The Classic Sports Racing Group (CSRG) kicked off its 49th season at Sonoma Raceway Sears Point in Sonoma, California on April 1-3, 2016. The event featured testing on Friday, with vintage racing on the 12-turn, 2.52-mile road course on Saturday and Sunday. Each race group competed in three races each over the two days for more than 20 races over the course of the weekend.
The 2016 CSRG season opener was held in honor of David Love, a longtime Bay Area resident and CSRG’s co-founder, who passed away in 2013. Love was instrumental in the growth of the organization, which has contributed more than $700,000 to the Sonoma chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities, the charitable arm of Sonoma Raceway, through its race weekends. Love began racing in the 1950s with a series of Porsches and Morgans, among others. He later purchased the car with which he will always be identified — a 1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa (s/n 0754TR) that he raced in over 250 events before retiring in 2009.
This year’s race weekend featured the Triumph marque, the quintessential sports cars that won on race tracks around the world. Triumph icon Kas Kastner, who was crucial to the marque’s racing success, was a featured guest throughout the weekend. In addition, former Formula One driver, Howden Ganley, was on site throughout the weekend to sign his book, The Road to Monaco: My Life in Motor Racing, at Wine Country Motorsports in the main paddock.
Notable and interesting entrants at the CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 Sonoma Raceway historic races included Tom Price’s Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, the very same TR that Love raced for decades; Jeff O’Neill’s Maserati Tipo 61 Birdcage; Thor Johnson’s BMW 3.5 liter CSL and Lotus 17; Ned Spieker’s Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta; Alberto Fernandez Garza’s BRM F1; Fred Cziska’s Shadow Mk III Can-Am; Nick Colonna’s McLaren M8C Can-Am and Devin SS; Chris Farrell’s March 821 F1; John Goodman’s Ferrari 312 P Sparling Special and Tyrrell F1; Jeffrey Abramson’s Ferrari 500 Mondial and Morgan Baby Doll IV; Marnix Dillenius’ Alfa Romeo TZ; Peter Giddings’ Alfa Romeo Monza and a great selection representing the featured marque, Triumph.
—
Similar to the 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015 races, Senior Photographer Dennis Gray also documented the 2015 CSRG Season Opener at the Sonoma Raceway Sears Point road course. We split up Dennis’ pictures into two galleries. The first gallery starting below features our favorite images, all displayed in the full-width view of Sports Car Digest, while the second gallery can be found on the last page of the article and gives a comprehensive view of all the photographs.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Two
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Three
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Four
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Five
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Six
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Seven
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Eight
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Nine
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Ten
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Eleven
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Twelve
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Thirteen
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
CSRG David Love Memorial 2016 – Main Photo Gallery (click image for larger picture and description)
[nggallery id=898 images=15]
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
[Source: CSRG; photos: Dennis Gray]
Hello Dennis. I enjoyed meeting you at Sonoma. I was driving the #73 blue Triumph TR6.
Great pictures.
Walter Hollowell
Were you at the following weekend’s HMSA Laguna Seca event? I think I have some nice images of you and #73 in the rain. I’ll look when I get back to my studio this evening.
Dennis
Rob Fisher in his RALT.
That looks like a MARCH to me
Gerry.
Your correct that’s a MARCH. No excuse.
Dennis
Amazing photos, Dennis!