On February 8th we will be hosting a BBQ Meet and Greet at Orlando’s newest race track, the Central Florida Road Course. The event will be hosted from 11-5 at the road course which is located. Food and beverage will be provided. No alcoholic beverages are allowed on site.
– Parade Laps paced by a Titan car
– Open Session for qualified drivers and those who have completed driver training. (The next training/evaluation course is January 31st, take the course and gain access to the track at our event)
For More Information on the Course / Training Courses and for additional directions and photos visit http://cfroadcourse.com
If you plan on attending or have any questions about the Titan BBQ event please email wes@titanmotorsports.com
Another restaurant we visited on our trip was an Irish pub called O’Neill’s. It is your stereotypical Irish pub, with thick wood tables, low lighting, and assorted plaques and memorabilia on the walls. They had plenty of beers on tap and a better than expected menu. I ended up ordering the mixed grill, which consisted of a 4oz steak, half of a chicken breast, a sausage link, a fried egg, potato wedges and steamed veggies. It was quite good. Eric had a BBQ burger which he liked as well. The food was good but the price was excellent. My mixed grill came out to around $11! Not bad for a decent meal. O’Neill’s is definitely a place to visit when on New Street. Best all around bang for the buck.
For those of you keeping up with the latest entrees, you’ll know we just got back from Birmingham, UK and posted some pictures from Autosport 2009. Well we took some time, and the train, down to New Street, Birmingham’s downtown district. It was foggy and cold but we managed to snap a few shots of the local culture. Look for a later write up on Café Rouge and O’Neill’s next week. Cheers!
Last week our International Wholesale Manager Eric Kerwin and I made the journey over the pond and through the fog to dreary Birmingham England for Autosport 2009. The show itself was great, consisting of two days of pure industry showcase, as well as two days designated for retail customers and general motorsports enthusiasts. It was a great show for us as we were able to talk with motorsports enthusiasts from around the world. While we were there we also took time to do a little site seeing as well as sample the local food. We will have more on that later but in the mean time we snapped a few shots of some of the cars on display. Enjoy.
Wednesday we had the pleasure of checking out Orlandos newest racetrack, the Central Florida Road Course. Matt and Reg Tarleton who are overseeing this project invited us out to check out their progress and let us take a few laps in our camouflage 996tt. This freshly developed course was constructed using a large paved plot just minutes from the airport and our new office location. Using bus stops in addition to the acres of paved area on the infield, they where able to create a 1 mile circuit track with various track configuration possible. The road course width is a 30’ minimum throughout and is fenced and walled with tire barriers in impact prone areas.
Overall I was very impressed with the track layout and the facility itself. The overall pavement sections where in good shape and the newly paved sections where very smooth as well. Safety barriers were still being constructed when we visited, however much of the problem areas should be well protected by concrete and tire barriers when the facility goes live in the coming weeks. There is plenty of parking outside the gates, and the interior portions of the track are well lit allowing for night driving sessions in the blazing hot summer months we get here in Florida.
Do to insurance regulations, the course is limited to licensed professional drivers, or drivers who complete the introductory driving course offered at the track. The first such class is January 11th, and we will be attending. Future membership programs and general open days are currently being scheduled, and there is talk of many clubs renting the track out for future events. Overall the track has great potential, it’s definitely not Sebring but this track was not intended to be a comparison to larger tracks. If you’re looking to test vehicle dynamics, keep your driving fresh, or want to learn road racing techniques without traveling, this facility offers a great location to do so. The fees may sound a bit expensive, however as clubs embrace this track and sponsors come on board, you can expect private rentals and open days to become much more frequent and affordable. When you factor in traveling time, hotel costs, etc for your average track weekend, the current price doesn’t seem so bad after all. Future expansion will allow for a longer track and addition facility upgrades, so support local business and check it out.
This weekend we headed out to Colonial TownPark in Lake Mary,FL for the monthly Cars and Cafe event put on by Orlando Automotive Club. Attendance was slightly down as a result of the holidays, however there was a still great turnout of cars from various marquees. I had my father in town for the holidays and had the pleasure of bringing him out to the event to enjoy all the beautiful cars on such a nice day. This was also the first Cafe meet the Camouflage Porsche attended and it received quite a bit of attention as one can expect. Check out the gallery below to see all the great cars in attendance.
