Racing an Abarth at Pittsburgh

By Alain Raymond
Photos courtesy Alain Raymond

Vintage car racing: for some, it’s all about winning. For most, it’s the atmosphere, the camaraderie, the joy of driving old – very old – machinery on a race track. Here’s the story of one such delightful adventure.

We are all packed and ready to travel the 12-hour road taking us from Quebec to the “Steel City.” One hefty Ram pickup pulling the even heftier “Chateau Bachand” enclosed trailer carrying the mighty MG Midget and some stuff. A lot of stuff, from spare tires to a fully equipped camping kitchen. In contrast, the Dodge minivan pulling the tiny red trailer carrying my Abarth 1000 TC, the “Little Monster” looks like a lightweight. On board the Ram, Amyot “Kid Midget” Bachand with pit crew, the famous Yvon “Mr. Plumber” Lepinay. In the Minivan, yours truly, the No-Name vintage racer known to drool profusely on anything Italian.

PittRace
First stop in our 12-day saga: Pittsburgh International Race Complex, or PittRace, previously called Beaverun. Revamped in 2014 with the addition of a 1.9 mile section of track, and a slew of new facilities, PittRace is now certainly one of the most attractive race tracks anywhere. The new section with its long sweepers and huge elevation changes is pure driving joy.

The usual practice and qualifying sessions are uneventful yet fully enjoyable. In our class, Sprites, Midgets, MGs and are pitted against a few Italian machinery including my 1964 Fiat Abarth. Then comes THE race, one of the most memorable of my “career,” a race-long duel with Michael Barstow and his very well prepared 1956 MG TD. Words can’t do it justice, so I suggest you watch the double-barreled video filmed from both the Abarth and the MG. Make sure you watch the ending…

Michael Barstow’s 1956 MG TD and the 1964 Fiat Abarth 1000 TC, after a memorable duel.

In usual VRG fashion, the event was super well organized and all present enjoyed VRG’s hospitality and impeccable marshalling. Speaking of which, the Abarth was awarded the Workers Choice Award, a medal and… a 5-litre keg of Hofbräuhaus beer! Staying overnight in the paddock, our travelling trio packs up Monday morning and heads to Pittsburgh to drop off our race cars and trailers at Fowler Automotive Street & Track, a very generous gesture by Dan Fowler and his crew.

Pittsburgh
Feeling somewhat lighter, the Ram and Minivan take us to our Airbnb abode, a large multi-room house near downtown Pittsburgh. Tourism is now on the agenda. We make the most of Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix activities, including the car show on delightful Walnut Street. Thursday morning, we pick up both race cars and trailers from Fowler’s and drive to Schenley Park and set up in the freshly paved “paddock” on Prospect Drive. With time on our hands, and despite the rather warm weather, we decide to walk the famous Schenley Park “track” while crews are converting it from a quiet park road to a raging race track. With its many camber changes, manholes and close walls, Schenley is, to say the least, a challenging course that does not tolerate any errors. Walking it is a great way to closely examine its many challenges.

Amyot (call him Amy or Kid Midget) and his potent little Midget.

I should also mention that we did go grocery shopping… since master cooks Bachand and Lepinay had to prepare dinner for our guests flying in to Pittsburgh that evening. Considering my hopeless presence in the kitchen, I was assigned to taxi duty and drove to the airport to pick up our two friends Carl Lapointe and Salvatore Montana joining us for the week-end. Spaghetti, salad, cheese and the afore-mentioned 5 liter of beer were quickly dispensed with.

Friday morning, following breakfast, we head again to Schenley Park for registration, tech inspection and the usual chit-chat with old and new friends alike. On the Italian side, Fiats, Abarths and Alfa Romeos are grouped together to honor the Cars of Italy theme of the 33rd PVGP.

Disaster Strikes… Twice
Saturday starts off with practice sessions followed in the afternoon with qualifying and the British Heritage Race during which Amyot’s Midget blows a head gasket. Convinced that his week-end was over, Amyot was firmly advised by Maestro Salvatore that he will race again, provided he can find a replacement head gasket. This is where young Andrew Moore (Austin Healey Sprite) saves the day by providing the required gasket. Vintage racing solidarity at its best! Seconded by Yvon Lepinay and Carl Lapointe, under Amyot’s anxious eyes, the Italian Maestro starts his magic on the stricken tiny British roadster.

Schenley can be rough on old cars: the notorious broken front spindle.

Meanwhile, yours truly heads to the Qualifying grid for the 1 Liter Class. The Abarth is singing like a true Pavarotti when I suddenly hear a sinister “crack” on the last turn before the Start-Finish straight. Back in the paddock on a flat-bed, the verdict is clear: broken front spindle! Is my week-end over?

