New Level of Awesomeness - $500 BMW 318 in the WRC

mechanik · 24th March 2010, 12:46

Hello Friends - It has been quite some time since I heard some great news like this and wanted to share this with you all. Please do go through the link posted at the end. This guy has just raised the bar a little higher.

Quote:
Professional motorsport is a cold, hard place. If you want to run with the big dogs, you can't just build a car in your mom's garage and show up, right? Wrong. One guy did just that. Here's his amazing story.

This is the multifaceted tale of Bill Caswell, a man who bought a $500 crapcan off Craigslist to run against the $400,000-plus rally cars in a World Rally Championship race earlier this month. It is a tale of a guy who had a welder, a bunch of credit cards, and a lot of free time but no real backing or funds. It is a story of a dude who taught himself how to build an FIA-legal roll cage, with no prior experience, because he wanted to spend the fabrication fee on race tires instead. It's the story of an enthusiast who drove a rustbucket to a third-place finish in an FIA-sanctioned race.

Most of all, it is a story of hoonage.

Bill Caswell, an unemployed Chicago racing freak, entered the Mexico round of the World Rally Championship in a 1991 BMW 318i that he found on Craigslist. The car cost $500. One year ago, Caswell decided that he wanted to go rallying with Rally America. Two months later, he crashed a car and blew up an engine five minutes into his first event. Four events later, he found a loophole in the FIA rules that let him enter a twenty-year-old car in the same event as guys like Ken Block and former F1 driver Kimi Raikkonen

Source: http://jalopnik.com/5497042/how-to-w...with-a-500-car

quattroa4 · 25th March 2010, 13:48

wow! superb stuff , nice to see some entries like these in wrc!

McLaren Rulez · 25th March 2010, 15:56

Wow! I love this guy. Fantastic job running that car amidst all the professionals and doing well too!

route666 · 25th March 2010, 16:40

just one word.... PASSION.

abhinav.s · 25th March 2010, 17:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by route666

just one word.... PASSION.

+1

hats off to Mr. Caswell!! Amazing thing to enter the car in the race and also finish in a decent 3rd.

howler · 25th March 2010, 17:49

woohoo!! raid de himalaya in a fiat anyone?

pradipk · 25th March 2010, 18:29

I liked the spirit of this guy.

But hey bhpans, please, for GOD's SAKE don't put this under "Pics of weird and wacky mod jobs!".

-Pradip.

prguru · 25th March 2010, 19:21

A living example of what passion and dedication can do to someone, hats off to you Bill

NOS Power · 26th March 2010, 09:48

Does Indian Motorsport (rallying in particular) have such a loophole?

As far as i know cars upto 7 years old post the last year of production are allowed.

If there is something like this then it will be mega news for many of us.

24th March 2010, 12:46	#1
mechanik BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Coimbatore Posts: 27 Thanked: 0 Times	New Level of Awesomeness - $500 BMW 318 in the WRC Hello Friends - It has been quite some time since I heard some great news like this and wanted to share this with you all. Please do go through the link posted at the end. This guy has just raised the bar a little higher. Quote: Professional motorsport is a cold, hard place. If you want to run with the big dogs, you can't just build a car in your mom's garage and show up, right? Wrong. One guy did just that. Here's his amazing story. This is the multifaceted tale of Bill Caswell, a man who bought a $500 crapcan off Craigslist to run against the $400,000-plus rally cars in a World Rally Championship race earlier this month. It is a tale of a guy who had a welder, a bunch of credit cards, and a lot of free time but no real backing or funds. It is a story of a dude who taught himself how to build an FIA-legal roll cage, with no prior experience, because he wanted to spend the fabrication fee on race tires instead. It's the story of an enthusiast who drove a rustbucket to a third-place finish in an FIA-sanctioned race. Most of all, it is a story of hoonage. Bill Caswell, an unemployed Chicago racing freak, entered the Mexico round of the World Rally Championship in a 1991 BMW 318i that he found on Craigslist. The car cost $500. One year ago, Caswell decided that he wanted to go rallying with Rally America. Two months later, he crashed a car and blew up an engine five minutes into his first event. Four events later, he found a loophole in the FIA rules that let him enter a twenty-year-old car in the same event as guys like Ken Block and former F1 driver Kimi Raikkonen Source: http://jalopnik.com/5497042/how-to-w...with-a-500-car
	() Thanks

25th March 2010, 13:48	#2
quattroa4 BHPian Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Aurangabad Posts: 423 Thanked: 586 Times	wow! superb stuff , nice to see some entries like these in wrc!
	() Thanks

25th March 2010, 15:56	#3
McLaren Rulez Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Mysore Posts: 3,390 Thanked: 5,107 Times	Wow! I love this guy. Fantastic job running that car amidst all the professionals and doing well too!
	() Thanks

25th March 2010, 16:40	#4
route666 BHPian Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: cochin Posts: 72 Thanked: 0 Times	just one word.... PASSION.
	() Thanks

25th March 2010, 17:49	#6
howler BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: coorg/bangalore Posts: 447 Thanked: 570 Times	woohoo!! raid de himalaya in a fiat anyone?
	() Thanks

25th March 2010, 18:29	#7
pradipk BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 238 Thanked: 50 Times	I liked the spirit of this guy. But hey bhpans, please, for GOD's SAKE don't put this under "Pics of weird and wacky mod jobs!". -Pradip.
	() Thanks

25th March 2010, 19:21	#8
prguru BHPian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 179 Thanked: 92 Times	A living example of what passion and dedication can do to someone, hats off to you Bill
	() Thanks

26th March 2010, 09:48	#9
NOS Power BHPian Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Kolkata Posts: 404 Thanked: 79 Times View My Garage	Does Indian Motorsport (rallying in particular) have such a loophole? As far as i know cars upto 7 years old post the last year of production are allowed. If there is something like this then it will be mega news for many of us.
	() Thanks