With the 2008 Summer Olympics coming up soon, Land Rover is working to draw some attention to the British Equestrian scene. Who woulda thought….Brits, Royals, horses and Land Rovers. But wait, this isn’t just any royal, this is Zara Phillips, Grand Daughter of Queen Elizabeth. And what a lovely lass she is indeed.

The Royal Family isn’t exactly known for their comedic appearances, so watching this soccer hooligan make his moves on the stunning Miss Phillips is a hoot.

video after the break
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When it comes to racing everyone seems to have their own agenda and understandably so. However one of the biggest misconceptions regarding agendas that some drivers have is that not all of them are hell bent on leather to just win races. On the contrary many drivers are more than happy just being part of the adventure and sharing all that they love with others and taking part of all that it entails… The excitement, the smell of fuel and burning rubber, the sights and sounds of cars sliding as gracefully into the apex of a turn much like the elegant hand of Sophia Loren slipping into a perfectly fit evening glove.

I really admire any racer that feels the need to give back something but there are a few that love it so much in fact that not only do they want to enjoy it and share that experience with others but in fact they go out of their way to find a way to use it to help others. One such person is none other than Michael Emery of Lucha Libre Racing and I feel it worth mentioning. Recently BRINGATRAILER.COM wrote a nice article about Michael and his efforts to not only race again in this years La Carrera Panamericana but also about his efforts to raise money to help a very worthwhile cause. CLICK HERE (http://lacarrera2007.blogspot.com/2008/07/featured-la-carrera-car-article.html) to take you to the article which is also posted on my blog at http://lacarrera2007.blogspot.com/

There will be more posted with regards to this cause as California’s Best Racing Team also takes part helping out the same efforts when we attend the get together in San Miguel de Allende in October with many other La Carrera Panamericana teams and celebrities. Trust me when I tell you, the efforts made by racing gentlemen like Michael Emery really DO make a difference and if that doesn’t put a smile on your face nothing ever will. Take the plunge and send something his way. Even the smallest amount makes a HUGE difference in Mexico.

Over the next couple of days, our IT guru will be upgrading the Wordpress software that powers The Garage. This newest version of software should be more or less invisible to all you readers, but it has all sorts of cool tools built into the background to make bringing you cool content all that much easier. The new package will make video loading easier and offer in house galleries rather than relying on outside sources like Flickr.

So if you see some functionality problems over the coming days, have no fear.

Every race track has it’s own home town personalities. They are the folks who everyone knows and every one of them has a story. Some, like John Fitch have a history that rivals or exceeds their home track. To say that John Fitch is a legend around Lime Rock would be an understatement, as he is in fact a legend around racing in general.

Racer, safety advocate, inventor and car builder. Fitch has done all of this stuff and more, so it was pretty cool to be able to say hi and get a quick photo. I had never seen the Fitch Phoenix before, but originally thought it was some sort of Corvette clone. I wasn’t too far off, as Fitch’s one off prototype is based on the Chevy Corvair and was heavily influenced by the Mako Shark concept.
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I just can’t get enough of Lou Galanos’ photos from the golden days of endurance racing in Florida. This shot is of the John Greenwood Team Corvette taken at the 1973 24 hours of Daytona. Driven by Don Yenko and Bob Johnson, the car did not finish the event.

Some photographers love nothing better than to stand trackside and grab thousands of shots. Personally, pit lane is like candy for the budding shooter in me. There really is no other spot that has the same energy and so many incredible photo possibilities. I could literally spend an entire day toting the camera around the pits.

ALMS rules prevent photographers from entering the pit lane when they are hot unless they are wearing a fireproof suit. I think that will be an excuse to sausage my lard ass into my old driving suit when the ALMS crowd visits Mosport next month!

Yet another gallery after the break
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The Garage is a magical place that has connected many people in both the virtual and real worlds. Two farmboys, one from Nebraska and the other from Oregon grew up decades apart, yet both moved to California in search of the automotive utopia. One built a life surrounded by road racing and road cars, while the other became immersed in the kool of rodding from an era long before his time. That kool shaped a career in design with two companies that have changed the course of modern culture.

Ahh…California Dreamin’ indeed!

How weird is it then that Gary Faules and Aaron Von Minden should meet in a garage, through a virtual garage based way up north in Canada?
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And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for: The lovely ladies of Lime Rock!

Full gallery of sweetness after the break
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Some time ago, Jil McIntosh wrote a piece about auto writers who forget that they are (or should be) writing for real people, not just zillionaires. You know the guys, they are the ones who write that a 2 seater that sells for a hundred grand is a value priced sports car. While I can’t remember when or where Jil’s article appeared, it came to mind this weekend as we traveled in the 2008 Ford Mustang Bullitt.

Nicknamed Frank, our tester came equipped with touch screen navigation and keyless alarm. The current pricing packages bring Frank to a whopping $34,079 cdn. So let’s add this up here: 2 doors, 315 horsepower, 325 ft/lbs torque, leather interior, navi, a cool shifter, aluminum dash, upgraded suspension and brakes, cold air intake and an absolutely incredible exhaust note. All of that adds up to an incredible value in my eyes.
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I really need to get a digital slr, as my manual focus skills with the FZ-8 are seriously lacking. Of a few hundred on track shots, there are only a few that I’m happy to share. Not to worry though, these few should keep everyone happy until the Girls of Lime Rock set appears!

Oh yes, the shot above is the surprise winner, the Patron Acura of David Brabham and Scott Sharp.

Gallery after the break
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