc's but don't they also have flat 6's in there!

I thought they were going to pass you on the staright, and leave you in the dust. But for a second it looked like you were about to pass the black 911.

Anyways, that video got me so hyped. The picture wasn't right you know. A 1600 Alfa Romeo in a pack of 911's, oooohhhh so lovly. I might have to take you up on a cd offer.

p.s. You definitly drive the piss out of your GTA!

 

Just adding to my total. Oh, yeah, GTA videos are great!!

 

Thanks for the replies, good folks, but I gotta tell ya, I rec'd the cd of the entire race sequence last night. I have about 18 minutes of racing on the cd, and the four 911's and me are just fighting the entire time.
The guy definitely edited the best lap for the video you've all seen, that is a good highlite lap.
But, you junkies would probably love to just kick back and watch the whole 144MB video.
A video cam is SO instructional, I really need to find a way to get one like this. I definitely see some blunders on my part, and everyone else's. I know a lot of it is visibility-related, as I sail into a fast turn side by side, I really can't see where he is, so I just give lots of room. In european racing, I don't think they do that.
You'll have to see another highlight, it's where I pull the 911 mit cam on the straight. You can first see me appear in the rear view mirror, then just power by him down the straight.
OK, my 1600 has 80mm pistons, so I'm 1649cc. Sorry, but the car was purchased this way. The pistons appear to be stock 1750 pistons, very low rise to them, but with huge cutouts for the valves. They are Kolbert-Schmidt pistons. My head is cut 0.100" and the block is decked.
That video brought back some really great memories. In the end, the black one just beat me, and I was ahead of the other two.

Steve S.

 

I agree wholeheartedly!!

 

It's so funny. Non-car folks freak when they see me pulling a Porsche down the straight. I say, oh yeah, we're all supposed to just pull over when we see a PORSCHE in the rear view mirror. Phooey!
Porsche's marketing has done one hell of a job, however. They've got everyone fooled.

Steve S.

 

It's great!

You made 'em work for it that's for sure.

 

Way to show those weenie Porsche's. That's my point, marketing has brainwashed this society.

 

Steve,

Your GTA sounds so good! Very different from other 4-cyl race Alfas.

At the higher RPMs, it sounds like a V6!!!

 

Steve,

Nothing wrong with your mods, who knows what the 911's have.

I think the 1750 block is the way to go on a TS 1600.

 

A 1750 block is certainly tempting, but when I see a GTA, I expect to see a 1600 mill residing in there, or at least something very close! All GTA's came with 1600's or 1300's, I hope to keep it that way.

Steve S.

 

I bet autodelta, made the 1750 compatible with the 1600 on purpose.