For years I have had a fascination and love affair with the rich history of the Vanderbilt Cup Series. I must admit, one of my biggest reasons for this interest is because of that same history as it relates to the area which I call home… San Francisco. This story has it all, intrigue, fortunes, men with power, race cars, airplanes, world travel.

To get things started it helps to understand how much more the San Francisco Vanderbilt Series Race stood out than any other race and that’s saying something considering how amazing any of the Vanderbilt Series Cup events were. The Panama-Pacific International Exposition was a world’s fair held in San Francisco
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There is a great car for sale on Ebay for anyone who enjoys the rich history of the Vanderbilt Cup Series.  Here is what it says about the car.

1904 Thomas Model 27 Racer

This is straight line 6 cylinder 12.3 liter 750 cubic inch 60 h.p. engine was engineered and built for the 1904 Vanderbilt Cup Race. A production version of this engine became available with a racing body at the Thomas dealership. New recast engine block. Ground up restoration in 2007.

From what I can see in the photos, the detail is excellent. Check out the close-up of  the cotter pins in every single section of chain link. Considering in was built back in 1904 the seats are way ahead of their time due to the fact they had such good side support. Having over 750 cubic inches and yet only producing an amazing whopping 60 horsepower just goes to show how far technology has brought us in this day and age. And just think, as of right now it can be yours for less than $500,000.00.

Long Island, New York has one race track remaining. Riverhead Raceway is a NASCAR sanctioned ¼ mile asphalt banked oval. Racing takes place from early May through September. I am honored to be one of the “voices” of Riverhead. I will be starting my 7^th season as a track announcer this spring. We still pack them in on a good summer night and feature six divisions of racing.

Long Island has a rich racing heritage. It was home to The Vanderbilt Cup, the famed Bridgehampton Race Circuit, Freeport Speedway and the Islip Speedway. Islip had an interesting history. It was the home of the first ever Demolition Derby and also had the distinction of hosting 6 NASCAR Grand National races. The Grand National eventually became the Busch Series.
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