LEFT: Brian Schmidt won the burnout contest with this smoky display of power.

BELOW LEFT: Ernie Francis with the Breathless Performance entry.

    We began our Route 66 experience at the north end of the country on october 5-7 at the beautiful Route 66 Raceway on Route 53, which is actually the old Route 66. In the same complex is the brand-new Chicago Land Speedway, just opened for NASCAR racing last july and IRL on Labor Day.
    The big attraction for us at the Route 66 event was the C5 Performance Shootout, threatened by rain on Friday and 50 degree winds Saturday. Sunday turned out sunny and in the middle 60s with a slight breeze, just right for entries from Doug Rippie Motorsports, Performance Technical Center,