From *way* back when: me driving my 1979 Mustang at Nelson Ledges.
The date was sometime in 1982. I don't remember much about the event... I think I managed to get to just under 115 at the end of the main straight. If you've been reading thru my site, you already know the details of this car: a 302 V-8 and 4-speed manual. Ford's own Indy 500 Pace Car. It had been modified with adjustable KONIs, large sway bars (Quickor Engineering - back when they did car suspensions), and springs from a source I can't remember anymore. Along with a 3:45 limited slip diff (taken with the entire axle from a Fairmont cop car - and featuring extra large cop car rear brakes). Goodyear "Wingfoot" tires (instead of the factory Michelins). Factory Recaros (real German ones, even featuring Porsche checkered cloth) made for a great driving position. Also "true" dual exhaust (custom fabricated, replacing the factory single), and a large dual-snorkel air cleaner from an '82 GT, the net total was a really nice track car for that day and age.
Nelson Ledges isn't a particularly unique track - there are any number of little club tracks in existence. The facilites are terrible, the track isn't in very good shape. But, who cares, this is racing and all of that can be expected. Instead, it's the people at the track who make it what it is - especially the folks who put on the infamous Longest Day of Nelson Ledges events back in the eighties.
From what I understand, the track is still there and is still pretty much the same. It'll probably continue unchanged for another 50 years.
I don't remember the name of the group who ran this particular Open Track event, but it was my third year of experience at the 'ledges and I was getting to know the track fairly well. The best was yet to come, however. This was also the first year I attended the Longest Day of Nelson Ledges 24 hour endurance race the track. I worked as a pit marschall in the Ford pits - and Ford brought the SVO prototypes to compete. Needless to say, it was tremendously encouraging to my own efforts to watch theirs.
At this early point, I still hadn't run the track in the wet, but I did know that would be an issue someday. There were several treacherously slick parts of the track even when it was dry, especially coming out of the back carousel (which also, very inconveniently, had a perpetually enormous pothole right in the wrong place). My "moment" would come in 1986, in an event run by a group out of Toronto, which was run despite a 100% downpour. I had a major league "off" entering the main straight just after the carousel. I saved it and was safe, but managed to pick up probably 400 pounds of mud.
That also just happened to be my last event ever at Nelson Ledges. Fortunately, life took me out of the area to Texas and everything has changed for the better since. I did make it back up to that general area for an event at Watkins Glen once and haven't managed to make it back up there with a track car since. I'd like to hit the 'ledges someday again!
