Taken Off Market - 1998 Ferrari F355 Factory Challenge “Type A - Evoluzione” - 1 of 40 in the world | Page 2 | FerrariChat

Taken Off Market 1998 Ferrari F355 Factory Challenge “Type A - Evoluzione” - 1 of 40 in the world

Discussion in 'Ferraris' started by Robb, Oct 31, 2017.

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  1. Robb

    Robb Moderator
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    #26 Robb, Nov 7, 2018
    Sorry of the spelling error... should have spelled it T Y C O O N... :D

    Another image of this car in action.

    Robb

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  2. Robb

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    #27 Robb, Nov 9, 2018
    Mopped the garage floor and decided to try out a new 50mm lens for a less distorted angle. The car really is the center of attention.

    Robb

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  3. Robb

    Robb Moderator
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    #28 Robb, Jan 11, 2019
    BrianNYC14 and Dave rocks like this.
  4. Robb

    Robb Moderator
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    #29 Robb, Jan 11, 2019
    brookliner7 likes this.
  5. Robb

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    #30 Robb, Jan 11, 2019
    brookliner7 likes this.
  6. Robb

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    #31 Robb, Jan 11, 2019
    I would throw out there one type of event that might be on your driving bucket list...

    The Targa Tasmania

    By invitation approval only of historically significant cars...

    I think this car would merit participation and a healthy dose of applause...

    https://targa.com.au/tc/page_standard.asp?asset_id=19237

    If you have dreamed of driving with select historical racing cars afar or with other Ferrari racing cars in the US or Europe... this car is your golden entry.

    Your bucket list is calling you...

    We are open to trades or outright sale. Have a good weekend. Spring is coming...

    Robb
     
  7. Robb

    Robb Moderator
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    #32 Robb, Jan 13, 2019
    BrianNYC14 likes this.
  8. Robb

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    #33 Robb, Jan 31, 2019
    The story of this Evoluzione:

    Forming the “Cable Trackers” team and purchase of 111869

    By Tim Robertson, October 6, 2016

    The “Cable Trackers” team came together in 1997 after an event that was organized by Frank Drendel at Road Atlanta that he called “Cable Trackers.” Several of us in the cable tv industry were car enthusiasts of varying levels; some owned sports cars, some sponsored race teams from open wheel to Nascar, some were actually licensed drivers from SCCA to Nascar, others were just plain motorheads. Frank had once owned part of Road Atlanta, so he invited a group of us to come down, with our cars, for a track day. In fact, he sent a CommScope hauler around to pick up several of the cars for the event. Among the notables were Roger Werner’s vintage Porsche Carrera RS Lightweight, Leo’s new 1997 Porsche Turbo S, Jimmy Dolan’s Ferrari 348 (although Jimmy missed much of the day due to a conflict), and several of Frank’s cars- a new Ferrari 355, a couple of rare Corvettes, an historic Winston Cup car, and his son, Matt’s BMW M3. Among other invitees were Joe Collins, CEO of Time Warner cable, Marvin Jones of TCI cable, Ed Breen of General Instruments and Dob Bennett of Liberty Media. Note that I haven’t mentioned my car.

    Earlier in 1997 we sold our company, International Family Entertainment, owner of The Family Channel. My friend, Jake Steinfeld (of Body by Jake fame), talked me into giving myself a present. So we ordered matching Ferrari 550 Maranellos (same Blue Pozzi as the later F355 Challenge). Jake was good friends with the Ferrari NA president, Gian Luigi Buitoni, and had called me with the news that Gian Luigi could hook us up. I suggested that maybe we could get a package deal, to which Buitoni’s classic response was, “You’re getting a deal… Ferraris.” Well, as is often the case, they were late.

    Jake was in the process of trying to get subscribers for a network called FitTv, which we had launched together when I was running International Family Entertainment, and he was trying to grow it under its new ownership from Fox. I was a little upset that I was about to miss Frank’s event due to lack of a car so I called Jake. He agreed to call Gian Luigi to see if we might be able to get some demos, since coming up with a car would get Jake invited to the event as well. This would give him valuable time with some of cable tv’s biggest decision makers. There was also an outside chance that our 550’s might show up. Well, Jake got Gian Luigi to agree to help us out, but he wouldn’t commit to anything specific. There was also an outside chance that our 550’s might show up.

    When we got to the hotel, we still didn’t know what was waiting for us, but the next morning was pretty dramatic. There was a light fog over the track when we showed up, and there, through the mist next to the pits, was this huge red hauler with a black prancing horse logo on it. On cue, as if from central casting, out walks Gian Luigi, hair slicked back, Euro jeans, and a mid-length Ferrari testing jacket.

