Pirelli World Challenge Champs - Black Dog Racing - it all began with his '95 ZR-1

[Vette Guy]

A few of us were fortunate to meet Tony Gaples via the ZR-1 Net Registry as well as ride in some of his insane cars at the Gathering - like his Enzo. For those who don't know Tony, he created Black Dog Racing and is a pro driver in the Pirelli World Challenge Series. Was checking out his latest video, and touched that he gave cudos to fellow ZR-1ers for prompting him to get his ZR-1 on track.... which led to his pro=driving career.

https://youtu.be/gXpUmjnL024?t=402

[LGAFF]

He also owns the active suspension ZR-1


Sent from my iPhone using ZR-1 Net Registry

[WARP TEN]

Originally Posted by LGAFF

He also owns the active suspension ZR-1


Sent from my iPhone using ZR-1 Net Registry

Last time I visited Tony at his new Black Dog Speed Shop he also had a nice black '95 ZR-1 among his fairly large car collection, as you can see in the video. I remember when he had as many as seven ZR-1s but then he went over to the other side with Ferraris and now of course Camaros, of which he is (not surprisingly) a really big fan and supporter. Tony and Black Dog also support a great car show in the Lake Forest (IL) Market Square in July of each year, which benefits a charity called Skin of Steel in honor of a local car friend who succumbed to melanoma some years ago. For those who are interested, Black Dog is located at 600 Barclay Blvd Lincolnshire, Illinois. Website is http://www.blackdogspeedshop.com. They do a lot of great modifications of Corvettes, Camaros, and other performance cars and the new shop is spectacular as you can see in the video. --Bob

[JThomas]

Originally Posted by WARP TEN

Last time I visited Tony at his new Black Dog Speed Shop he also had a nice black '95 ZR-1 among his fairly large car collection, as you can see in the video. I remember when he had as many as seven ZR-1s but then he went over to the other side with Ferraris and now of course Camaros, of which he is (not surprisingly) a really big fan and supporter. Tony and Black Dog also support a great car show in the Lake Forest (IL) Market Square in July of each year, which benefits a charity called Skin of Steel in honor of a local car friend who succumbed to melanoma some years ago. For those who are interested, Black Dog is located at 600 Barclay Blvd Lincolnshire, Illinois. Website is http://www.blackdogspeedshop.com. They do a lot of great modifications of Corvettes, Camaros, and other performance cars and the new shop is spectacular as you can see in the video. --Bob

Bob:
Maybe a ZR-1 road trip or event/gathering at his shop could be arranged? Sounds like an interesting place.

[WARP TEN]

Originally Posted by JThomas

Bob:
Maybe a ZR-1 road trip or event/gathering at his shop could be arranged? Sounds like an interesting place.

Joe, funny you would think of this. I sent Tony an email noting this thread, which he had not seen. He responded and said it would be fun to get a ZR-1 group together for a BBQ sometime. I am sure it depends heavily on his racing schedule but I can ask if he would like to do this and when might work. --Bob

[JThomas]

Originally Posted by WARP TEN

Joe, funny you would think of this. I sent Tony an email noting this thread, which he had not seen. He responded and said it would be fun to get a ZR-1 group together for a BBQ sometime. I am sure it depends heavily on his racing schedule but I can ask if he would like to do this and when might work. --Bob

Awesome! Scheduling permitting, I would make the drive. I like hanging out with you FBI Guys!

[XfireZ51]

Bob,

That sounds like a great idea.

[WARP TEN]

I sent him a note saying lots of folks think it would be a good idea. I asked him to look at his calendar and see when might be a good time. I told him about dates for the Bowling Green gathering and estimated Marc Haibeck's normal BBQ date a week or so after that. When I hear back I will post or I will follow up sometime in January with him. Hopefully he will find a time for us to gather there. I haven't seen the new shop yet. We did go over to it once just after he bought the building but it was pretty empty save some of his cars. In the video it really looks great. --Bob