Monthly Newsletter for March 2005
| Table of Contents |
| Note from Rob |
Several items to cover this month...
Transition to New Server
This has been completed. All functionality is available again. We've had a couple kinks as expected, but everything appears stable now. Over the past 2 days I hope you have noticed the improved performance of the community. Beyond what you experience first hand we have an Enterprise capable host with the latest technologies and capacity. FerrariChat.com now has the infrastructure to professionally handle many times our current size. This will allow me more time towards enhancements vs. maintenance.
New FerrariAds.com Software
The new software has been available the past two days. There are still some tweaks to be made, but the majority opinion so far is that users really like it. You can access FerrariAds.com at www.ferrariads.com or from the header link in www.ferrarichat.com. Everyone will still be able to view ads, but only those with subscribed permissions will be able to post new ads. Hopefully this will improve the quality of the ads while also adding another value added feature to subscriptions. For the next couple days you may access the old software at www.ferrariads.com/cgi-bin/classifieds/classifieds.cgi if you would like to copy some of your text over.
Spot the Special Logo Banner Contest!
If you can spot the banner displayed below within the forums, please click on the banner and fill out the form to claim the prize. The first person to submit the form will get a $100 credit towards the use at any FerrariChat.com sponsor or our future online store. The banner will only display about 5 times a day, which is fairly scarce considering the logo banner is viewed over 100,000 times a day. The black 348 is artwork by FerrariChat.com user Grant Thomas. http://www.grantthomasdesigns.htmlplanet.com
| User of the Month |
Please submit nominations to Rob at rlay@ferrarichat.com. If you have nominated someone before and they have not been selected yet, please resubmit their names.
| Post of the Month |
| Featured Article |
Monza High Bank
by Bruce Miller
Everyone talks about Monza, the Speed, the old banking and the fact that it is the fastest road course in Europe. No other track permits Formula 1 cars to complete an event at an average speed of 158 mph and that does include pit stops.
What brought me and thousands of other fans to this historical location on this cool wet weekend in Oct? It was the annul gathering of the top drivers of the Ferrari Challenge Series from through out the World. The Ferrari Challenge World Series holds an event each year, one week after the last F1 race, some where in Italy, to crown The King of the World.
The group from North America make this occasion as a mini, week long, vacation. As a group, they go on factory tours (Ferrari & Maserati), as well as Schodoni, the primer leather maker for Ferrari. This is the only time that these drivers ever get a chance to drive their autos in Italy. A chance to see, feel and enjoy Ferrari, the Life!!!
We could go on & on about the event itself. About all the racing, the dinners, celebrities, displays, exhibitions, etc but not at this time. We are going to tell you about one North America Team and their efforts to have their car photographed on the old High Banks of Monza.
Car number 287, Doug Peterson and his crew of three found a section of the banking that they thought would be an ideal location to take one of a life time photos on the old, unused section, high bank of Monza.
The plan was to lead the race car to the site during the break in the action on Friday. This is where it started to get a little weird.
As the race car tried to exit the paddock area, track security stopped and stated that the car could only be told outside the paddock area. No problem, we just go and get a tow rope. It seems that outside the paddock area it was public area and no race cars are permitted to be driven.
We are approximately ¾ of the way to our destination when an unmarked white BMW pulls us over. Out steps four large men. They asked what we where doing. We told them. They stated that they where not the polizi but if they stopped us it would cost 500 euros per car as a fine. Doug thought about it and decided that that would not be bad if we can get the shot that he wanted. Then the men made a statement that made up our mind in a sec. They said that besides the fine the equipment would be confiscated. That told us that the photo was not worth it. We thanked them, they left and we started pushing the car to turn it around. We talked about how big the men are and tried to figure out who they where. Could they be Secret Service, or something like Home Land Security? We did not know but all agreed that they are some big, mean looking men.
We get the car side ways on the small road when the BMW returned. The men said, "there is a spot that you can go to take your photo". They gave us directions to the spot. It was not that far from the original but in a different direction. We thanked them and followed their directions. It was worth it. It was a better location then what we had picked. It was off the beaten path. There was a fence blocking the banking. We on did the wire and backed the car on to the banking. It took all of 15 minutes to perform our photo shots. We departed with some great photos of Doug, his crew, and the car on the High Banks of Monza. Shots that we believe no other Ferrari Challenge Team has.
