Spec Miata Festival - Added Festival Race, World-Famous SM Party and Raffle
Reg, if you haven't already.
https://www.motorspo...b-racing-709535
Schedule
http://www.sfrscca.o...sonomasched.pdf
J~
Spec Miata Festival - Added Festival Race, World-Famous SM Party and Raffle
Reg, if you haven't already.
https://www.motorspo...b-racing-709535
Schedule
http://www.sfrscca.o...sonomasched.pdf
J~
Remember, I just post it.
J~
The Sonoma Raceway test day will be on July 3rd, Thursday. July 4 is a Drag Race day. All testers will have to move out of the paddock by 5pm on Thursday. If you want to leave your rig, hauler, trailer, etc., for the weekend’s event, you will need to sign the Sonoma release (which will be available at the testing sign in) and park in Lot 2 until the paddock is clear of drag racers at 7pm on Friday.
Is this a SCCA test day with run groups or open? Is it normal test day pricing for Sonoma?
Ron
RAmotorsports
Well, 5 days to go and we are at 31 entries in SM...less than 1/2 of last year. Not only that but maybe 1/2 the overall participants from last year at only 142. Seems the Majors has been fairly successful out here but for sure it has hurt the SFR region as far as numbers go. Also sucks in SM because the normal Oregon crew will be staying home doing the Portland Majors. I guess the upside is we will get to have SFR cars on the front row of the Spec Miata Festival picture! Hey Ken...take a picture of the 5-7 guys who normally make the trip with your cars and we can photo shop you in at the back! I will make sure we try and put the least dented cars in the front row just for Jordan!
Anyone who thinks they have any chance of beating Mark Drennan at the NASA Sonoma Nationals in Nov. better show up and see if your game even comes close to measuring up...yes, i'm taunting a whole bunch of west coast guys including several locals to show up and compete...Laguna is still a long ways away!!!
Ron
RAmotorsports
I can easily beat Drennan ( in anything but a spec miata) but I am saving myself for another Ron Alan, Mike and gigi labouf and Juan and Glen feast for dinner. I will then challenge Mr drennan to a tequila shot.contest ( sponsored by every other SM shop.in the country) on Thursday night early October. Fyi, I will bet even after that a TFB car wins the runoffs (I would just like a chance)!!
I can easily beat Drennan ( in anything but a spec miata) but I am saving myself for another Ron Alan, Mike and gigi labouf and Juan and Glen feast for dinner. I will then challenge Mr drennan to a tequila shot.contest ( sponsored by every other SM shop.in the country) on Thursday night early October. Fyi, I will bet even after that a TFB car wins the runoffs (I would just like a chance)!!
Hey Rusty - I'm pretty sure you beat me last year at Sonoma in July...I still have nightmares about that. Oh, and I'm ready for the tequila challenge! I've been training all year and am getting pretty damn good at competing with a hangover. Let's do this thing!
On that note I have a coupon worth $525 for a test day at Sonoma that I'm trying to sell. Pm me if your interested for a cheaper test day.
The Sonoma Raceway test day will be on July 3rd, Thursday. July 4 is a Drag Race day.
Man, it's quiet around here... I hear there was another track record set by Drennan (not to mention a few more wins). Congrats. Let's see some video of that lap!
I was there Sat, not much of a race. Drennan spanked everyone, Copper and #9 (sorry) played a little.
Cole Gibson did his 1st inside pass in 10 on the last lap.
Most of the comp was in Portland for the Majors, when they come, it's a better event.
Maybe better results/stories on Sun or was the SM Fest/party a rager ?
J~
Man, it's quiet around here... I hear there was another track record set by Drennan (not to mention a few more wins). Congrats. Let's see some video of that lap!
Thanks Ryan! Yes, very good weekend for me - 5 races/wins!
Very proud of finally breaking into the 53's at Sears, a 53.8 in the 8:30am Saturday practice (cool, overcast, old Hoosiers) and another 53.8 for the qualifying track record on Sunday at 9:00am (sunny all AM, sticker Hoosiers). Had a handful of 54.0 & 54.1 laps on Toyos late last year on a test day and early this year with NASA so I've been knocking on the 53 door for a while. Also happy to claim the race record on Sunday at a 54.9 (11am, sunny/warm).
As for video of the qual record on Sunday, my f'ng GoPro took a crap after Saturday so it wasn't captured. I have video of the Saturday practice lap I'd be happy to show you but I probably won't post it publicly until after the NASA Champs
Sure wish there was more competition to challenge me in the races but most of the fast SM'ers from the Northwest and SoCal who usually attend this Sears event were at the Portland majors race which was a bummer since I really enjoy the close racing with them.
Their absence made my times/performance stick out like a sore thumb I guess. Sorry Ryan for using this reply to your post to address this but I've heard, indirectly, that some folks have been questioning the compliance of my '94 after my performance this weekend and the last Laguna event. So for those folks - my car is legit and my dyno numbers are what you should expect to get from a top motor builder. Charlies Hayes at TFB Performance set me up with an RM Autosports motor and it's been awesome out of the box. Louis at RM Autosports is a stand-up guy and knows what he provided for my '94 will need to pass a tear-down in tech at the SCCA Runoffs or NASA Champs if I'm lucky/skilled/prepared enough to earn that right. Anyone can connect with Charlie/TFB if they want a similar package. Anyone who doubts the compliance of my car is more than welcome to inspect the car, review my dyno sheets or spend the $'s to file a protest.
