Official Discussion Thread: SCCA Runoffs

[Rob Howden]

Good day, folks -

As you may have read in the Announcement by Keith Pruden, the Howden Media Group has purchased FormulaVee.org and we intend to do whatever we can to grow and improve it, all with the goal of supporting and building the Formula Vee community. The site will run status quo for the meantime, although we do have some ideas. That said, we will be bringing our eFormulaCarNews.com Trackside Live coverage to the site with this 'Official Discussion Thread'. Our SCCA Runoffs coverage is just around the corner and Al Craighead and I will be heading to Topeka on Tuesday. I'm only going to be able to stay for a single day (ie. the FV Party) as we have another event to cover during that weekend as well, but Al will be in the media center and paddock at Heartland Park all week to bring you up-to-date results and news from the Formula Vee action.

This will be the official forum thread for Runoffs discussion, so please keep all of your discussion limited to this section. If you have any questions, feel free to post them here and we'll do what we can to get the answers.

The Formula Vee community is a great one and we're thrilled that you're excited about the event this year, so if anyone out there wants to play amateur journalist to help us out with insider info, step up and become one of our online reporters. The more people we have posting info from the track, the better.

We hope to meet you all at Ed and Cathy Womer's FV-Crab Cake Party! I'll be bringing a bunch of beer to help out with introductions!

[Rob Howden]

EFCN Race Coverage: FV Monday Qualifying Session

The Formula Vee drivers were on-track at 10:30 CST today. Bob Nuemeister laid down the quickest time to begin the qualifying run, turing a 1:47.811 to top '06 and '07 podium finisher Michael Varacins by less than four tenths. Multi-time champ Brad Stout was third in the intial order, while Lisa Noble and Jim Kearney completed the top-five.

SCCA National Championship Runoffs 2008
Heartland Park - Topeka, Kansas
Formula Vee - Monday Qualifying (Provisional)

Pos. / No. / Name / Hometown / Make-Model / Sponsor / Q1
1. #94 - Bob Neumeister - Pueblo, CO - Vortech - VORTECH HOOSIER TIRE,REDLINE OIL - 1:47.811
2. #65 - Michael Varacins - Burlington, WI - Speed Sport AM-5 - Speed Sport Eng / Veetech / Hoosier - 1:48.283
3. #35 - Brad Stout - Webster Groves, MO - Vortech FV - 1:48.342
4. #7 - Lisa Noble - Manhattan, KS - Vortech - Littlefeat.net Hoosier Tire - 1:48.894
5. #77 - Jim Kearney - Lancaster, PA - Protoform P3 - Invisible Glass-Hoosier-Protoform - 1:49.020
6. #27 - Don Schanche - Marco Island, FL - Vortech 2008 - Hoosier Noble Racing - 1:49.085
7. #04 - Steve Dreizler - Shell Knob, MO - Vortech 2002 - Competition Data Systems - 1:49.282
8. #80 - Stevan Davis - Powder Springs, GA - Racer's Wage - Goodyear, ButlerEngines, Valvo - 1:49.319
9. #15 - Jeremy Grenier - Point Of Rocks, MD - Womer EV-3 - Ski Motorsports,Hoosier,Quicksilver - 1:49.409
10. #72 - Roger Siebenaler - Williston, VT - Mysterian M-2 - Autowerks/Hoosier Tire/VSR -1:49.692
11. #87 - Dennis Andrade - Brush Prairie, WA - Vortech - D & D Racing - 1:49.802
12. #08 - Jeff Loughead - Darien, IL - Vortech CR-04 - Hoosier, LLoughead DDS, JLoughead M - 1:49.958
13. #37 - Charles Hearn - Houston, TX - Vortech 2004 - Hearn Contractors,Noble,LRE,Si- 1:50.007
14. #03 - Patrick Hughey - Lawrence, KS - Vortech 04 - UNIFORMS P.R.N. - 1:50.357
15. #17 - Rick Shields - West Mifflin, PA - VDF-2 - ARS INC/VEESPORTS RACING/AUTOWERKS - 1:50.409
16. #68 - Ed Womer - Suitland, MD - Womer EV-3 - Autowerks,Goodyear,Womer Race Cars, - 1:50.411
17. #3 - Bruce Livermore - Stillwater, MN - Mysterian X-M2 - Beebe/VeeTech/LRE/BRP/Hoosier - 1:50.667
18. #6 - Phillip Holcomb - Longmont, CO - Citation 88V - Peak Performance - 1:50.743
19. #11 - Leroy Coppedge - The Dalles, OR - VDF 1 - Ron Chuck/Woodstock Racing - 1:50.801
20. #05 - Brian McCarthy - Sacramento, CA- BRM Anduril - BRM Engineering - 1:50.911
21. #57 - Gary Blanarik - Baden, PA - Caracal SB - Sewickley Car Store Porsche Audi - 1:50.918
22. #5 - Ron Whitston - Neenah, WI - Protoform P2 - Subway Sandwiches, Hoosier - 1:51.009
23. #4 - Mark Felsen - Denver, CO - Vortech FV - LYNX WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS - 1:52.122
24. #19 - David Scaler - Flemington, NJ - Mysterian CM2 - Chassistools.com / Autowerks - 1:52.317
25. #06 - Dean Curtis - East Stroudsburg, PA - Womer EV-3 - Womer/Dawe'sMotorsports/Goodyear - 1:52.542
26. #36 - Dale L Rader - Reading, PA - Protoform P-2.5 - Total Automotive Centers - 1:52.735
27. #99 - Jon Tate - Arlington, TN - Protoform P2 - SONYA - 1:53.244
28. #97 - Nick Maurus - Winnetka, IL - Citation 06V - Probe, Inc./Vee Tech/LRE - 1:53.523
29. #10 - Eddie Cadena - Houston, TX - Protoform P2 - Goodyear/Noble Racing - 1:53.628
30. #74 - Mark Edwards - Los Angeles, CA - Glandring - Red Line/Hoosier - 1:53.942
31. #40 - Donald Manthe - Santa Rosa, CA - FV Lynx - 1:54.814
32. #49 - Randy Smith - Troy, ON - RTJ RS - VMS, Head to Hoof Equine Supp. - 1:55.697
33. #91 - Warren Holcomb - Denver, CO - Mysterian M-2 - 1:55.874
34. #09 - Stephen Saslow - Sammamish, WA - Tsunami MKIII - RIM/TCRMotorsports.com/BRM/SRRacing - 1:56.434
35. #25 - Charles Turner - Mission Viejo, CA - Protoform P3 - Turner Motorsports Marketing 1- :56.766
36. #47 - Paul Eric Taylor - Denver, CO Mysterian M2 - 1:56.852
37. #0 - Michael W Lauer - Cottonwd Fls, KS - Caracal C - N/A - 1:57.339
38. #39 - Jeffrey G Wilt - Dallas, TX - Caracal D - Tired Dog Racing - 2:02.097