Doug won both of the North American events but this experience is one that he will never ever forget.
| Site Statistics |
| User Statistics |
Top 20 Posters...
| User Name | Join Date |
Posts
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Last Visit | Full Name | Location | Personal Ferraris |
| NNO | 08-03-2002 | 17,751 | Today | ZFFCW56A430134282 | Just Outside Reality | Do 1:18s count...? |
| Rob Lay | 12-01-2000 | 12,312 | Today | Rob Lay | Southlake, TX | 1986 328 GTS, 1995 355 Challenge |
| Wolfgang | 03-08-2003 | 12,036 | Today | Wolfgang | Germany, Heidelberg | `91 Testarossa ZFFAA17B000091239 |
| BigTex | 12-06-2002 | 9,999 | Today | Bubba | Houston, Texas | '42 - '04 |
| Cavallino Motors | 05-31-2001 | 8,831 | Today | Martin Wiescholek | Miami Beach | 355 Challenge |
| maranelloman | 01-31-2002 | 8,679 | Today | Ivana Humpalot | location location | 550 Maranello |
| tifosi12 | 10-03-2002 | 7,821 | Today | Andreas | USA | 308 QV |
| matteo | 08-01-2002 | 7,664 | Today | Matt | Los Angeles, Calif | 83 308 QV GTS #45563 |
| MarkPDX | 04-21-2003 | 7,529 | Today | ONN U | North Mexico | Fiero w/ shields |
| tonyh | 12-23-2002 | 7,415 | Today | Tony H | SW London | 355 Spider |
| ForzaFerrari | 07-25-2003 | 6,597 | Today | Waldo | The Netherlands | none...yet |
| Auraraptor | 09-25-2002 | 6,012 | Today | Omar | Balti. MD/Hazl. PA | "Alissa" SN# 77353 |
| jordan747_400 | 12-09-2002 | 5,904 | Today | Jordan Witherspoon | Irvine, CA | not yet! |
| BWS550 | 04-01-2002 | 5,890 | Today | BRUCE WELLINGTON | NEW JERSEY | 2000 TDF 550 |
| darth550 | 07-14-2003 | 5,833 | Today | DL | Westwood, CA | '98 550 |
| 2000YELLOW360 | 06-05-2001 | 5,799 | Today | Art | California | N/A |
| Napolis | 10-23-2002 | 5,739 | Today | |||
| Gimme Fuel | 03-15-2003 | 5,443 | Today | Paul (Norway) | Khazad Dûm | About 90 (1/18) |
| wax | 07-20-2003 | 5,423 | Today | Tom I | -a van by the river! | |
| jimpo1 | 07-30-2001 | 5,359 | Today | Jim E | Dallas, TX | 1987 328 GTS |
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H3R halon fire extinguishers have a rapidly growing following among Ferrari enthusiasts for the same reasons they are the standard for commercial aircraft: Halon is extremely effective, and will not corrode electronics or surface finishes like common dry chemical extinguishers do. In fact, halon leaves no mess at all, while dry chemical extinguishers can cause more damage than the fire itself! Contact H3R at http://www.h3r.com/ferrari.htm info@h3r.com, or 800-249-4289 and see why FerrariChat.com members are among our most satisfied customers! |
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Highlinewheels is the leading distributor of modular wheels in the nation. Our new line of G-Force wheels are especially designed and custom built for your Ferrari. These custom wheels are available in all original colors and found nowhere else. Highlinewheels is focused on the uncompromising standards of engineering, innovation and quality for its customer. http://www.hlwcorp.com |
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Hill Engineering has been established for over 50 years and has been supplying the F1 & Motorsport industry with ultra high quality precision components for the last 25 years. All of our products are designed & manufactured at our factory in London where we use state of the art manufacturing processes. Our goal is to provide a first class product at a price that you would expect to pay direct from the manufacturer. http://www.hill-engineering.co.uk |
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Ferrari Chat’s oldest running sponsor Nick's Forza Ferrari is the place to go for Ferrari performance parts and modifications. We are distributors of Capristo Exhaust Systems* Value added Electromotive Engine Controls dealer* Power Chip development partner and official reseller* authorized reseller for ANSA Exhaust, CSC Exhaust & Millie Miglia Exhaust Systems* Wheels by Ronal, Compomotive & HRE* Brake products by Brembo, Tarox* Evans Coolant, K&N, Energy Suspension and custom double adjustable suspension packages for Ferrari’s 308* early 328 cars & the much talked about 400 + HP 4.1 Liter Engine Development Project. For the 308/328 & Mondial series cars*. Please check Nick's website at http://www.nicksforzaferrari.com. |
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At Norwood Performance we have specialized in Ferrari service for over twenty years and are a recognized leader in performance engine modifications. We feature turbo and fuel injection systems, custom engine rebuilds, machine shop services, a full line of performance engine components and engine building tools as well as full maintenance and services facilities for all Ferrari models. http://www.norwoodperformance.com |
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