Words of Maestro Salvatore, with an impressive history of many European endurance races, including Le Mans: never give up! The hunt for a 1960s front Fiat upright starts right away. First stop: Dan Fowler, who cleverly suggests checking with another Maestro, Jim Boffo, ex-Fiat dealer. Mike is busy replacing the head gasket on Mike Zappa’s beautiful black MGB but he takes the time to inform me that he has two Fiat 850 parts cars in the backyard of his garage. Within a few minutes, arrangements are made to head to Boffo Motors, a 50-minute drive from Pittsburgh, accompanied by Mick, Jim Boffo’s assistant.

Digging out a once lovely Fiat Spider.

The once-pretty Fiat 850 Spiders look so sad, half-buried in the ground. Salvaging anything looks to me like mission-impossible, but Salvatore asks Mick for a cutting torch and tells me to find a long bar… to lift up the Fiat from the ground. “Transplant Operation” starts with cutting up the Fiat front suspension. When finally the red-hot metal gives up, Salvatore lifts the whole assembly and with a victorious smile says in French: “Nothing can resist Salvatore!” Both Mick and I admire the man’s stamina and determination. Then comes Phase 2: dismantling the assembly to liberate the required upright… without destroying it. With hammer, torch and a lot of arm force, off comes the remains of the suspension arms, the leaf spring, the rusted-out brake disk and caliper. Now Phase 3: loosening the jammed steering knuckle with heavy dose to penetrating oil and hundreds of back and forth movements. After what seemed like an eternity, the knuckle is sufficiently loose for us to head back to Pittsburgh.

It is already 9 pm and we haven’t had a bite to eat, so we decide to stop at Mineo’s Pizza House, on Murray Avenue, for a cool beer and a light soup. Turns out the owner is originally from Sicily, a village near Salvatore’s… The intended light soup becomes delicious Sicilian Arancini, and our brief stop drags on till 11 pm!

Minutes before lining up on the grid.

Back on Track
Early next morning, the boys at the house tell us about finishing off the head gasket installation on the Midget and we head back to Schenley Park to install the “new” suspension upright on the Abarth. We even get a new brake disc from Andrew “Green Fiat” Celovsky (Fiat 124) who seems to carry everything Fiat in his trailer. By 9 am, the Abarth is back on all four and after a brief test in the paddock, I can confidently claim: it works! A few minutes later, I am lined up for the scheduled warm-up session. The Abarth and the Midget dance again around Schenley. We are back in business! At noon, the highlight of my week-end: the Italian Mark of the Year Race. Starting 7th on the grid, I jump a couple of places before the Turn 1, as you can see on the video. The Abarth runs flawlessly, finishes 4th and collects another Workers’ Choice Award. Salvatore was right: never give up!

The Final Straw
Mid-afternoon, back on the grid for the 1 Liter class feature race. I’m in 5th position. Amyot starts in last place since he did not complete qualifying on Saturday. After few laps, the Abarth is leading and, not seeing a contender in the mirror, I decide lift off. Still, I keep watching the mirror for the presence of a white Midget. Sure enough, the Midget shows up and is closing quickly, some 2 seconds per lap. Soon, Amyot is challenging and passes in a nice move at the Westinghouse Fountain. Second looks good enough with the thought of two Canadians from Quebec on the podium… I had barely finished the thought in my mind that I detect a slight wobble of the rear end. Oh no, not again! The slight wobble becomes a major one and I grind to a halt at the Serpentine. The rear wheel has a strange camber to it and the hub nut is missing! Good bye podium. Hello flatbed!

One happy winner!

Amyot wins the race in great style and celebrates with a live interview, thanking all, including the track workers. Back in the paddock, Salvatore greets me with a somber face. In spite of all our efforts, the Abarth still decided to play prima donna. Still, it was all worth it and in retrospect, PVGP 2015 will rank among the best time I have had in nearly 15 years of vintage car racing.

The joy of vintage racing: cars of character and camaraderie – Yvon, Amyot, Alain, Salvatore, Carl.

The racing, the ambiance, the camaraderie, the generous assistance of all and the precious friendship of Amyot, Carl, Yvon and, of course, Salvatore. That’s what it’s all about.
As for the Abarth, we were on non-speaking terms for a while and I let her to languish on her trailer for a couple of weeks. Then, my weak heart gave in and I fixed her broken “leg” and sent her off to the showroom of a Fiat Alfa Romeo Studio in Montreal so she can be a star again. A quiet one this time. Hope she doesn’t leak too much on their nice shiny floor.