SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge

The Sports Car Club of America, or SCCA, decided to open a new racing class in 1972, known as the Showroom Stock. It was a class that was reserved for stock street automobiles and its popularity grew at such pace that by 1980 a twenty-four hour racing event was being held. By 1985, the series had expanded to six races and by 1996 the world challenge was divided into a touring class and sports class. In 2002, the title sponsor became Speedvision, which was bought by Fox, and the name became the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge.

The SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge is raced in two divisions, namely the Speed World Challenge Speed GT and the Speed World Challenge Speed Touring Car. The aim of the Speed World Challenge is to provide a production based racing event to manufacturers and teams, in which they are able to display the power and quality of their products. Drivers and manufacturers are allocated championship points according to the finishing position of each class. In the Drivers Championship, a winning driver will be selection on their points in each class, whereas there is only one award for the Manufacturers Championship.

At present, Pierre Kleinubing leads the Speed Touring Car Driver Championships with 122 points, Kuno Wittmer is in second with 108 points, Peter Cunningham has 98 points, Charles Espenlaub has 85 points and Jeff Altenburg has 80 points. In the Speed GT, Randy Pobst has the lead with 220 points, Brandon Davis has 208 points, Andy Pilgrim is in third position so far with 198, Michael Galati with 182 and Jason Daskalos with 145.

In the Speed GT and the Speed Touring Car divisions, a Rookie of the Year award is given to a driver who has not had more than three starts and they have to be confirmed as Rookies by SCCA Pro Racing. Entrant drivers in the season are able to be awarded the Jim Cook Memorial Trophy, which is given to drivers who show sportsmanship, character and contribute positively to the sport. Crew Chiefs stand in line to be presented with the Zimmermann Cup, for dedication, passion and leadership shown during the racing season.

This year, the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge started in Sebring on 12 to 14 March, moved to ACS Long Beach from the 18th to the 20th of April and continued at VIR Danvill from the 25th of April to the 27th. Miller Tooele takes place on 16 to 18 May, Lime Rock from 24 to 26 May, The Glen from 5 to 8 June, Mid Ohio from 17 to 20 July, Road America from 8 to 10 August, Mosport from 21 to 24 August, Detroit from 29 to 31 August, New Jersey from 26 to 28 September and Road Atlanta fromm the 1st to the 4th of October 2008.

Timing and Scoring in IndyCar Racing

Many auto racing fans follow the IndyCar Series with great interest, whether in person at the various race tracks, or as armchair spectators. In competitive racing split-second timing is essential to determine results, and IndyCar Racing has a state-of-the-art timing and scoring system which ensures that results are accurate to the ten-thousandth of a second.

Each car is fitted with a radio transponder that has a unique identification number. This transponder is installed 33 inches from the tip of the nose cone of the car on the left hand side of the driver. At multiple strategic points located around the track, detection loop antennas are buried in the track surface. These antennas detect the transponder as the car passes and record the identification number and the passing time of each car. Each antenna is connected to a trackside decoder that records the information and relays it to the timing and scoring booth. In the timing and scoring booth, primary and secondary scoring computers (or servers) process the incoming information to determine the results of a session. The computers record the results of each session and all data relating to each individual identification number, including times achieved over predetermined sections of the track as programmed into the system.

In addition to the main electronic timing system of transponder and antenna, a high-speed camera, taking a picture every ten-thousandth of a second, is used to record all activity past the start/finish line. As a further back-up, two high frame rate cameras, which are connected to a digital video system, are used to record start/finish passings. As a final back-up, individual serial scorers provide a written manual scoring record of all start/finish line passings. These timing methods have proven to be invaluable in determining placements in races where the difference can be as little as .005 of a second.

To ensure that each team is aware of what is happening throughout the race, the scoring computers send live timing data to the team’s pit stand. All the data which is recorded at every race event is made available via the internet to interested parties, including teams, race officials and manufacturers.

Based on data collected during an IndyCar Series race, points are awarded to the first 33 competitors, with first place receiving 50 points, and the number of points decreasing per placement. Additionally, three bonus points are awarded to the competitor who leads the most laps in each race.

The fact that such precise timing measures need to be in place is an indication of how fierce the competition is in the IndyCar Series – and auto racing in general. It is this competitive spirit that serves to increase the excitement of a racing event, and keeps auto racing fans coming back for more.

Aaron’s Dream Weekend

Auto racing fans are no doubt looking forward with keen anticipation to the 2008 Aaron’s Dream Weekend to be held from 25 to 27 April 2008. This three-day action-packed annual event, which takes place at the popular Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama, USA, is a celebration of auto racing at its very best.

