SONOMA, Calif. (April 3, 2018) — The Classic Sports Racing Group (CSRG) opens its 51st race season at Sonoma Raceway this weekend with the David Love Vintage Races, April 7-8.
Guests can expect more than 200 historic and vintage race cars to convene at the wine country racing facility, as classics like Formula Fords, production cars and sports cars principally from the 1950s, '60s and '70s take to the scenic road course. Names like Ferrari, Porsche, Maserati, Lotus, Cooper, Lola and Elva, among others will fill the paddock for an incredible display of cars.
The event features eight full race groups and a special commemorative run group for the kind of cars from the 1950s and early 1960s for which CSRG was founded a half a century ago. In addition, 50 drivers will compete in the second round of the Formula Ford Crossflow Cup Championship, which includes some of the best racing machines ever made.
The season opener is named in honor of David Love, a longtime Bay Area resident and CSRG co-founder, who passed away in 2013. Love was a racer like few others. He began racing in the 1950s with a series of Porsches, Morgans and even Formula Junior. He later purchased the car with which he was most often identified, a1958 Ferrari Testa Rossa, which he raced virtually uninterrupted from the '60s through the '90s at West Coast vintage events.
This weekend's event will feature practice and qualifying on Saturday, with main events slated in each of the eight race groups on the 12-turn, 2.52-mile road course on Sunday. Spectators will get full access to the cars and drivers in the paddock.
For the spectator, this is a chance to do some time travel back to the '50s, '60s and early '70s to see the evolution of race car design and development in the wonderful environment of the Sonoma wine country. Fans can also enjoy an array of delicious food, wines and local craft beer.
Gates open at 8 a.m. each day. Admission is $25 per day or $40 for a weekend pass, which includes parking, as well as access to the paddock and all spectator areas. The David Love Vintage Races is a family-friendly event. Children 12-and-under and veteran military members, as well as high school and college students with appropriate identification, will be admitted FREE. Kids are invited to sit in some of the race cars and get an up close look at these beautiful, vintage machines.
CSRG will return to Sonoma Raceway, Oct. 6-7, for the 15th annual CSRG Charity Challenge, which benefits Speedway Children's Charities. For more information on the Classic Sports Racing Group, visit www.csrgracing.org or for information on the David Love Memorial Races visit. www.lovememorialraces.com.
