A sounds, sensations and roars of Lime Rock auto racing will shift to the University of Bridgeport in a special fall exhibit that should appeal to auto racing fans, the curious and those who love one of the most beautiful racing courses in the land.

The exhibit, staged by Director James Lesko, faculty and students of the University's Art and Design program, will run from Oct. 19 through Nov. 16. It will be in the university's Art Gallery in the Arnold Bernhard Center.

The exhibit will have its public opening celebration from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 19. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet the artists and many racing celebrities.

Chris Szwedo's film, "Lime Rock Park: The Secret Valley of Racing," will be one of the features of the exhibit that will include the art of Sam Posey, photographs of Barry Tenin, paintings and prints of Roger Blanchard, drawings of Robert Grossman and others.

Szwedo's Lime Rock film has been shown on CPTV and other television stations. Posey and Grossman are retired race car drivers. Both are intimately connected to Lime Rock park and have race there and in many major races, including the Indianapolis 500. Both are in new careers. Posey is a racing commentator for ABC, covering major races including the Indianapolis 500, He also works as an architect in Connecticut. Grossman is a highly successful artist, specializing in racing subjects.

Tenin is a Connecticut photographer who has dedicated some 50 years to documenting automobile racing. He has been heralded for his commitment to the racing profession and for his photographs of Mark Donohue, the great race car driver who achieved success at Lime Rock and at national and international tracks. Blanchard is a successful artist who also concentrates on the racing profession. He is a long-time regular at Lime Rock Park races.

The show marks the beginning of a relationship between the University of Bridgeport Design Program and Lime Rock Park, Lesko said. The design program has achieved success and won numerous awards at the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association's Automobile Safety Design Competition over the past four years as well as at other national and international design competitions, he said.

The design program at UB, Lesko said, is one of the few university-affiliated programs focusing on auto safety. "Our students draw on the university's experts - Dr. James Tucci in physics, who is an expert in car-crash analysis, or the Chiropractic College's Dr. Stephen Perle, whose concerns are back injuries, and others - to get a deeper understanding of the concerns and issues involved."

"Auto safety is a national concern. It's not just ours, or the racing drivers," Lesko said. "We have the opportunity to achieve some major contributions in making driving safer. And we want to build on this success in the years ahead."

Lime Rock Show
Date: Oct 19-Nov. 16
Where: UB's Bernhard Center gallery
Hours:
Noon to 4:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays
6 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays
For special groups, call (203) 576-4530