Saturday marked the date for our annual Titan holiday party. This year we welcomed our close knit family and friends to Buca di Beppo in Maitland for some fine Italian dining, followed by a few sessions of carnage at our local go-kart track Lil500. It was a great time to stop and reflect on the great year we have had, and how much we have to be thankful for.
On of the highlights of the evening was when Sally, one of our book-keepers challenged everyone to write a parody of the night before Christmas to present at the party. Chris rose to the challenge with a great story, however Sally took the cake with some clever inside humor. I’ve posted it below for all to review, I also wanted to take a moment to wish everyone Happy Holidays from myself and the gang here at Titan Motorsports.
“The Night Before Moving”
T’was the night before moving, when all through the town
Everyone was wondering, is this really going down
Car Parts all packed up, lined up nice & neat,
just finding it hard to keep Kris in his seat
The salesmen were nestled all snug in their seats,
with visions of sales that would soon be complete
Jen, Sally & Josie worked in a hurry
just knowing the move would end all their worries
We waited and waited, for this day to come
Now it was upon us, we all want to run
With boxing and packing the part with such care
Know that were moving just gives us a scare
When outside the door there arose such a clatter,
we sprang from our seats to see what was the matter
Away to the door, through open it fast, to see that it was Nero just being an ass.
The sun in the sky was so bright to our eyes
we looked and we saw it was such a surprise
We open the door of A1 and A2 to find that Nero didn’t know what to do
Up on the forklift so orange in color,
everyone knows that he is “your brother”
Should not have been driving the forklift at all
we all got the chuckle when he hit the wall
Then Bottle appeared with duck tape in fist
Yelling and screaming this is NOT on the list.
Bottle and sales staff saying what have we here
A hole in the wall that this tape will adhere
Go David, go Kerwin , go John20to the 3rd, on Geoff, on Sean who is a nerd.
For moving Titan Motorsports
Will be quite a task, For all of the time
We hope this is the last
Admin will have their office private and cozy
Just out of ear shot so you don’t have to hear Josie
I’m sure I’ve left some people out, just ran out of time
The truth of the matter is I have nothing to rhyme.
So as this day ends along with this poem
I want to say Thank You as we leave for our homes.
So let’s all be happy, healthy, wealthy and wise,
let’s get through next year are sale they should rise MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT
Holiday Hours : We will be open the 24th, closed the 25th, and be back in full swing on the 26th.
With the PRI show in Orlando this past week, we had the pleasure of hosting an open house for the great vendors who serve Titan Motorsports. The open house was hosted at our new location which is currently under construction on Boggy Creek Road, and displayed a handful of street and race cars. This state of the art 25,000sq/ft facility is being designed and built from the ground up with extensive planning to ensure growth for each of Titans divisions for many years to come.
The exterior shell has been complete for some time, however permitting for the interior buildup has held up construction progress. As these conflicts are now resolved, we are getting much closer to moving to our new home, and look forward to posting many more updates as construction continues. Our current expectations anticipate a smooth transition towards the end of quarter 1 in 2009.
We reached a major milestone in construction this week with the hanging of our massive new sign. The sign features 42” tall brushed aluminum letters which are backlit by thousands of amber LEDs. A big thank you to Nick and the crew at Diamond Electric for creating such a master piece and having it hung in time for our open house.
This weekend I had the pleasure of heading to Long Beach, California for the Red Bull Drifting Finals. I’ve been attending import events for over 10 years now, and as hard as it is to believe, this was my first drifting event. That being said I could not have picked a better event to attend, Red Bull and FormulaD truly outdid themselves in the planning and execution of this event, and it ran flawlessly.
We flew in Thursday Night and headed to downtown Long Beach for the pre-party. FormulaD organized a pre-party upstairs at Smooths, and also arranged for the streets to be closed off so the cars could line up through downtown. It was a great time with plenty of beers and Red Bulls being consumed from friends of new and old, along with some of the best drifters from around the world. The drivers picked straws to determine their qualifying order and then proceeded to parade back to the pier for the following days testing.