The Formula Vee drivers are back on-track at 3:00 pm tomorrow for their second qualifying session. The EFCN team will be arriving tomorrow evening and we'll be live on Wednesday.

[sweenrace]

Rob,

what happened Numi today? The live timing said he had a 1.47 but he was in the second last place?

Ian

[hardingfv32-1]

That was yesterdays time for Nuby. Looking at radar history I would say they had an afternoon thunder shower.

Brian

[hardingfv32-1]

Are the next days qualifying grid positions set with overall or previous day qualifying times? I know the first day was computer lottery. Today would have been based on Mondays times.

Brian

[Rob Howden]

Are the next days qualifying grid positions set with overall or previous day qualifying times? I know the first day was computer lottery. Today would have been based on Mondays times.

Brian

Brian,

As Al and I understand it, the line-up after the first day sees the fastest driver at the front of the mock grid, and so on down the cumulative order. That said, if the quickest guy wants to pull out of the mock grid and sit on pit lane, that is his option.

[Rob Howden]

EFCN Trackside: Formula Vee - Tuesday Qualifying

Brad Stout was the quickest driver in today's FV qualifying session, although only one of the drivers in the top-10 was able to improve on his time. Stout laid down a 1:49.389 to pace the session, yet his 1:48.342 remains as his fastest time thus far, placing him third overall. Dennis Andrade found just over a tenth of the second to maintain 10th in the order, joining eight other drivers who were able to improve their pace, including Ed Womer, who went four tenths faster and advanced from 16th to 14th.

The Formula Vee drivers are the last class on the track on Wednesday, hitting the asphalt at 6:00 pm for their final qualifying session. They are not on the Thursday docket and will be racing at 2:15 pm on Friday.

