> WHAT THE BOSS LIKES
Wheels editor Norris McDonald’s picks,
It’s that time of year again when Toronto Star Wheels correspondents make suggestions as to what readers should give their loved-ones this Christmas.
Seeing as I’m the editor, and not wanting to be left out, I always reserve the right to make a few of my own. So here goes.
Scott Maxwell is a busy guy. Not only did he do all of the development testing of the new Ford GT sports racing car that the company hopes will win the 24 Hours of Le Mans next June but he also races a Multimatic Ford Shelby in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge series that supports Weathertech SportsCar Championship races.
And to keep from being bored, he also owns a motoring book and hobby shop at 608 Mount Pleasant Rd. in Toronto called Mini Grid (416-488-7663; minigrid.com).
This year, Scott says he thinks Rachael Clegg’s 2016 Nurburgring Calendar would make an interesting gift. I’ll say it would.
I will leave to your imagination what I would write if I was to describe this calendar in detail. Think Pirelli calendar (before it went all politically correct on us) and you will get my drift. Your price at Scott’s shop? $52. Also at Mini Grid, Scott says that after about 30 years of consistency, the past two to three years has seen a drastic drop in sales of the typical end-of-year books and DVD reviews from the F1 world ( Norris Note: maybe because it’s boring?) but an equal increase in the same type of products from sports car racing and, specifically, Le Mans ( Norris note: maybe because it’s interesting?).
“Hence, the Le Mans Yearbook is in almost as much demand as the Autocourse Grand Prix Annual now.”
I think I will go up to Mount Pleas- ant and buy that Le Mans book ($100). I will let it depend on whether I pick up a copy of Rachael’s calendar.
Meantime, at Toronto Motorsport Collectibles (283 Port Union Rd, Scarborough, 416-724-7223), die-casts continue to be big. For instance, a limited edition 1991 McLaren-Honda MP4/6 (Ayrton Senna drove it to victory in that year’s San Marino GP) can be yours on preorder for $259.99. Go to tomotorsports.com for more info.
If you have a platinum American Express card, you might want to try Morry Barmak’s Collector Studio on for size (72 Scollard St., Toronto, 416-975-5442, collectorstudio.com). For instance, you can get a Stirling Moss race uniform from 1960 for a paltry $14,995. He has more.
For more down-to-earth stuff, try DRB Motors Ltd., which has (as they say) books about cars, bikes, boats, planes, trucks, tractors, tanks and trains. At 16 Elrose Ave. (416744-7675; transportbooks.com), I can honestly say that I can never walk past a booth of theirs at a car show or race without buying at least something. There be treasures.
Hey, rev up for the Holidays with a Bridgestone Racing Academy “Thrill of a Lifetime” gift certificate starting at only $295. Check dates and buy your personalized gift certificates by going online at race2000.com/giftcertificates.
Are you a fan of drag racing? Road racing? Dirt oval-track racing? Everybody has a website these days and they all have gift certificates for sale. They always make the perfect gift for the race-watching fan in your family.
Finally, we will wind this up with a little something close to home.
Our own Jim Kenzie produces an annual calendar of photographs of exotic automobiles he shoots while on assignment for Wheels. Most of the proceeds go to charity. Here’s the blurb:
The 11th annual Kenzie Car Calendar is now available for purchase on StarStore. Order the 2016 Kenzie Car Calendar for $14.95 at StarStore.ca/kenzie.
It’s all in support of Parachute, Canada’s largest injury prevention organization. To learn more about Parachute, go to: parachutecanada.org.