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Camaro5 Fest II - Festival Of SpeedFifth-gens head to Arizona for Camaro5 Fest II From the September, 2011 issue of Camaro Performers By Steven Rupp Photography by Andrew Schear
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The fifth-generation Camaro has only been around for a couple of years, but it has already developed a huge following of modern muscle car fans. In that short period of time, Camaro5.com has managed to enlist over 45,000 members to its forum board who all share a common love of GM’s newest iteration of the iconic classic. The event was held in Chandler,... The event was held in Chandler, Arizona, just outside of Phoenix, but Camaro lovers from all over the country came to the party. Kevin McMahon and his wife Pam drove their Jewel Red Camaro all the way from Billings, Montana, so it’s no wonder it needed some cleaning. Lucky for him they had a wash area set up t o help remove all the accumulated bugs. The disadvantage of being an online community is separation. With members strewn across the country, it’s a geographical challenge to find a way for them to interact in a non-electronic way. Last year the powers that run the website decided to organize a gathering. It took place at the South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta, Georgia, and was called the Camaro5 Fest. It was a huge hit, so it’s not surprising that they decided to do it again, this time a bit further west in Chandler, Arizona, at Firebird International Raceway. Of course, from what we’ve seen, the location doesn’t seem to matter much because if there’s one thing new Camaro owners love to do, it’s drive their Chevys as much as possible. With over 800 Camaros in attendance, we saw license plates from Florida, Washington, Virginia, and just about everywhere else. All gathered together to hang out, check out cars, and wear down tires. A happy surprise awaited us... A happy surprise awaited us when we wandered over to the Bondurant booth and saw that they now offer driving instruction in new Camaros! Sweet! The two-day event started on Friday with four aspects of competition: drag racing, autocross, road racing, and a car show. The big deal was the Pfadt Engineering–hosted High Performance Driving Event (HPDE) held on one of the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving tracks. Over 70 cars got the chance to hit the course in a safe and controlled environment. There were even driving instructors available to help drivers improve their skills behind the wheel. Both Friday and Saturday featured an autocross set up and hosted by Pedders Suspension. The drag strip was continuously busy with both, first-timers and veterans running their Camaros down the 1320. For those not quite up to trashing on their Camaros (yet) there was huge car show area with a dizzying array of new Camaros and few classics as well. All in all it was a weekend any gearhead could enjoy, and the folks at Camaro5.com managed to offer something for everyone and present it in a fashion that, at least to us, seemed to go off without a hitch. Count us in for next year!  It seemed like GM couldn’t...  It seemed like GM couldn’t decided which Camaros to bring from their stable of cars, so it looked like they brought them all. One of them was this convertible Indy pace car. Talk about déjà vu.  These events don’t just happen...  These events don’t just happen by themselves. It takes a ton of work to pull off the logistics involved, and in the case of this event it takes a crew of hard working and dedicated individuals. We caught event coordinator Guillermo Garcia Jr. cruising the action in his cart with Nick Quintero along for the ride. Guillermo, and many other board members, donated a lot of time to make sure this event was a success.  Nick Licata took a break from...  Nick Licata took a break from the behind the camera and hopped in the passenger seat of Shane Wagner’s track-prepped Camaro. Being a co-pilot isn’t as much fun as driving, but it beats being a spectator.  How does a couple show diehard...  How does a couple show diehard Camaro enthusiasm? They decide to get married at Camaro5 Fest II! Lisa Wilhelm and Thomas Hendrix decided to tie the knot at the event. The ceremony, officiated by Pete Basica, took place at the drag strip’s starting line. We predict a long and happy marriage for these two Camaro fanatics!  The Pedders-sponsored autocross...  The Pedders-sponsored autocross gave everyone a chance to drive their Camaros hard and test their skills. Here, Shane Wagner, owner of Proven Wicked, flings his Camaro around the orange pylons. If you’re looking for some cool performance parts for your ride, be sure to check out www.provenwicked.com.  We were really happy to see...  We were really happy to see one of our favorite Camaros of all time: the F71 second-gen that was built by Hotchkis Performance. This was one of the first — if not the first — Camaros to get an LS1 transplant, and it warms our hearts to know that it’s still being driven and autocrossed.  Pfadt Race Engineering–sponsored...  Pfadt Race Engineering–sponsored the Track Assault event, so it was only natural that Aaron Pfadt would hit the track in their very capable Ring Spec Camaro. This was set up as a High Performance Driving Event (HPDE) and not a race, so Camaro owners could push their cars in a safe and controlled environment. There were also pro drivers on hand to ride along and offer tips on how to get faster lap times.  We really liked this white...  We really liked this white SS we spied carving through the Pfadt-sponsored road course event. It was covered in carbon fiber body panels from Seibon and was running a Lysholm twin-screw supercharger. Unfortunately, it was so fast we never caught the owner’s name.  Nick Licata took our ’10 SS...  Nick Licata took our ’10 SS project car for some laps on the Pfadt-sponsored road course. Project CP28 is rocking some new Bose five-spoke wheels wrapped in Nitto NT-05 rubber and Nick reported the car felt great blasting around the track.  Another die-hard Camaro5 board...  Another die-hard Camaro5 board member was Mark Saunders of Gloucester, Virginia. This Dale Earnhardt fan drove his Aqua Blue Camaro over 5,000 miles round trip to attend the event. Mark says this was the “best trip of my life.” We’re sure getting some laps around the road course helped cement that opinion.  B&M had a ton of Camaro shifters...  B&M had a ton of Camaro shifters on display, but what really caught our attention was this billet paddle shifter system for the fifth-gens.  In addition to bringing out...  In addition to bringing out the '11 pace car drop-top, GM also exhibited a bunch of new Camaros that will be sold through its dealer network. There was a ‘vert, a sweet Synergy coupe, and a 45th anniversary edition. But what really got our hearts pumping was when they drove the ZL1 concept car onto the track. Oozing attitude and powered by a supercharged LS3, we can’t wait ‘til these are available for public consumption.  Here we caught Steve Leerentveld,...  Here we caught Steve Leerentveld, of RDP Motorsports, roasting the rear tires off his turbocharged SS Camaro. Steve was running street tires, but found a local station that was selling high-octane petrol. His best run of the day was 11.60 at 125 mph, which is really haulin’.  For the drag racing action,...  For the drag racing action, our ’10 SS was handed off to Camaro Performers tech editor Steven Rupp. We found out our blown Camaro didn’t dig the 95-plus degree temps and 91-octane gas. The result was that Rupp could actually feel the computer ripping out timing as the Camaro powered down the quarter mile. Best lap was a 12.215 at 109.27 mph. That’s a low mph for that trap speed. Even more telling was that the launch was solid with a 1.851-second 60-foot time.  Many of the vendors at the...  Many of the vendors at the event were showing off their wares for the fifth-gen Camaro crowd. We really liked this master cylinder cover and cap from Drake Automotive Group.  Granatelli Motorsports was...  Granatelli Motorsports was at the event showing of their bolt-on twin-turbo kit designed specifically for the LS3 and L99 Camaros. The turbos can support up to 1,300 hp, but even at only 7 pounds of boost, they can put well over 500 hp to the wheels. We were impressed at how neatly it all fit under the hood. For more info, check out www.granatellimotorsports.com.  In addition to all the driving...  In addition to all the driving festivities, there was also a huge car show with over 800 cars in attendance. And while most were new Camaros, there were a few of the other generations sprinkled around the show grounds.  Samantha Kozuch was on hand...  Samantha Kozuch was on hand to help show off Pirelli's new line of tires sized specifically for the new Camaro. Trust us, there’s a tire in that photo somewhere.
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