"A champion needs to acquire a taste of defeat, in order to hunger for, and truly appreciate the sweet taste of victory..!"

Thursday, December 6, 2012

...2013 Season Update...


Hey friends and fam, How's it going? 

I hope everyone is doing great and enjoyed a happy thanks giving with your friends and family!


So as most of you may already know, We ended up picking up a fresh new racing platform a couple weekends ago...



 I can't thank Perfect Harvest enough for all of their help throughout this year and continued support for this up an coming 2013 season!   Thank you for being there since day one and never doubting my ambitions or abilities, and continue to help bring my dreams to reality!



It is a 2002 BMW E46 M3 that I will be building and setting up to run in NASA's GTS-3 class.  It is a German Touring class that will consist of; BMW's, Porches, Audi's, Mercedes, ect... And will be classified based on power to weight ratio.  Being that the M3 is basically a race car out of the box we won't need to do anything really in terms of performance and will focus all of our energy and attention into lightening the car as much as aloud and getting the suspension to handle as best as possible.



Ive been working on getting everything all lined up for next year and have slowly started to hear back from sponsors for support next year.  I still have about 20 more proposals to send out via snail mail and am still waiting to hear back from about another 10-20 companies I emailed my proposal to so well see what they say.
The companies that have responded tho have been very encouraging and excited with the fact of what I am doing.  So far I have yet to hear back from the people I asked for support in the form of money but a few companies have offered support in the form of discounted products and such, so that's way cool!
(this is just one of the responses I've gotten which all tho it's not free, just there response to my goal/dream is cool and I can't wait to hear what others have to say!)

"Mario,
I would like to start by saying that I am very pleased to see someone overcome as much as you have and continue to fight.  Many lesser individuals would have given up hope to drive again let alone walk ( I like your plate!).  My brother-in-law was recently injured in a motorcycle accident and is a paraplegic as well, and your story helps him (and many others I am sure) to keep pushing to achieve what others say cannot be done.  You would have full support from us with anything you need when it comes to the coilovers and suspension tuning.  I hope this works for you and wish you well in your adventures!
Thank you."  

(This was part of D2 racings response that they originally sent me that makes me feel amazing and like I'm doing exactly what I was meant to do!)

That being said, I'm proud to announce that D2 Racing has jumped on board for this next 2013 season!  


D2 is a high performance race suspension and brake company which both products will play a huge contributing factor in helping me put the car on the podium and win races! I  can't thank them enough and look forward to working with them this season and exercising their products to their fullest extent!

(These are the coilovers I'm gonna run.)

(These are the front Brakes.)

Like I mentioned in my previous post, Borelli Motorsports is still going to be the ones helping me Build the car and are way stoked on the project.  I went up to their shop and talked to the GM yesterday and he said that they should be able to help me with everything I need from A-Z so that awesome!  


We're still working out a date to drop the car off to get the ball rolling but I'm hopping to have it there by early next week.

This weather has definitely given me time to do my research and read up on the proper parts needed to build a legit championship contending car tho!  I've read a lot of different people's blogs they have written that have done the same build set up to race the same class, so I have an exact idea of what most of my competition will be running with their setups.  Their are two companies in particular that specialize and race BMW M3's so I have been reading up on what they have done to their race cars.  

(When my car is all done it will for the most part look just like this... Minus the decals)

I talked to the guys at the shop that is going to help me with my controls and they said closer to around Xmas time when it slows down they should be able to help me manufacture those suckers so that will be awesome!  I'm going to give my buddy a call that is going to help me out with the robotics end of of the controls tomorrow and see if we can get a game plan goin.  Hopefully we will be able to drop the car off sometime after the new year once everything else has been done and have him dial those controls all in perfect!

I did finally receive the schedule for next year as well for those of you that might be interested in coming and checking out a race or two.

2013 Schedule:

February 9-10 Sonoma Raceway (Awards Banquet)

March 16-17 Sonoma Raceway

April 13-14 Thunderhill Raceway

May 18-19 Thunderhill Raceway

June 15-16 Sonoma Raceway

July 6-7 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca (105dBA)

August 17-18 Thunderhill Raceway

September 5-8 NASA Championships Miller Motorsports Park

September 28-29 Sonoma Raceway

October 26-27 Sonoma Raceway

November 9-10 Sonoma Raceway

December 7-8 Thunderhill Raceway

Like I mentioned in my previous post, I am still actively seeking sponsorship or support in any shape or form offered.  This new car has opened up a ton of new doors and will allow me the ability to run competitively and reliably but still requires quite a bit to get it race ready. 
As most of you are well aware of racing is far from an inexpensive sport so what ever you are able to contribute is appreciated more then you know! Anything and everything contributed will be applied directly to helping with the completion of my New race cars full transition from the street to track.



If you or anyone you may know that might possibly be interested in helping me obtain my 2013 season ambitions, you can reach me at 408-427-5175 or you can email me at walkbdk777@yahoo.com



Here is a list of a few things that I'm still seeking any kind of assistance with, if possible to help offset the total cost of everything.:

- Custom Roll cage Fabrication and install - ....................................... = $3,500-$4,000
- Conversion Labor Tab - ....................................................................... = $5,000
- D2 Factory Race Coilover's - ............................................................. = $1,700
- D2 Team Race Big Brake Kit - ........................................................... = $2,500
- BimmerWorld Parts List Total - .......................................................... = $10,000

( I do have a tax Id Number for those that are interested in contributing as a tax deductible write off, just email me for more information.)

The time is passing by super fast but I would like to be able to have the car done and ready for testing after the first of the year.  I hope to then be able to complete my licensing in January and be ready to rip for the first race in February!
I've been doing an extensive amount of research on race car setup and design in general so I just can't wait to see what that beast is fully capable of once she's all properly setup and refined!  I'm super excited to hit this next season fully and properly prepared this time to make my presence out there felt and to see what this next year has in store all around!

Thank you to everyone that has supported and helped me make it back out to the track and through my first season of my new 4 wheeled racing adventure!


I had my share of ups and downs but all and all it was just great to be back out there doing what I know and love the most!  I look forward to a fantastic and successful 2013 season and hope to see  you at the track next year!




Thank you for reading and stay posted as the car goes through its transformation I will post updates along the way...

Hope Everyone has a Blessed Day and remember to always Keep Em Spinnin!