My secrets to success have been the same since I got into karting 9 years ago and when I started competing in Spec Miata 7 years ago - get the best equipment and support available so there are no excuses beyond your ability to drive & compete. Equipment - I have arguably the best '94 in the country. It was originally built by Jason Hoover (Atlanta Motorsports Group, formerly from SF Region). I bought it after Brad Rampelberg drove it to victory at the Runoffs in '07. At the time, the '94 was the overdog which is why I bought it. Since then and because it was the overdog, it was neutered with weight/plate rule changes. Since then, it's the underdog at many of the nation's important tracks.
Support - after a 4 year hiatus (no $'s), I began running my '94 again last year with TFB Performance (Tim F'ng Barber & Charlie Hayes) supporting me. Almost wrote the car off after an engine bay fire last year but Charlie did an amazing job replacing pretty much everything under the hood (had to buy a donor car for parts). The car prep & track-side support I get from Tim, Charlie, and other TFB crew has been stellar. Not only are Tim & Charlie highly skilled drivers and mechanics/crew-chiefs, but they're great humans that genuinely care about providing their customers with service and support to the best of their abilities all the time.
Even though they are a lot younger than me (Charlie's half my age) and crazier (I'm talking about you Tim), I have so much fun hanging out with them and have come to consider them close friends. Little known fact - at Tim's request (bad idea), I got ordained and officiated Tim's wedding a few months ago. Here's GoPro video of "Minister Mark" aka "Pope Mark" in action, complete with a Michael Buffer boxing introduction, vows that include "checkers or wreckers", and a waiving green flag. You can skip forward to the unique procession at 4:00 or the minsterin action around 6:45. Video is shaky and the sound kinda sucks, but it still captures one of most memorable days of my life - thanks Tim!
https://www.youtube....bDKquXRGQXCgrTw
Okay, back to race cars...
IMO, my '94 is not the car to have at certain tracks against other top flight '99/driver combos (e.g. Thunderhill, CalSpeedway, Buttonwillow...any track with long straights). For example, I was not a contender at the Thunderhill major and was easily beaten by 99's at the CalSpeedway major. I think the '94 vs '99 is much closer at Sears and Laguna. I'm looking forward to seeing how my '94 will compares to the '99 Hoover built for me that I'm shipping out from Atlanta soon and the '01 he's currently building for me. Just need a good 1.6 for an SM flush
The other speed secret, at least for me, is seat time. The more seat time I get, the better/faster I get. So far, I've raced 15 out of the 27 weekends we've had this year.
Obviously, all of this has been costing me a huge amount of money this year. But with "NoWifeNoKids" and a good job at Riverbed as my sponsors, all I have to do is look in the mirror and say "you're worthy it buddy"!
That is all for now...which is plenty.
Mark, Congrats !! on the Wins, Records, Pope for a day, and a nice post/video.
Any Hub problems this weekend ?
Anyone ??
J~
I havn't had a chance to edit down my videos yet but I will do that and post them here when I do.
All I have to say is Mr. Drennan was in a class of his own this weekend. And it's not a cheater car that put him there. It's the combination of a very strong car that is supported by some of the best there is and driven by one of the best wheelmen in the country. Pretty good combo if you ask me. Mark is very committed to his program this year and I am very much looking forward to what he, and the rest of the TFB crew, can do come the big show in October.
Ron
RAmotorsports
Appreciate the kind words Dan & Ron! Ron - happy to see your #40 being used to bring back racers like Dan & Darin. Who's next?
Look
I don't know who this Mark Drennan is but he is a real ass. He has forced his way over here into the SE ranks from the very first race this season and spanked many of our asses. We too think he must be doing it in cheater cars. I mean how else could he be beating us South East regulars on our home tracks? Come on!!!!!
All jokes aside, as someone who pays attention, I can state unequivocally that Mark Drennan is SO F'NG COMMITTED to winning this years runoffs at Laguna that he is leaving no stone un turned. You can see it in everything he is doing. Showing up wherever there is competition to race the best. Building a fleet of cars to determine which one is the best to win.
Mark will be tough to beat for sure. I have nothing but admiration and respect for anyone that puts this amount of effort into their program, and focuses on the end game the way he is doing.
Danny
Danny Steyn Racing | DSR YouTube Channel
Danny Steyn Photography | Adept Studios | Ocean Machinery | OPM Autosports | Rossini Racing Engines | G-Loc Brakes |
2 x SCCA Runoffs Champ | 1 x NASA National Champ | 6 x June Sprints Champ | 10 x ARRC Champ
1 x SCCA Super Sweep | 2 x Triple Crown | 4 x Hoosier Super Tour Points Champ | 6 x Majors Points Champ | 5 x SEDiv Driver of the Year
Congrats to Mark on the new track record and awesome weekend results!
I have my Sunday video to share. This one is not about my race. Rather its all about the SMT battle playing out ahead of me:
"I'm in SM today starting 9th behind a pack of five SMTs. After the first lap it's clear that I have nothing to gain by getting in the middle of their life and death battle, so I lay back and act as videographer to document their race. Mike Niemann in the 42 gets screwed at the start, and works his way forward to win SMT. Advance to 4:50 for the start."
Enjoy!
-Juan
CheckerLap.com -- Your race results!
It was only a matter of time until those comments re Mark started to surface... Ron's comment is spot on though. I think anyone who has driven behind Mark in a race should be able to see that his skill and his ability to control a well prepped car is what allows him to turn such fast lap times. I've been behind him a few times as he lapped me and his ability to balance the car on the edge is on another level compared to the guys n gals I've seen on track over the last 4 years in SFR. No offense to those guys n gals. You are fast also but I'm in awe at how Mark can balance the car at the edge. Never seen anything like it before.
Thanks for the videos Juan. It was only my second time on this track. First time was a few years ago where I turned about 20 laps. Difficult track to learn. Thanks to your videos I was able to learn the line, gain confidence and improve over the course of the weekend. Learning a new track is a challenge for me.
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