THE CHALLENGE
Throughout time there have been epic matches. Ali vs. Frazer. Pat Garrett vs. Billy the Kid. Trump vs. Trump. And now, Sprite vs. Mini.
With the same engines, similar power to weight ratio, comparably bad aerodynamics, and like fragility, the Sprites and the Minis are probably the two most closely-matched vintage racers in VARA's E-Production It was time to have a showdown, without the Alfas, Porsches, Lotus 7s, and MGs cluttering the track. We had the chance to settle it once and for all, mano to mano, wheel to wheel. The question was, which underdog marque was the underdog here?
There was bragging worthy of Don King, along with verbal teardowns on cars with such things as split Webers and modern four-wheel Japanese disc brakes. There were even rumors about a mysterious 2-liter Bugeye. Indicative of the quasi-bad blood between us, it wsa decided that there would be a trophy for both the fastest Sprite and the fastest Mini, but the overall winner would take a hammer or blowtorch to his rival's award.
Race promotion by VARA's Ron Bennett (a Lotus 7 man, but nobody's perfect) and race sponsor, Don Racine of Mini Mania, paid off. There were 40 entries from all over the country, Colorado, Texas, Washington, Arizona, Utah, even Georgia. John Christy, old-time racer and editor of the classic Sportscar Graphic magazine, came out ot take a few laps in the Sprite he'd run at Sebring back in 1959, now owned by Hersh Silverstone. Old SCCA Minis were coming off jackstands to be converted back into vintage cars for the race. Don Racine diplomatically brought both a Sprite and a Mini for the event.
Even non-Sprite/Mini drivers wanted to get a piece of it. Guys with big powerful cars, like Larry Pond (Shelby GT350), Stan Rinne (gorgeous Ginetta sports racer), and Cris Vandagriff of Hollywood Sport Cars (Ferrari Daytona and McLaren Can-Am car), were looking for Sprite rides. Even if those guys had offered a trade, they wouldn't have gotten any takers.
Before the Saturday heat race even started, the two fastest Sprites were out. Pole sitter, Larry Haile, was out after a disastrous encounter with treacherous Turn 9 in the E-Prod race. Jimmy Huston's transmission packed up while he was taking on the big boys in the D Production race. Saturday's race was won by a Bugeye (mine), followed much too closely by the Minis of Eric Allard, Dick Faille, and Cliff Jones. In Sunday's race, my car DNFed like the other self-destructing Sprites and the Minis of Faille, Dale Shore, and Allard finished 1-2-3.
Despite the serious rivalry, Sprite and Mini drivers have always helped each other out with parts -- and then frequently been beaten by the guy who borrowed the part. But that's the essence of the Sprite/Mini Challenge. Ironically, it was one of my Mini competitors, Eric Allard, a nice guy with a very fast car, who supplied the parts to fix my Bugeye, enabling me to race Saturday after it broke in morning practice.
As promised, the racing was close, competitive, and ferocious. The spectators loved it, too. VARA's very successful Can Am feature race didn't generate the passion (and the prejudice) of the Sprite/Mini Challenge. Even the most jaded mechanics and racers dropped what they were doing and rushed out to the pit wall to watch this one. They could identify with the cars -- after all, a guy's first car was more likely to be a Sprite or a Mini than a McLaren.
At the awards ceremony, overall winner Faille took special glee in destroying Dennis Davis' trophy for top finishing Sprite. The winners did get a real prize, a pewter cup from a 1960s MG press day, donated by Henry Manney IV from his illustrious father's collection. Scott Renner won the honors for the top finishing small boare (948cc) Sprite, and well, they couldn't find a small bore Mini that even finished. Larry Haile won the People's Choice Concours, each racer got three ballots with his entry, and out of some 170 drivers that entered that weekend, there was a whooping three ballots cast.
Had the Minis won, or had the Sprites simply broken? The Sprites generally turned faster times. Haile turned a sizzling 1:44.007, the quickest any Sprite or Mini has gone at Willow... but the Minis stayed together and the Sprites didn't. First, you gotta finish. All of us Sprite drivers are saying, "Wait till next year's Sprite/Mini Challenge II." But then, will we all be in Minis.
Lynn Mills