The program on Friday 25 April will include Sprint Cup Series practice sessions and exhibition runs, as well as the Birmingham News Qualifying for the Busch Series. The highlight of Saturday’s program is Aaron’s 312 NASCAR Nationwide Series. Named for the sponsor, Aaron’s, a leading lease-to-own retailer, the117-lap race covering a distance of 312 miles will start at 2:00 pm and promises fans nail-biting excitement.

Starting at 1:00 pm, Aaron’s 499 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is the highlight of Sunday’s program. This 188-lap race is one of four stock car races which are currently run with restrictor plates, ensuring an equal level of competition, with winning being reliant on driver skill rather than car performance. The 1997 event, which was at that time known as the Winston 500, was won by Mark Martin who set an as yet unbroken record as the fastest NASCAR race ever run, with an average speed of 188.354 mph. The name of the race, which actually covers a distance of more than 500 miles, is a reference to the sponsor’s trend to offer deals “for $99″ – therefore, Aaron’s 499.

Talladega Superspeedway is considered to be one of NASCAR’s biggest, fastest and most challenging tracks. Numerous speed and competition records have been set at Talladega. Seating is available for more than 143,000 visitors and thousands more can be accommodated in the 212-acre infield. The 48 feet wide track at the Talladega Superspeedway is a 2,66-mile tri-oval course with the north and south turns banked at 33 degrees and the grand-stands tri-oval banked at 16.5 degrees.

The Talladega Superspeedway and on-site camping facilities are located in a picturesque setting outside the town of Talladega. In addition to the promise of superb racing, the surrounding area offers visitors many places of interest to explore, including the Motorports Hall of Fame and Museum, and the Cheaha State Park. Auto racing enthusiasts certainly won’t want to miss the 2008 Aaron’s Dream Weekend.

Update on the 2008 F1 Season

With the first three flyaway races of the F1 season complete, now is a good time to have a look at which teams are making their way to the top or dropping to the back. The European Season will be starting in Spain later this month and teams are certainly making good use of the small break between now and then to test their vehicles and improve their chances of winning. A look at some of the top F1 teams will give fans an idea of what to expect for the season.

The Japanese team Super Aguri is ranked only eleven – a remarkable feat when you consider what they have overcome this season to get there. The team only managed to race the first three races of the season, so they are not as prepared as a lot of other teams are. In addition to this they have a shortage of spares, but despite this, they have managed to have both of the team’s cars make it over the finish line on two occasions. This is a rare feat that only four other teams have managed to get right. While they seem to be climbing the ranks, it appears that the team will still suffer further setbacks. Their practice laps have been restricted and they will not be able to make it to the Barcelona test. Only time will tell how Super Aguri will perform during the 2008 season.

Force India has surprised many with its progress thus far and the team has made it to 10th place. At the beginning of the season they said their aim was to avoid the back row of the starting grid and they certainly seem to be doing quite well for themselves. Honda’s team has taken 9th place despite a terrible start to the 2008 season. Despite not gaining any points in three of the races, they have slowly started to climb back to the top mainly due to the good engineering that has enabled them to maintain a good qualifying pace.

Seventh place is taken by Toro Rosso which has been struggling quite a bit this year. Accidents have resulted in the team receiving three DNFs and the Ferrari team has also been having car problems that resulted in Bourdais’ car expiring three laps from home. Despite this, he scored two points and the team is slowly climbing back to the top. The Red Bull team is just ahead of their junior team at seventh place. They too have been struggling with accidents, which have caused a setback. However the initial problems faced by the team seem to have been overcome and now the team’s drivers seem to be racing more consistently.

Renault is sitting at 6th but they seem confident that they will soon catch up and quickly climb the ladder again. Only time will tell how these different teams fare during the European leg of this year’s F1 racing season.

Wartburg Speedway Brags Big Purse

The Wartburg Speedway in Tennessee has come a long way in a short time. Despite the fact that the track recently went through a rough patch, it seems set to make a full recovery with a greatly improved winning purse for this racing season.

The Advance Auto Parts Thunder Series will return to the Wartburg Speedway this year in a big way. Previously this race was called the ‘Tennessee Thunder DirtCar Series’, but this has changed due to massive sponsorship from Advance Auto Parts. The change is fitting, since it is mainly due to this sponsorship that the series has been able to increase its purses from $15,000 in cash awards and $5,000 in contingency awards to almost $30,000 in cash awards and $20,000 in contingency awards in just three short years. Other sponsors have certainly also helped with this alluring increase.

The racing series is just three years old, having been started at this very race track on 28 March 2005. However, things have not always been ideal and the track went through a period of decline between 2005 and 2007. At its lowest point vandals attempted to destroy the concession stands, and scoring and media tower. Fortunately this tragedy was turned into a triumph shortly after the track made its way back into the hands of its original owners, Scott Greene and Jot Raymond in 2007. The pair used the opportunity to make several improvements to not only the concessions stands, but also to the track surface and retaining walls. New equipment has been installed to assist drivers and the officiating crew from Atomic Speedway has been brought over to oversea the racing action. The grounds now look brand new and they’re getting ready for the upcoming season.

