From: Popsracr@aol.com <Popsracr@aol.com>
>I was watching an interesting show about the flight of a Boeing 767 from
Air
>Canada and they landed on an old airfield during what looked like an
>autocross event. Does anyone know where that was and whose event was going
>on at the time? Was anyone actually there when that happened?
Gimili, Manitoba, just like they said on the show. It was thereafter known
as the Gimili Glider.
No, I was not there. I heard that there were actually drag races at the
time. The movie looks like vintage racing or vintage autoslalom.
Autoslalom (the Canadian word for autocross) events have been common at the
side for decades, I think.
I ice-raced in Gimili once, on Lake Winnipeg. Probably not that far from
the shoreline shown in the film. The people were fine, except the guy who
wrecked my race car for me. He was a Yank anyway, from my own city. None
of the Canadians backed onto the track in front of me.
The Winnipeg Sports Car Club guys said then (1972) that there was an air
base near town and that the federal government wanted the club to run summer
races there to boost tourism. When can I expect my government to be so
accommodating?
I believe that the Gimili base will be the site of this summer's Canadian
Autoslalom Championships. I'd like to attend, but Winnipeg it just as far
from Saint Paul as Topeka is.
I have not been to Canada in many years, but I expect to be cruising out to
Vermont to my return my daughter to school, and the plan is to cut across
eastern Ontario instead of doing the Chicago thing.
Phil Ethier Saint Paul Minnesota USA
1970 Lotus Europa, 1992 Saturn SL2, 1986 Chev Suburban
LOON, MAC pethier@isd.net http://www.mnautox.com/
"If I can do it, it's not art" - Red Green
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