Senna’s helmet and slot cars for race fans
When I first started writing this Christmas gifts column a decade or so ago, to kick off Toronto Star Wheels’ annual Gift Guide Issue, there were eight specialty shops in the GTA catering to motoring and motorsports enthusiasts. Now we are down to five. And where I used to receive at least a half-dozen books to review for Christmas, this year I got exactly one. The world is changing, that’s for sure. That one book I received is entitled History’s Greatest Automotive Mysteries, Myths and Rumors Revealed, by Matt Stone and Preston Lerner. It’s a great read. Did you know, for example, that Clyde Barrow, of Bonnie and Clyde fame, once wrote Henry Ford a thank-you letter for building the really great cars he used to escape from the police after robbing banks? Wrote Barrow: “For sustained speed and freedom from trouble, the Ford has got every other car skinned . . .” That letter made the papers. So John Dillinger wrote to Ford, too, but didn’t get as much publicity. His letter is also in this book. This is a fun book with a lot of interesting photos. The suggested retail price is $26 and it’s available just about everywhere books are sold. Now, I mentioned there are five specialty shops in the GTA. I will focus on Mini-Grid and Collector Studio-Motorsport Gallery today. Next week, I will take you to Toronto Motorsports in Scarborough, Joe Russo’s Prestige Auto Art and Gift Gallery and Transport Books at DRB Motors. Meantime, don’t forget to look up the gift suggestions offered by Jim Kenzie, Mark Richardson, Brian Early and Jil McIntosh, starting on W16. More of our writers will offer suggestions next week in Wheels, as well as on wheels.ca. Now, Morry Barmack’s Collector Studio (136 Yorkville Ave., 416-975-5442, collectorstudio.com) is an astounding place to walk into. When I say he’s got everything, I mean everything. The helmet the late Ayrton Senna wore when he raced in the Grand Prix of Belgium in 1986 is on sale there. As is the trophy given to Alain Prost when he won the British Grand Prix in 1990. And lots more. By the way, Barmack will be moving shop in February. He’s purchased a building at 72 Scollard St., which is just around the corner from where he is now. It’s twice as big, so he’ll have room for the rest of the paintings, uniforms and other memorabilia he’s got. Not going anywhere is Mini Grid (608 Mount Pleasant Rd., 416-488-7663, minigrid.com). This mid-town shop owned by race driver Scott Maxwell (he’s been at Road Atlanta all week, testing the Aston Martin he’ll drive next season) has catered for years to the magazine and book/DVD crowd. Scott tells me that he’s opened another Mini Grid store at Grand Prix Kartways in Downsview Park. It’s a slot-carcentric store that has a six-lane, 90-foot track as its centerpiece. You can run your own cars there or rent them. If you’ve got slot cars on your mind, Scott suggests a great gift would be the James Bond Skyfall Slot Car Set. It features the classic Bond Aston Martin DB5 battling the Range Rover, as per the movie. The set goes for $195. And the 2012 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull models are in stock in various scales, as well as in slot car form. Prices start at $18 and go up to $124. Or, says Scott, the movie Senna — a 2010 documentary on the Brazilian F1star — is available on both DVD ($35) and Blu-Ray ($40). Scott says it continues to be a strong seller.