The introduction of a $5,000 cash prize event is expected to draw some big names and fans are expecting to see the likes of Anthony White of Clinton, Rick Rogers of Knoxville and Tommy Kerr of Maryville – to name only a few. The big race will take place on Saturday, 26 April 2008 and fans can buy their tickets at the gate. Make sure you don’t miss out on this great racing spectacle!

Danica Patrick Wins the Japan 300

Since her arrival on the international racing scene at the 2005 Indianapolis 500, Danica Patrick has been burning rubber and delighting fans. Now she has also made her way into the history books. Patrick became the first female driver to win a major auto racing event while competing in her 50th IndyCar Series race on a closed-course circuit.

This ground breaking event took place on the Twin Ring Motegi oval in Motegi, Japan. Patrick was racing in the Indy Japan 300 when she overtook Helio Castroneves (who placed second) on Lap 198. The pair was followed by Scott Dixon, who took third place, Dan Wheldon, who finished fourth, and Tony Kanaan, who was fifth. Helio Castroneves was only 5.8594 seconds behind Patrick when she crossed the finish line.

After the race fans streamed down from the grandstands to try and get a photo of the latest entry into the history books. The diminutive Patrick, brimming from cheek to cheek and her face covered in tears of joy, quickly made her way to the victory stage to receive her prize. When asked about her win, Danica Patrick told the crowd that the win had been a long time coming. Her and her team had decided it was a fuel strategy race and they had managed to choose the perfect strategy. Patrick said she knew she was using the same strategy as Helio and so she was elated when she was able to pass him and take the lead, enabling her to cross the finish line in first place.

The 26-year-old has come close to finishing first on more than one occasion in the past. In 2005 she finished fourth on the same track and then just a month later she became the first female to lead the Indianapolis 500 where she eventually finished fourth again. Her closest finish up until this point was second place at Belle Isle, which happened last September. Understandably then, the win is a big relief after years of hard work and near-misses.

Jutta Kleinschmidt of Germany was the first to gain the title of “first woman to win a major auto racing event” when she won the Dakar Rally in 2001. Nevertheless, Patrick is the first woman to do so on a closed-course circuit and so her achievement is also remarkable – especially when faced with such tough competition and difficult odds. Danica Patrick will now turn her attention to the RoadRunner Turbo Indy 300, which will be held at the Kansas Speedway in a week’s time. No doubt she will continue to find her way to the top if her passion, hard work and determination continues to drive her as well as it has up until this point.

Automotive Executive of the Year Award goes to Carroll Shelby

One of the most notable awards in the automotive industry is the Automotive Executive of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award. The award publicly recognizes excellence in automotive leadership from OEM executives and this year Carroll Shelby joined a long list of notable past winners.

Carroll Shelby, a design innovator and racing legend, was presented with the much esteemed award at the Detroit Athletic Club (DAC) on 16 April 2008. Shelby was very pleased to receive the award and he highlighted his partnership with Ford Motor Co. during the course of his acceptance speech. It was Shelby’s collaboration with Ford Motor Co. in recent years that brought about the resurrection of the Ford Shelby GT500KR. The award is sponsored by the AIAG and DNV Certification.

From replies Shelby made to the many questions he received, it is easy to see that he looks to the future of automotive design rather than the past. His passion for his job was clearly evident and he seemed to indicate that Ford and Shelby Automobiles had a number of plans to bring back some of the legendary cars of the past. He also called hybrid technology a ‘stop-gap’ and told the audience that Shelby would never have a hybrid car. He also commented on his belief that America would go on to enjoy a successful future in the automotive industry.

However cars are not the only thing that Shelby is passionate about. Shortly after having a heart transplant almost fifty years ago, Shelby started the Carroll Shelby Children’s Foundationâ„¢. The foundation has since provided much needed coronary and renal assistance to disadvantaged children.

Shelby goes on to join a list of excellent Automotive Executive of the Year Award winners. The award was instated in 1964 and has been won by Rick Wagoner, Jim Press, Bill Ford, Roger Smith, Harold E. Poling, Jr., Dieter Zetsche, Lee Iacocca, John DeLorean, Henry Ford II and Robert Eaton. The award ceremony was attended by more than 200 leaders in the automotive industry. Meanwhile, Shelby will not rest on his laurels but instead looks forward to an exciting future in the field.

Fantastic Motor Racing in Australia

The 2008 Australian racing season will see big changes in the industry. The AMRS (Australian Motor Racing Series) has undergone a complete redevelopment and a number of exciting new events have been established at grassroots level. The change comes after three years of steady, motor racing growth in the country.

