BRASELTON, Georgia (March 20, 2016) – It was a great day at Road Atlanta on Sunday for Round 8 of the Southeast Conference SCCA U.S. Majors Tour. But some drivers had a better day and weekend than others.
A handful of racers managed to take back-to-back, in-class wins on both Saturday (Round 7) and Sunday (Round 8) during the event. Those skilled drivers include: Chi Ho in B-Spec, Kevin Ruck in F Production, Alex Mayer in Formula 1000, Paul Schneider in Formula Enterprise, Jarret Voorhies in Formula Mazda, Stevan Davis in Formula Vee, Jeff Hinkle in GT-1, Jeff Dernehl in GT-3, Peter Shadowen in GT-Lite, Michael Crowe in Prototype 2, Jim Drago in Spec Miata, Casey Gunnell in Super Touring Lite, Cameron Maugeri in Super Touring Under, Tim Myers in Touring 1, and Tim Minor in Formula Continental.
But don’t think those double wins over the weekend came with ease. For instance, Ho in his B-Spec Honda Fit worked hard chasing down Ryan Hall in his MINI Cooper to take the lead, only to fall back into second with a few laps remaining. But when the checker waived, Ho had managed to regain the top spot.
“Ryan is a great driver and I just had to put my head down and do my best to close the gap,” Ho said sitting in his winning car after the race. “Easily the best race of my life.”
Ruck, too, had a great battle throughout the F Production contest. For a good portion of the race, Blake Meredith in a Honda CRX, Ken Kannard in his Mazda Miata and Ruck with an Acura Integra swapped the lead several times. Slower traffic became a strategic difference in the battle. But Kannard suffered a problem with only a few laps left, leaving Meredith and Ruck to fight on toward the finish. At the end, Ruck had his second weekend win.
“That race was really a lot of fun,” Ruck said after picking up his trophy and bottle of Mazza Sparkling Wine. “I really enjoyed it and super happy to get that win.”
In what has become a sub-theme of the 2016 SCCA U.S. Majors Tour, several track records took a tumble during the weekend. Classes where new high marks were set at Road Atlanta include: B-Spec (Chi Ho), Formula Atlantic (Ryan Norman), Formula F (Ben Auriemma), Formula Mazda (Jarret Voorhies), GT-Lite (Michael Kamalian), Prototype 1 (Jacek Mucha), Prototype 2 (Gianpaolo Ciancimino), Spec Miata (John Carter), Spec Racer Ford (Scott Rettich), Spec Racer Ford 3 (Robeson Clay Russell), and Super Touring Lite (Casey Gunnell).
Only one weekend remains in the Southeast Conference’s SCCA U.S. Majors Tour 2016 calendar. The final event, containing Round 9 and Round 10, will take place April 15-17 at Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia. More information about that event and the entire SCCA U.S. Majors Tour can be found at SCCA.com/majors.
Following are the provisional race winners from Sunday’s Round 8 of the SCCA Southeast Conference U.S. Majors Tour at Road Atlanta, with Class, Name, Hometown and Car.
American Sedan: Brian Himes, Slidell, LA; Ford Mustang
B-Spec: Chi Ho, Orlando, FL; Honda Fit
E Production: Kip Van Steenburg, New Smyrna Beach, FL; Porsche 944s2
F Production: Kevin Ruck, Atascosa, TX; Acura Integra
H Production: Will Perry, Sale Creek, TN; Honda CRX
Formula 1000: Alex Mayer, Harleysville, PA; JDR
Formula Atlantic: Ryan Norman, Abbottstown, PA; Mazda Swift 016
Formula Continental: Tim Minor, Falls Church, VA; Citation
Formula 500: John Walbran, Saint Louis, MO; Scorpion 2009
Formula Enterprises: Paul Schneider, Charlotte, NC; SCCA FE
Formula F: Ben Auriemma, Manhasset, NY; Spectrum Honda 014H
Formula Mazda: Jarret Voorhies, Kissimmee, FL; Formula Mazda
Formula Vee: Stevan Davis, Danielsville, GA; Racer's Wedge SB-1
GT-1: Jeff Hinkle, Destin, FL; Dodge Challenger
GT-2: Pete Peterson, Lumberton, NC; Toyota Celica
GT-3: Jeff Dernehl, Roswell, GA; Mazda RX-3
GT-Lite: Peter Shadowen, West Palm Beach, FL; Honda CRXsi
Prototype 1: Jim Downing, Atlanta, GA; Peach Mazda Day-02
Prototype 2: Michael Crowe, Jamestown, KY; Stohr WF-1
Spec Miata: Jim Drago, Memphis, TN; Mazda Miata
Spec Racer Ford: Scott Rettich, Columbus, OH; SCCA Enterprises SRF
Spec Racer Ford 3: Brian Schofield, Lakeland, FL; Ford SRF
Super Touring Lite: Casey Gunnell, Ponte Vedra, FL; Toyota Celica
Super Touring Under: Cameron Maugeri, Ormond Beach, FL; Lotus Exige
Touring 1: Tim Myers, Atlanta, GA; Dodge Viper ACRx
Touring 2: Tim Kezman, Franksville, WI; Porsche 911
Touring 4: Kevin Koelemeyer, Fort Myers, FL; Mazda MX-5
Photo: Cameron Maugeri in his black Lotus Exige was one of several drivers that took two class wins during the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour weekend at Road Atlanta.
Photo Credit: Clark McInnis Photography