SCCA National Championship Runoffs
Heartland Park - Topeka, Kansas
October 7, 2008
Formula Vee - Tuesday Qualifying (Provisional)

Pos / No. / Name / Hometown / Make-Model / Sponsor / Q1 / Q2
1. #94 - Bob Neumeister - Pueblo, CO - Vortech - VORTECH HOOSIER TIRE,REDLINE OIL - 1:47.811 / 1:57.025
2. #65 - Michael Varacins - Burlington, WI - Speed Sport AM-5 - Speed Sport Eng / Veetech / Hoosier - 1:48.283 / 1:53.458
3. #35 - Brad Stout - Webster Groves, MO - Vortech FV - 1:48.342 / 1:49.389
4. #7 - Lisa Noble - Manhattan, KS - Vortech - Littlefeat.net Hoosier Tire - 1:48.894 / 1:49.762
5. #77 - Jim Kearney - Lancaster, PA - Protoform P3 - Invisible Glass-Hoosier-Protoform - 1:49.020 / 1:52.730
6. #27 - Donald Schanche - Marco Island, FL - Vortech 2008 - Hoosier Noble Racing - 1:49.085 / 1:50.677
7. #04 - Steve Dreizler - Shell Knob, MO - Vortech 2002 - Competition Data Systems - 1:49.282 / 1:52.511
8. #80 - Stevan Davis - Powder Springs, GA - Racer's Wage - Goodyear, ButlerEngines, Valvoline - 1:49.319 / 1:49.607
9. #15 - Jeremy Grenier - Point Of Rocks, MD - Womer EV-3 - Ski Motorsports,Hoosier,Quicksilver - 1:49.409 / 1:49.476
10. #87 - Dennis Andrade - Brush Prairie, WA - Vortech - D & D D & D Racing - 1:49.802 / 1:49.639
11. #72 - Roger Siebenaler - Williston, VT - Mysterian M-2 - Autowerks/Hoosier Tire/VSR - 1:49.692 / 1:50.383
12. #08 - Jeff Loughead - Darien, IL - Vortech CR-04 - Hoosier, LLoughead DDS, JLoughead M - 1:49.958 / 1:50.774
13. #37 - Charles Hearn - Houston, TX - Vortech 2004 - Hearn Contractors,Noble,LRE,Si - 1:50.007 / 1:50.629
14. #68 - Ed Womer - Suitland, MD - Womer EV-3 - Autowerks,Goodyear,Womer Race Cars - 1:50.411 / 1:50.081
15. #03 - Patrick Hughey - Lawrence, KS - Vortech 04 - UNIFORMS P.R.N. - 1:50.357 / 1:50.736
16. #17 - Rick Shields - West Mifflin, PA - VDF-2 - ARS INC/VEESPORTS RACING/AUTOWERKS - 1:50.409 / 1:50.855
17. #3 - Bruce Livermore - Stillwater, MN - Mysterian X-M2 - Beebe/VeeTech/LRE/BRP/Hoosier - 1:50.667 / 1:50.915
18. #6 - Phillip Holcomb - Longmont, CO - Citation 88V - Peak Performance - 1:50.743 / 1:52.719
19. #11 - Leroy Coppedge - The Dalles, OR - VDF 1 - Ron Chuck/Woodstock Racing - 1:50.801 / 1:56.508
20. #05 - Brian McCarthy - Sacramento, CA - BRM Anduril - BRM Engineering - 1:50.911 / 1:52.660
21. #57 - Gary Blanarik - Baden, PA - Caracal SB - Sewickley Car Store Porsche Audi - 1:50.918 / 1:52.249
22. #5 - Ron Whitston - Neenah, WI - Protoform P2 - Subway Sandwiches, Hoosier - 1:51.009 / 1:51.854
23. #4 - Mark Felsen - Denver, CO - Vortech FV - LYNX WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS - 1:52.122 / 1:54.512
24. #06 - Dean Curtis - East Stroudsburg, PA - Womer EV-3 - Womer/Dawe'sMotorsports/Goodyear - 1:52.542 / 1:52.164
25. #19 - David Scaler - Flemington, NJ - Mysterian CM2 - Chassistools.com / Autowerks - 1:52.317 / 1:52.666
26. #49 - Randy Smith - Troy, ON - RTJ RS - VMS, Head to Hoof Equine Supp. - 1:55.697 / 1:52.486
27. #74 - Mark Edwards - Los Angeles, CA - Glandring - Red Line/Hoosier - 1:53.942 / 1:52.514
28. #36 - Dale Rader - Reading, PA - Protoform P-2.5 - Total Automotive Centers - 1:52.735 / 1:52.987
29. #99 - Jon Tate - Arlington, TN - Protoform P2 - SONYA - 1:53.244 / 1:56.574
30. #97 - Nick Maurus - Winnetka, IL - Citation 06V - Probe, Inc./Vee Tech/LRE - 1:53.523 / 1:54.832
31. #10 - Eddie Cadena - Houston, TX - Protoform P2 - Goodyear/Noble Racing - 1:53.628 / 1:54.618
32. #40 - Donald Manthe - Santa Rosa, CA - FV Lynx - 1:54.814 / 1:54.945
33. #09 - Stephen Saslow - Sammamish, WA - Tsunami MKIII - RIM/TCRMotorsports.com/BRM/SRRacing - 1:56.434 / 1:55.271
34. #91 - Warren Holcomb - Denver, CO - Mysterian M-2 - 1:55.874 / 1:57.158
35. #0 - Michael Lauer - Cottonwd Fls, KS - Caracal C - N/A - 1:57.339 / 1:56.092
36. #25 - Charles Turner - Mission Viejo, CA - Protoform P3 - Turner Motorsports Marketing - 1:56.766 / 0:00.000
37. #47 - Paul Eric Taylor - Denver, CO - Mysterian M2 - 1:56.852 / 1:57.000
38. #39 - Jeffrey Wilt - Dallas, TX - Caracal D - Tired Dog Racing - 2:02.097 / 1:56.886

