BRASELTON, Ga. (November 4, 2011) – The American Road Race of Champions was the name originally given to the event that would evolve into the SCCA National Championship Runoffs® – but since 1994, that name has been associated with the late-season event hosted by the Atlanta Region SCCA at Road Atlanta.
The ARRC presented by Grassroots Motorsports has become a must-visit for racers who don’t race at the Runoffs, including a number of regional classes who may not be eligible for the SCCA National Racing program. While all 28 Runoffs classes were invited this year for the first time, the focus remains on those drivers and classes not able to participate in the National Championship event.
Geoff Churchill, originally from Atlanta, has been at the ARRC every year since 1994, first as a driver before working the event as a steward, including as an SOM this year.
“Originally, it was all the regional classes that ran here,” Campbell said. “In recent years, the Region said we’ve got more paddock space than we have cars, and there’s plenty of track time available, especially if we make it a three-day event. So over a period of years, they’ve kept adding events to it until there’s an incredible number of races.
“Usually we get people down from Nova Scotia. It’s sort of an informal Regional Runoffs.”
Fans of the ARRC may think most often of the Improved Touring classes, which make up 48 of the 239 entries for Saturday’s sprint races and 39 of the 65 entries in the three-hour enduro, to be run on Saturday afternoon. In addition, the 2012 Pro-IT calendar begins this weekend with a 65-car field on Friday afternoon.
Unlike Churchill, Tim Betteridge has gone the other direction – he first worked the ARRC in timing and scoring, and now is driving the No. 19 Nissan 300ZX in ITS.
“I think it’s the best event of the year,” Betteridge said. “You kind of feel like you’ve got the best of the best out here, and that challenges me. It’s also the end of the year, so it’s a good time to get out and get it out of your system for the season, then go back and start rebuilding.
Betteridge now lives in Hendersonville, N.C., but has tested himself at the ARRC as a driver for the last three years. The level of competition, he said, keeps this event interesting and lets him know how he stacks up.
“Last year was especially interesting for me because I had a car that was a bit of an unknown factor and I came out and did real well. I was really happy about that. Guys have been working on their cars all season long to make it better and better, and you come out and do well – I worked on my car for a long time, and it feels really good.”
The southeast is also home to a number of local classes that are rare across the country. For instance, the Atlanta Region is home to the SM2 class, a regional-only class for 1990 – 1997 Mazda Miatas that are built to Spec Miata rules, as well as the SP2 and SP3 classes for Porsche 944 Cup and Porsche SuperCup cars. Among other local classes, the Region also hosts the Improved Touring Truck class, introduced for SCCA RaceTrucks that ran in the late 1980s and early 90s. For the most part, those trucks are prepped to IT levels, and add to the diversity of the event.
As if there wasn’t enough packed into the weekend, the SCCA Pro Racing Spec Racer Ford and Pro Formula Enterprises Series have chosen to end their seasons with a pair of race apiece on Sunday, as does the V8 Stock Car Series.
A schedule of events, a full list of the eligible classes, live timing and scoring and links to entry lists are all available at the Atlanta Region website, www.atlantascca.org.