The Australian Motor Racing Series is the most affordable racing series in Australia and so it is very popular with aspiring drivers and auto racing fans. Thus it was only natural that this racing series should be developed more fully. Starting 2008, the newly titled Australian Motor Racing Championships (AMC) will not only cater for racing, but also touring, GT cars and Sports cars. Races will be held at five different circuits during the course of the year. The new racing season started on the 1st of March. The 2008 series is just the start of it. The new racing plan has been set up offer the course of five years, with the ultimate goal of making this auto racing competition the most affordable in the country.

This year’s series will be made up of nine meetings that will be held at Calder Park, Winton Motor Raceway, Queensland Raceway, Wakefield Park and Adelaide International Raceway. The racing will be sanctioned by the Australian Auto Sport Alliance (AASA). The fact that races will take place across the Eastern seaboard means that competitors and sponsors will reach a far larger market than they normally would. The races will also be nationally televised so that fans unable to make it to the race will be able to enjoy all the action from the comfort of their living rooms.

The main events in the new series will be the AASA Australian Production Car Championship and the AASA Australian Touring Car Championship. The Touring Car Championship will see the inclusion of categories such as V8 Giants and 3-litre Turbo Giant Killers. The races will also be longer, with less or no handicaps. A special feature of the racing calendar includes the ‘Thundersports’ category. Vehicles in this class have motorcycle engines and a fiberglass body. This makes them extremely low cost and super fast. The Production Touring Car Championship is open to any street legal sedan that has been fitted with all the necessary safety equipment, while the Classic Touring Cars remains a popular event.

Don’t Miss the Indycar Japan 300

Indy League racing fans are no doubt looking forward to the upcoming Indycar Japan 300. Sponsored by Bridgestone, this American open-wheel race is held each year in Motegi, Japan. This year’s race will take place on Saturday, 19 April at Twin Ring Motegi.

American car races have not always been a popular activity in Japan. While the country has long enjoyed involvement in Formula One racing, it has taken quite a bit of effort to get open-wheel racing to become a regular feature on this country’s calendar. The first American open-wheel race to be held in Japan took place in 1966 at the Fuji Speedway. It was an exhibition race and a one-off event. The USAC did not return the following year and it was a long time before the possibility of returning racing activity to the shores of this country arose.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Japan was looked at as a potential CART series racing destination. However, there were various complications and new rules stated that any CART race outside of the country needed to be held on an oval. So it was only after Honda joined the CART series in 1994 that things started to pick up. When they became massively successful in 1996 there was once again interest in the idea of holding a race in Japan. Upon the completion of the Twin Ring Motegi oval in 1998, the first CART series race was held in Japan. This set a trend and the race was first changed to a Champ Car event and then to an Indy Racing League event.

Since 2007, the next race on American soil at the Kansas Speedway has taken place directly after the Bridgestone Indy Japan 300 so that fans do not have to suffer a break in their Indy racing season. The change was met with massive support, and now the 300 mile race at the Twin Ring Motegi oval is a well-founded and popular event on the annual Indy Racing League calendar. This year’s race looks set to be better than ever, so make sure you get in on all the action at this year’s Indycar Japan 300!

Clint Bowyer – A Racing Great

After just four years of racing with NASCAR, Clint Bowyer has already achieved almost legendary status. Fans flock to the racetrack to see him perform and he almost always gives them the satisfaction of seeing him drive a good race.

Born in 1979 in Kansas, Bowyer started to get involved in racing at the tender age of five. Back then his sport of choice was motocross. During his first eight years involved in this sport, Bowyer managed to capture more than 200 wins, as well as a number of championships. At 17 years of age he made the change to street stocks at the Thunderhill Speedway in Mayetta, Kansas. Four years later he won the Modified championship at the same track. He went on to enjoy 18 wins and 32 top-five finishes during the course of the following year before taking the 2001 Modified Championships trophy at the Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City. The following year he made the change to NASCAR racing, taking 12 wins and 32 top-five finishes during the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series. It was also during this year that he had his first race on asphalt.

Today Bowyer is known for being one of the most versatile drivers on the tracks. He not only races NASCAR, but has also won a number of truck racing championships and modifieds championships. However, it is his career as a NASCAR driver that he is most famous for. After being picked to race for Richard Childress in the NASCAR championships, Bowyer has been making history. He started racing with Childress in 2004 and has never looked back. He went on to enjoy several very successful seasons and top-ten finishes. On top of all his NASCAR success, he also took the Craftsman Truck Series Champion title. It seems that Bowyer will only continue to go from strength to strength and perhaps that is why his fans love him so much.

If you are a Clint Bowyer fan you will likely already have Bowyer clothing and accessories – the likes of which can be bought at online sports clothing stores. If you have yet to learn about this racing great, you’d best make your way down to the next NASCAR racing event and watch this man in action!

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