When speed is involved with fast cars, the unexpected comes at the worst of times, and in an industry where some people take things for granted. It’s a great thing to know that there are people that care and want to ensure safety by all means. The guys at Shift-S3ctor have been successfully doing these speed events aka roll racing for some time, and this being there 16th official Airstrip Attack goes to show that they do it right.
Late decision in the week I decided to meet up with my friend Scott to head 3-4 hours up north and shoot Shift-S3ctor. Traditionally done at Coalingas Municipal Airport as usual, this one was not one to forget. As always, different cars, platforms and anything that can go straight down a half-mile is encouragingly accepted. However, rules are rules, and safety is their number one priority.
The Main attractions for me was SP Engineering’s GTR, English Racing’s EG Civic, and Caliber Customs Mustang Cobra which I normally see at Global Time Attack Events. As Nissan’s glorious GTR continues to dominate many speed trial events, there’s very little room for companies and shops to produce a GTR that doesn’t go as fast as the other shop next door. But because I’m from California, I like seeing my local industry brethren, do well, and SP did just that with a 207.9mph trap speed and taking 1st place at this event.
From the Pacific Northwest, the English Racing guys came down with a I never seen before Honda Civic EG. In a cool green color, that’s similar to the Integra they usually bring down. I don’t know exactly what it did, but it was moving fast taking out Corvette C7 ZO6’s and a few other Fast Sports Cars 3 times its price.
Then there was a familiar car, the Mustang Cobra from Caliber Customs that we have captured doing laps around Buttonwillow or most Global Time Attack events. It seemed out of place with all the downforce type aero still on it. But hey, what do I know, all I can say it was nice seeing this car do whatever it wants to do, well whatever the driver wants I should say. Apparently it’s the first time it’s been at a Roll Race event, so it would be interesting to follow up on where this car will continue its life. Going back to Time Attack only, start Roll Racing exclusively, or do them both? Let’s just hope we see more of it.
Lastly, I know I mentioned safety a lot on here, and I say that because one of the worst things to see at any racing event is an accident. Even as a photographer yeah, its something to capture that makes headlines, and makes you some money. But none of that I care about more, than the people involved and seeing or hearing them alive and well is a better story than anything else. For what could have been worse, a nice looking and fast Chevy Camaro pulled out to run and at nears end it somehow lost control, flipped several times and lit on fire. From my distance all I could see was smoke, and the expression on people’s faces. Thank God for the Safety Safari, within seconds they were able to put out the blaze and take care of the Driver and Passenger right away. In the end after an hour of wondering what happened, the Camaro was completely totaled, nearly crumbled like a soda can. But if it wasn’t for the Driver’s great choice of properly having a Roll Bar, Fire suit, and other safety devices installed, this accident could have been worse. My friends Jason and Ryan definitely did an awesome job, their staff also played a role in making this another great experience. If you haven’t been to one of Shift-S3ctor’s events, I highly recommend it. -Rommel Estrada
For the Full Gallery of this event CLICK HERE.
