Author Topic: 2 Canadians to race the smart in the 2008 One Lap of America/cannonball run (Read 2096 times)

smart · « **on:** March 08, 2008, 10:39:06 am »

One of the most famous/notorious races in North America will celebrate its 25th anniversary and will also have at least 2 "smart" drivers from Canada.

Earlier this week it was officially annouced that the smart project car forfiveone will be raced in the Tire Rack, 2008 One Lap of America below is the copy of the press article that went out:

Quote

One Lap of America and the smart to Become Part of Racing History

The Tire Rack 2008, One Lap of America (formerly named Cannonball Run), will celebrate its 25th anniversary race around the United States and Stephen Noton along with his 451 smart fortwo will be apart of this historic race.

The smart has only been on sale for a couple months in the USA and Canada but it has already sparked some amazing interest from all types of car enthusiasts. While most people see the smart as an economical form of transportation Stephen Noton is showing that a smart can also be a very cool and fun car to drive.

Stephen Noton says "The smart is like a Ferrari, it is a 2 seater, rear wheel drive, rear mounted engine European exotic and it even beats the Ferrari in one performance metric, MPG". That is very true and with some vehicles in the One Lap of America averaging less then 10mpg the smart at 41mpg might even have an advantage during the 4,000 mile event.

Stephen Noton along with his co-driver, Tony Abou-Assaleh, will be driving the 451 smart fortwo nicknamed "forfiveone" which has been modified with racing springs, wider tires and some nice interior enhancements. The car has its own website at forfiveone.com which is hosted on the 451 smart fortwo Owners & Enthusiasts website 451s.com and for now 451s.com/oloa is the dedicated page established for the smart participation in the One Lap of America.

Will the smart catch on in the racing world? Well if history repeats itself as it has with owners of vehicles like the Mini Cooper, VW Beetle, and the Miata, it might not be long before we see smarts showing up at local Solo I and Solo II events. The smarts entry into the racing world will be made easier if smart Canada or smart USA brings in the smart that is sold in Europe which has some impressive performance specifications such as 0-60 in 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 170 all from its 999cc 3 cylinder engine (those numbers are in km).

If you would like to see the One Lap of America or the forfiveone first hand you are welcome to attend anyone of the official race tracks which are posted on the One Lap of America website at onelapofamerica.com. Entrance to most tracks is free and you will even be able to access the staging/pit areas to get up close and personal with the nearly 100 exotic vehicles and their drivers.

Railton · « **Reply #1 on:** March 08, 2008, 04:40:01 pm »

Canadians. Yeah, we're different.

Railton

The Mighty Duck · « **Reply #2 on:** March 08, 2008, 07:11:51 pm »

Is the race done at the speed limit? If so, the smart should do very well, given its long distance between fillups compared to many vehicles...

Railton · « **Reply #3 on:** March 08, 2008, 08:27:25 pm »

I'm almost ashamed to be Canadian with these two dick heads in their Smart in this event.
Railton
http://www.onelapofamerica.com/

daft · « **Reply #4 on:** March 08, 2008, 08:57:06 pm »

Is this a joke?

smart · « **Reply #5 on:** March 08, 2008, 09:06:41 pm »

What is wrong with them entering the smart into this event? Last year a bone stock Geo-Metro entered into the event and it didn't even come in last.

Also for years small cars that people didn't think about as "race" cars have become race cars, VW Beetle, Mazda Miata, Dodge neon, and the Mini Cooper are all cars that are frequently seen on tracks.

The smart has been around for 10 years in Europe and has tuners like BRABUS making race versions at the price of $67,000 per smart.

As for the drivers themselves, the track driver has couple seasons of Solo II and some Solo I track time and the co-driver has managed several cross country road trips.

Its not about winning, its not about breaking any records its about having fun and meeting people along the way. The reason for the smart is we wanted people to also look at the smart as a fun and sporty car, where as something like the Prius really only has the "eco" factor going for it.

Railton · « **Reply #6 on:** March 08, 2008, 09:46:40 pm »

Quote from: smart on March 08, 2008, 09:06:41 pm

What is wrong with them entering the smart into this event? Last year a bone stock Geo-Metro entered into the event and it didn't even come in last.

Also for years small cars that people didn't think about as "race" cars have become race cars, VW Beetle, Mazda Miata, Dodge neon, and the Mini Cooper are all cars that are frequently seen on tracks.

The smart has been around for 10 years in Europe and has tuners like BRABUS making race versions at the price of $67,000 per smart.

As for the drivers themselves, the track driver has couple seasons of Solo II and some Solo I track time and the co-driver has managed several cross country road trips.

Its not about winning, its not about breaking any records its about having fun, meeting people along the way and having. The reason for the smart is we wanted people to also look at the smart as a fun and sporty car, where as something like the Prius really only has the "eco" factor going for it.

The Geo-Metro contestants are obviously from the same gene-pool as the Smart contestants.
Paying $67K for a Smart is smart, Smart?

Railton

The Mighty Duck · « **Reply #7 on:** March 09, 2008, 11:11:19 am »

Quote from: Railton on March 08, 2008, 08:27:25 pm

I'm almost ashamed to be Canadian with these two dick heads in their Smart in this event.
Railton
http://www.onelapofamerica.com/

Wow. I'm almost ashamed to be Canadian with dick heads like this on this forum. "OMG!!! They entered a smart car in a race!!! My world is ending!!!" Boohoo.

1TSX · « **Reply #8 on:** March 09, 2008, 12:21:54 pm »

I don't get the problem?

huota · « **Reply #9 on:** March 09, 2008, 12:47:35 pm »

Quote from: Railton on March 08, 2008, 08:27:25 pm

I'm almost ashamed to be Canadian with these two dick heads in their Smart in this event.
Railton
http://www.onelapofamerica.com/

I am probably missing something obvious here, but would you care to elaborate - what is it that makes them "dick heads"?

safristi · « **Reply #10 on:** March 09, 2008, 10:34:08 pm »

Wolfe · « **Reply #11 on:** March 09, 2008, 11:21:16 pm »

Quote from: smart on March 08, 2008, 09:06:41 pm

Its not about winning, its not about breaking any records its about having fun and meeting people along the way. The reason for the smart is we wanted people to also look at the smart as a fun and sporty car, where as something like the Prius really only has the "eco" factor going for it.

So which one are you the driver or the co-driver?