The Latest On Bill Beilharz

But before I tell you about the latest report on Bill CLICK HERE for some research we did a while back.

I just spoke to Bill Beilharz and already he's working on a new car for the next La Carrera Panamericana so I sent some spys to get a sneak peak. Check out the photos...

That's All That's Left... LCP Roadkill

Courtesy of Jorge

From A Different Angle

Without a doubt the most exciting and challenging stage of La Carrera Panamericana is Mil Cumbre. Just finishing it is exhilarating and something every driver in the world should envy but to do well in that stage is amazing and should you win that stage it is life changing. When I won the Mil Cumbre stage in Historic C class in 2007 I never completely realized how dangerous it truly was. Even after watching hundreds of videos including my own in-car video most drivers and teams never really realize how deep the canyons are there. Taking a look at these two beautiful photos of Mil Cumbre taken by my good friend Francisco Ortiz will definitely give one a different perspective of what we drove like a bat out of hell through. Some day I look forward to just going back for a nice leisurely drive to enjoy it all.

Mil Cumbre is so challenging for so many reasons. Besides the obvious cliffs and trees and lack of guard rails, there are spots with tight corners and loose gravel, donkeys, water crossing the road, the sun in in your eyes one moment and the fog can be thick the next, and there are even a few story's of locals who have placed logs across the road in places where they are least expected. I remember sliding sideways on one corner after driving thru the blood of a dead horse that ran across the road. It's safe to day this is not just another Sunday drive.

Before And After

I'm glad Brad Kaplan and his navigator Derek Dwyer are ok and again happy to report that safety is a high priority in LCP and it was proven on numerous occasions this year.

Photos Courtesy Francisco Ortiz

A special thanks to my good buddy Francisco

How Would You Define Orginization?

organize; -ized , -izing , -izes To put together into an orderly, functional, structured whole.

organized; Functioning within a formal structure, as in the coordination and direction of activities.

organization; The act or process of organizing.


That said, it's 3 days after the end of the race and the overall results STILL have not been posted let alone the daily results from 5 days ago. Anyone can bake a cake but having the ability to present on complete with decorations and lit candles is the difference between being a cake decorator or some kids with a toy stove.

I understand and appreciate what a huge undertaking the LCP organization has each year. As a matter of fact I doubt many of us truly realize HOW big it is and all the behind the scenes work that goes on. But that does not make it excusable for any reason to not have accurate results available to both the teams, families, friends, sponsor and fans. The end results is it's just a damn a cake with no candles.

Thank You

I would like to take the time to thank everyone from around the world for all your kind email and phone calls. But I would also like to take time to thank all those teams who made time even during their hectic schedule to send me updates and photos so that the rest of us can keep up to speed with all that's going on from the time the teams leave to head to Mexico until they have completed the race and are safely on their way home.

Another thing that gives me so much pleasure each year is the personal email I get from friends and family of teams who are still at home trying to find out bits and pieces. In return they also fill me in on how their team is doing, what adversities they might be encountering and the exhilaration when they are making a comeback or doing well. It's as if we are all family and all very rewarding indeed. Think you each and every one of you.

Now if the LCP organization could just learn how important it would be to get daily results and daily overall results made available each day so the rest of the world could experience the excitement as well. Being able to see that Jon Smith has moved up 10 spots and Mr Jones fell back 2 spots is a HUGE part of watching the race from afar. Being able to see where your team is running and how close each class is truly is the most exciting part of it and somehow hearing about a week two later really means nothing.