The Cumberland Motor Club held an autocross driving event behind the Windham Mall last Saturday, where participants were timed running a tightly coiled course that emphasized handling and control and not speed.

Chris Moberg, chairman of the autocross, said a lot of the participants are in the information technologies field and not a band of hard-nosed hooligans.

“It’s not the rabble-rousing crowd,” he said. “Because they find out they can’t drive very well.”

Motor club member Antonio Siraballa, 23, of Augusta, agreed.

“If you just lead-foot it, it’s going to be sloppy,” he said. Siraballa acted as the announcer for the course, sprinkling pop culture references into the microphone along with the driver’s name and course time.

“I try to add a little flavor, even if it annoys everyone,” he said. The electronic equipment used for the event, which included the microphone, speakers, and laser-assisted stop-clock, all ran off car batteries.

“We like to be self-sufficent,” said Sirabella.

Mark, from Freeport, drove the course in his 2002 Caterham sports car. He asked that his last name not be used because of insurance reasons.

“I got lost,” said Mark, after his first attempt on the course. He said the first few runs teach people how to navigate the track so they can perform better on a later run.

Moberg said accidents are very rare, as only one car is on the course at any given time and the layout points momentum away from fixed structures. He said his club holds 14 or 15 of these events every year, attracting 30-60 participants each time, and has an accident once every two or three years. He said the last accident he can remember was caused by break failure.

Hydroplanes fly in Standish

Boating enthusiasts from all over New England, and a few from beyond, descended on Watchic Lake in Standish last Saturday for a hydroplane competition put on by the Standish Kiwanis Club.

Kiwanis president Shawn Cavanaugh said 42 boats were entered in the competition. Each attendee paid about $30 to enter and the money raised went toward scholarships for high school graduates from the area. Advertisements placed in the racing schedules and food sold at the event also contributed to the money raised.

Prizes included trophies and cash provided by various boating clubs. None of the money raised went into the prizes.

Hydroplane boats are sporty, loud machines that force air under the front of the boat and speed along with only the back end touching the water.

Former Kiwanis president Paul Mosley said the event is held before the boating season begins to avoid lake traffic.

“We wouldn’t dream of doing this after Memorial Day, ” he said. “We would think it would be too intrusive” to the lake residents.

The event attracted the attention of the New England Outboard Association. Member Christine Walken, of Massachusetts, said that Watchic Lake is just the right size. If it were any smaller there wouldn’t be enough room to build up speed, and if it were bigger it would attract too much boat traffic to safely hold a race.

Also in attendance were Neil Tardanico, who had the highest point total nationally last year of American Power Boat Association races, and racing legend Bill Giles, both of Massachusetts.

“I talk to people who golf, and I’m starting to think it costs more to golf,” said Giles, 69. He said it cost about $1,300 for the materials when he built the boat he was racing Saturday. He said some of his friends spend $5,000 a year for a golf course membership.

Giles is preparing for a race in England and said a boat has been built for him there using the same schematic as the one he drove Saturday. He has been a boat racer for the last 48 years and said it’s never too late to get involved.

Autocross3: Cars of all makes and models, like these waiting in line to particpate, were driven in the autocross event last Saturday in the parking lot behind the Windham Mall. The course, marked with yellow and red traffic cones, emphasized handling and control and not speed. Autocross4: Chris Moberg, chairman of the autocross, climbs into the seat of his 1971 Saab Sonett.Hydroplane08: From left, Bob Brzozowski of Connecticut and Standish Kiwanis President Shawn Cavanaugh look over Cavanaugh’s boat. Hydroplane09: Boat builder and mechanic Brad Snow, 56, of Connecticut shows off his 250 horsepower engine.Hydroplane12: Neil Tardanico, 35, of Massachusetts with his boat “Miss Catch-Up.” He had the highest point total nationally last year of American Power Boat Association races and said he has gotten this boat up to 106 mph.HydroplaneGiles1: Boat racing legend Bill Giles, 69, fills up the tank of his hydroplane. He built this boat himself and said a copy of it is being built in England for a race.

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