Joel R DeVriendt.com

Sourced Via Grand Valley Lanthorn – Link to Article

By MARCUS J. REYNOLDS | Grand Valley Lanthorn
Updated: April 3, 2011, 9:08 PM

Courtesy Photo / Nicole Khan Nicole Khan, president of the GVSU car club, and her 1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse GS at last year’s car show.

The Grand Valley State University Car Show will rev its engines for its biggest show to date, to take place from 2 to 6 p.m. on Saturday in parking lot H of the Allendale Campus.

The categories for this year include domestic (post-domestic 1989), best import (post-import 1989), best truck/SUV (all years), best classic (pre-1975) and custom hot rods.

There is no registration fee, and the show will put an emphasis on motorcycle admissions by offering a “Best of Show” award for bikes.

“This year we are planning to make it bigger and raise even more money for Companions in Courage, than last year,” said Nicole Khan, GVSUC president and Car Show event chair. “We just want to raise money for the cause that’s the main reason for the show.”

Companions in Courage gives children confined to hospital care interactive playrooms at hospitals, said liaison Will Burgess.

“They were our special charity partnership last year, and they were very thankful for the support,” Burgess said.

Car shows offer enthusiasts a chance to see how their time, money and effort have paid off. Members of the car club agree people like to see beautiful cars.

“People are naturally attracted to cars,” Khan said. “Whether you know a lot about cars or nothing, the owners will be more than happy to explain the effort and details of the cars.”

Likewise, attendees judge the cars on aspects of cleanliness of interior, paint job, modifications to the engine, exhaust systems and what the owners have done to the body style.

“We tend to give more reverence to those who have put more money into the vehicle,” Khan said.

Khan, born and raised on a car lot, inherited her love for cars from her mother.

“The culture of cars is so widespread,” she said. “There are so many genres, bikes, trucks, classics. Each has their own personality. It’s nice to be respected for the effort you put toward your car. All of your hard work pays off because of the appreciation you receive.”

Vincenzo Pavano, car enthusiast and club secretary, said the car show offers students a chance to head outdoors and say hello to summer.

Pavano will showcase his 2003 F-150 Super Crew. His eyes light up as he talks about his passion for cars and the first time he spent his hard earned money on his own car.

“There was something about buying my own car that really sparked me to want to explore how it works,” Pavano said. “I always had a mechanical eye. Cars have always fascinated me – how all the parts combine together and work.”

The majority of the cars come from the east side of the state, along with their trophies won throughout the years.

Last year’s event drew 300 spectators, with 80 to 100 cars. The event raised $1,500 for charity.

mreynolds@lanthorn.com

Published April 3, 2011 in Laker Life

This past Friday, my friend Pat and I had a unique opportunity to enjoy some racing on an old track in Detroit. It is known as the Dorais Velodrome, and was built in the 60s right around the same time the race riots and turmoil began to plague the city and eventually demise the track and surrounding area. Even though the track’s usage was short-lived, that didn’t stop some famous olympic racers of the time from building their career here. Anyway, I’d like to move along to the point as being a historian is not my claim to fame, but the article on Bicycling.com [which is very good i might add] goes into further Detail on that aspect.

The opportunity came about in the form of a facebook message from an old cruising buddy: Andy Didorosi. Andy is part of an effort that is cleaning up and restoring the old track, and is raising funds to do so by hosting races on the track itself. And these races may not be what you expect, as there are classes for mopeds and go-karts as well – but its the jankiest backyard bruisers that get the most praise. No suspension? Perfect. Only 8 horsepower? Good, because thats the limit. There was an independent film company on the scene that day, and so my home-made go kart which spends most [all] of its time sitting in the back of our pole barn was therefore in high demand. I donned my home-grown STIG outfit for some extra dramatic effect and I proceeded to do some NASCAR style laps around the track.

Whats so cool about the Dorais Velodrome is that there is more than one great thing going on here that you wouldn’t expect. For one, there are people actually gathering for the specific purpose of having fun here. (thats possible in Detroit??) And fun is being had not only in the form of racing, but also in the efforts to clean up and restore it. The track was originally “discovered” by a group known as Detroit’s Mower Gang. This group, founded by Tom Nardone, looks for neglected parks that the city can no longer maintain and takes matters into their own hands through voluntary use of lawnmowers, weed whackers, shovels, etc. Personally I have to say this is one of the most bad-ass ideas I have ever heard of. Seriously, what an incredibly fun way to give back to the community! I hope I can participate in some cleanup events this summer with my own 1968 Simplicity Serf. Yea, its a 5-horsepower riding mower, so you’d better stand at safe distance. Below we see that even during filming, Tom is hard at work.

If manual labor isn’t your style, you can still have fun and participate in the rebirth of this track by just bringing down the race vehicle of your choice and just racing. All the proceeds raised from Thunderdrome events are going directly into the restoration of the velodrome. Isn’t amazing how fun things are even more fun when they support a good cause? For more details, pictures, videos, and otherwise further evidence of the craziness, head on over to the thunderdrome’s website, which is cleverly: http://thunderdrome.com/ And with that, I’ll leave you with some more pictures of the action on friday: