Still down on TZT Members, but not on fun or action, we awoke from our July slumber for the National Road Autosport Summer Sizzler.
Doug, Rich, Mustang Boy, Kate and I all made our return to the airport this weekend to face-off against much faster cars, better drivers, and nicer people.
Saturday brought hot, sticky weather, a tight course, and a smaller than normal group of competitors. Despite the lower attendance, the racing was just as tight as ever. Kate and I drove the 318ti against a large (for Cumberland) ST field, including friends Steve Mcgrnange and Chris “It’s a girl” Wallmark in their 1991 AWD BMW. I managed to pull off a first place finish, while Kate beat out Chris, but lost 3rd place to Steve by 0.324 seconds. We also learned, by beating the crap out of the car, that we had a broken motor mount – figures, considering the massive levels of power. Mustang Boy continued his ESP domination, beating fellow “Stang” driver Buddy Haines by more than 8 seconds. Rich nailed a solid 3rd place in BSP, showing he continues to get better and better as the season goes on. Doug invited his Audi friends with him, and those friends showed their true colors leaving him in last place in DSP (a class Kate and I were considering running in until Steve Wade decided he liked it there).
We awoke Sunday morning and looked out our window to see hallway the hotel door to see rain falling on the ground. Luckily, the rain moved out of the area well before the morning’s course walk to provide a nice, dry day for us to enjoy. Andy Thomas brought my old Hyundai to race on Sunday, and after a quick internal debate, I decided to ask him if I could borrow my old ride. As I approached him on the morning course walk, I shouted out “Hey man, mind if I borrow your car.” Before he could answer, Chris Fritz spoke up enthusiastically and said “Sure!” So just like that, I found myself behind the wheel of an A-Stock 2008 Subaru STI…. nice. Another pleasant surprise was the return of Bill Geraghty, but he would not be racing this day.
I drove Chris’s car like it wasn’t mine (which was surprisingly easy) and would up in a solid 3rd place in AS, beating Chris’s best time, and only missing out on the top spot by 0.323 seconds.
Me driving the STI
Kate finished up in a strong second place (out of two) in ST. Showing the true luck of the Irish, Kate not only had her fastest run stolen away by an angry orange dwarf, but noticed only after the car was retired for the day that she had been running with the A/C on – quite the drag on our tiny little motor. I’m now being forced to try to borrow more cars for future autocrosses in order to save myself the embarrassment when things finally click. Mustang Boy did what he does best – played with himself (in ESP), but still put up a very strong time. Rich fell back a spot in BSP, but closed the overall gap towards the lead. Doug sent his friends (and Steve Wade) literally packing, but still couldn’t best the SRT4 of Lee Watson and was forced to settle with second place in DSP.
For those of you interested in the courses, or for those who prefer to read better written autocross prose, please head over to the CACC website, as is now customary in my lazy form of writing:
Saturday
Sunday
Team Zip-Tie Cup Standings
Saturday (82 Entrants)
10 – Mustang Boy (20th in PAX)
9 – Gimp (27th in PAX)
8 – Rich (50th in PAX)
7 – Doug (52nd in PAX)
6 + 2 – Kate (56th in PAX – Cone Award winner with 3 cones)
Sunday (75 Entrants)
10 – Mustang Boy (16th in PAX)
9 – Gimp (19th in PAX)
8 – Rich (45th in PAX)
7 – Doug (52nd in PAX)
6 + 2 – Kate (54th in PAX – Cone Award winner with 2 cones)
6 – Bill (1 point for showing up, 5 for staying in-state)
Current Team Standings
1. Gimp (58 points)
2. Mustang Boy (57 points)
3. Doug (47 points)
4. Rich (45 points)
5. Kate (43 points)
6. Bill (6 points)
7. Patrick (5 points)
8. Thomas (0 points)
Remember, these totals still contain the lowest four scores. The lowest four will only be dropped at the very end.
You can track the team standings on Google. View the spreadsheet here:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=rwr3T8ikb1HSYvAwc0ltrJw
