for the Porsche enthusiast
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for the Porsche enthusiast |
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A Man and His Porsches |
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At the last two Can-Am races of the '72 season, Vasek entered his old car, the 917 Spyder. At Laguna Seca the car used an injected 5.4-liter engine and, with Sam Posey at the wheel, it finished fifth. At Riverside, with Posey again driving, the car was fitted with a turbocharged 5.0-liter powerplant, but it was forced to retire when the gearbox broke at about the midpoint of the race. Throughout his 12-year-long business career on the West Coast, Vasek has campaigned Porsches in Sports Car Club of America regional and national races, and as a result of this, many Southern California racing drivers have honed their driving technique in one or more of Vasek's race cars. Milt Minter is one--there are many more. Because his two automobile dealerships and a full-time Can-Am program keep Vasek busy, he no longer races cars himself. He will, however, enjoy the performance of one of his machines at a Porsche club time trial or at a private test session. At moments such as these, he undoubtedly remembers a race at the old Paramount Ranch course where he competed in his first 550 Spyder. "I came over a hill and there was the sun shining right in my eyes. I hit the brakes, spun, and went under the spectator bridge backwards." Filled with the same ambition that has brought him success in the business and racing world he looks forward to the upcoming Can-Am season when he hopes to have two new Porsche 917-1Os (or whatever they will be called) ready for the series. "We'll number one car 0, a numeral we inherited when we bought Siffert's old car, and we'll number the other car 00. The zeros have become a tradition with us." When his cars roll out onto the grid during next year's Can-Am, Vasek Polak will be there giving his drivers their final instructions. Thousands of motor racing fans will be watching, but no one will be laughing at the wavy-haired ex-machinist who saved his earnings to buy a race car. |
   Pride of Vasek's car
collection,Porsche 917-10 (top) carried Milt Minter to second
place tie in the 1972 Can-Am championship.Between races, the car was torn down and rebuilt (middle) by Gustav Nietsche, Kurt Lanschutzer, and Alwin Springer. Rebodied and fitted with a late model engine, 917 Spyder (bottom) was driven in the last two Can-Ams by Sam Posey. 
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