    Next to the hauler were two F355 Challenge cars and a red 550 Maranello. As if this weren’t enough, they had a tent set up with an espresso machine ready to go. It was pretty impressive. Next, Gian Luigi introduced us to Didier Theys, a Ferrari test driver, who was there to take us on hot laps for track familiarization before we could drive the cars. Wow! Everybody enjoyed driving many of the cars the guys brought, but the major hit were the Challenge cars. Why not? The cars were set up for racing with slicks, roll cages, etc. The street cars were no match for these race cars - no matter how cool. All I can say is that Gian Luigi set the hook, but he didn’t have to reel us in. We practically jumped into the boat.

    Since Frank had a personal relationship with Steve Barney, we chose Foreign Cars Italia as our sponsor dealer. This also helped given their proximity to CommScope’s base of operations and Frank’s large hauler. Leo, Marvin, Matt Drendel, and I all ordered cars for the 1998 season, and the rest is history. All four cars were ordered and delivered at the same time. The first time we got to see and drive them was at the Homestead, Florida race in early 1998. We sent one of the crew guys to a marine store to put “awl grip” on the metal floors so that our shoes wouldn’t slip. A later mod was to replace the OEM factory leather door panels (imagine leather panels in a race car!) with carbon fiber sheets. The CommScope techs did this for us.

    I picked blue pozzi because it was a different color other than typical Rosso Corsa. Later, in 1999, I added dark orange stripes because I was on the board of my alma mater, UVA, whose colors are navy and orange. I chose the number 91 for the car. It’s from the 91st Psalm, v11: “He shall give His angels charge over you.” As a rookie driver, I figured I needed all the help I could get.

    Memorable moments on the series were many. I met Paul Newman at Lime Rock. He was a very nice guy, already into his 70s. He missed a shift right in front of me heading into Big Ben and I almost ran up his tailpipe during the race. That would have been a great headline. Fortunately, I was able to get around him. My favorite track was Road Atlanta. It was even better before they put in the left-right turns at the end of the back straight. Other favorites are Laguna Seca, because of the amazing uphill/downhill Corkscrew, Lime Rock, where we set up only for right hand turns, throwing away the lefts and got our best finish, and Montreal, because of the adrenaline rush of racing in front of the F1 crowd on such an amazing race surface.

    Because of Leo and Marvin’s relationships with cable networks, we got The Discovery Channel, Starz, and Speedvision as sponsors, and Frank Drendel brought in CommScope, General Instruments, and Antec. For 1999 and 2000, I used my start-up dot-com, FamilyClick, as a sponsor as well. When Roger Werner joined as a driver, we added Ferrari of Atlanta as a sponsor dealer and they took care of Roger and my cars.
     
  9. Robb

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    #34 Robb, Jan 31, 2019
  10. Robb

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    #35 Robb, Feb 2, 2019
    Not likely you will see factory challenge cars with original books...

    This one has them with full service and race records from 1998 to today.

    Robb

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  11. Robb

    Robb Moderator
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    #36 Robb, Feb 15, 2019
  12. Robb

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    #37 Robb, Feb 15, 2019
  13. Robb

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    #38 Robb, Feb 15, 2019
  14. Robb

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    #39 Robb, Feb 15, 2019
    ShineKen and Dave rocks like this.
  15. Robb

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    #40 Robb, Feb 22, 2019
    Current mileage at 12,084

    Robb
     
  16. Robb

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    #41 Robb, Feb 27, 2019
  17. Robb

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    #42 Robb, Feb 28, 2019
  18. RWP137

    RWP137 Formula 3

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    #43 RWP137, Mar 1, 2019
    I finally saw this car in person today. It’s a beautiful, super clean race car with amazing history and documentation. Someone is going to get a winner.
     
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  19. Robb

    Robb Moderator
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    #44 Robb, Mar 4, 2019
  20. Robb

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    #45 Robb, Mar 5, 2019
  21. Robb

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    #46 Robb, Mar 5, 2019
  22. Robb

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    #47 Robb, Mar 8, 2019
  23. Robb

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    #48 Robb, Mar 8, 2019
    Your ticket to drive with the 488 challenge series at the biggest tracks.

    You just need a non-modified historic challenge car. Have a look. This Discovery Challenge car combined with this program would make for some outstanding access and experiences. 4 track weekends left on the calendar. Seems to be very reasonable. And you won’t need 5 mechanics and a special black box to maintain your 355.

    Robb

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  24. Robb

    Robb Moderator
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    #49 Robb, Mar 22, 2019
  25. Robb

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    #50 Robb, Mar 22, 2019
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