Here is a quick video of the cars lined up in front of Smooths in Long Beach during the straw pull / pre-party.
On Friday a Pro-Am event was held on the course. Without access to the event we spend the day enjoying some of the fun things to do around Long Beach. I was highly impressed with how clean Long Beach as a city was. The air quality and Smog left a lot to be desired, but I can’t count how many people where picking up trash, washing sidewalks and windows, etc on the cities dime.
Saturday we walked from the host hotel, Westin of Long Beach, down to the convention center to catch our bus to the venue. I was a little hesitant of how this was going to work out as I read about the event, however parking and the bus schedule seemed to work perfectly, and I can’t remember waiting more than 15 to catch a bus. As we drove into the port of Long Beach, the scenery went from a plush cityscape to an industrial yard complete with oil tankers, cranes and container ships. FormulaD had built a small city within this landscape and in the middle was the track where the event would be held. Bleachers, VIP stands, catch fences vendor tents, everything needed to hold a proper event where brought into this shipyard. It was truly a work of art and one of the best places you could possible hold a drifting event. Qualifying took place and the competitors where scored on their runs, combined with entry speeds from 85-104mph. There was plenty of smoke coming from the competitors tires, and blowing in from the brush fires in nearby Sylmar fires being pushed with Santa Ana winds. Combined with the already thick Long Beach smog it made breathing a bit more difficult, however it added to the industrial environment the track was constructed in. There were some great solo runs to be seen but the real event was still to come on Sunday.
Sunday morning we again boarded the bus and headed out to the venue for the main event. A big thanks to Steve @ Scion for providing us with great hospitality in the Scion VIP stand. The event kicked off with the Red Bull air team sky diving in at 80+mph, then followed by tandem sessions with 32 of the world’s best drifters. The event format was a bit different at this event, drivers were not given advantages, just a win/loss/omt (one more time) at the end of 2 sessions. The first session a driver would lead the run, then follow the section run. If the 2 runs are 2 close to determine a winner an OMT is granted so that the 2 competitors can run again until a concrete victor is determined. There were plenty of great cars participating however those that stood out where an E36 Wagon, Quad-Rotor RX7 (one of the best sounding engines I’ve heard in a while), and the ever popular Mopar Viper. The day had plenty of great drifts, crashes, but in the end Red Bulls very own Rhys Millen wont the event with his consistent drifts, 3 digit entry speeds and great transitions. We boarded the bus after a great event and flew back to Florida to get things started for 2009. I truly hope Red Bull / FormulaD is able to make this event an annual event, as I had a blast and would love to see some other east coasters fly out and enjoy the event. Will you see a Titan Supra drifting in 2009? I can’t guarantee it, but it sure would be cool.
Some other fun things we did while in Long Beach
Aquarium of the Pacific – If you make it to Long Beach definitely check out this aquarium. The exhibits range from 5,000 gallons to 3,500 gallons allowing you to view the animals in a realistic environment.
Inn-N-Out Burger – The first place we went after exiting the plane was Inn N Out Burger. Inn-N-Out burger has some of the best burgers and fries I’ve ever had at a fast food joint. They currently only have locations in California, Nevada, and Arizona. If you make it out west it’s definitely worth the trip.
PinkBerry – Everyone is raving about PinkBerry frozen yogurt on the internet and in those gossip mags my fiancé is constantly reading. Currently only open in New York and California this chain serves some of the best yogurt I’ve ever had. Basically it’s all natural non-fat yogurts in Green Tea, Pomegranate, and Original Flavors, combined with some of the freshest toppings. I’ve got to admit I’m hooked, I can only hope they bring the concept to Orlando soon to kill my sweet tooth and stay healthy at the same time.
Yard House – 215 beers available on tap. Need I say anything more. Located in Shoreline Village this restaurant has just about any beer you could want and then some, most available in their half yard sized glasses.
This weekend Nero and myself had the pleasure of heading to Las Vegas for the annual SEMA show. SEMA is an industry event that encompasses the aftermarket performance industry. After 3 days of walking the show and meeting with suppliers and contacts in the industry, I was exhausted. The gallery below has some of our highlights from the show.