[Rob Howden]

EFCN Trackside LIVE: Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Good morning, FV fans -

We have a beautiful day before us here at Heartland Park and the EFCN team of Al Craighead and Rob Howden is now on-site, set up in the media room to bring you trackside coverage of today's events. The final Formula Vee qualifying session is set for 6:00 pm this evening and I'll be heading out into the paddock soon to gather up some information. The initial qualifying sessions have seen the expected players near the front, while other regular frontrunners are working to continue their advance up the standings. Today's weather promises to give the FV drivers their best shot at a fast time, so I expect this afternoon's qualifying session to set the grid for Friday's main event.

Now that we are on-site, if any of you watching from home have any questions, please feel free to post them here and we'll do what we can to get you the answers from the paddock.

[sweenrace]

Rob,

i see Brian McCarthy, this years Sprints winner, way down the order. Any idea if he's having problems?

Ian

[hardingfv32-1]

Anything new with the tires? Hoosier: any preference between R55 and R45? Are the Goodyear runners satisfied with their tire performance?

Brian

[Rob Howden]

Anything new with the tires? Hoosier: any preference between R55 and R45? Are the Goodyear runners satisfied with their tire performance?

Brian

Brian,

I spoke with Ed Womer regarding the new Goodyear D2786 tires, and he is extremely happy with the grip and balance. Ed is running 21.00 both front and rear, 5.0s on the front and 5.5 on the rear. Ed said that the tires, which are totally new, provide extremely good grip. Right now, he is working on a lack of speed on the exit of the corners.

I'll check out the Hoosier feedback during my next paddock run.

[Rob Howden]

EFCN Trackside Live: Formula Vee Paddock Notes

I had a chance to take a few trips through the FV paddock just before lunch, stopping by to talk with a number of drivers. Here are my notes from the paddock:

- the Formula Vee Party has been put off until tomorrow night (Thursday) as the the class is on-track this evening at 6:00 pm, which would undoubtly push the party well into the evening

- Stevan Davis had his new car (Silver Bullet) on-track in pre-event testing and while it is showing great promise, he has decided to stick with his Racer's Wedge machine that has done so well for him in the past. Davis has been quick, currently sitting in the eighth position. He is also running the Goodyear D2786 tires, using the 21.00/5.0 in the front and 21.00-/5.5 in the rear. Stevan said that they are much better than last year, but he would still like more grip.

- two drivers we spoke with damaged spindles yesterday. Both Steve Dreizler and Dean Curtis broke spindles. Curtis' was particularly rough, spinning through the grass as his tire and wheel passed him, coming to an abrupt halt in the cement wall

- Birthday Party race winner Jeremy Grenier made aggressive changes to the rear of his car between Monday and Tuesday, adjusting just about everything that could be adjusted. The result was a much more stable car that he was able to push harder through the corners. Grenier admitted that the track was still pretty rough during yesterday's session as there was damp areas in the final complex of corners and a stream of water running across the track just between turn one and two. While Monday offered pretty good conditions for qualifying, hence Bob Neumeister's provisional pole, today is going to be good. The track is dry, the sky is blue and the 6:00 pm start time will provide cool temperatures.

I'm heading back out now to gather more info. The paddock is pretty thin this year and the FV did not park together...they're all over the place.

[Rob Howden]

EFCN Trackside Live: Paddock Update - Wednesday Pre-Qualifying

The final qualifying session for the Formula Vee category will hit the track at 6:00 pm CST and I just got back from the paddock after chatting with some of the drivers. Here are my notes:

- Bob Neumeister is looking good this week, currently holding the provisional pole time after a quick run on Monday. It's been an interesting behind-the-scenes adventure for 'Nuby' howver, as his Runoffs efforts started with the installation of a new shock for a test run at Pueblo Motorsports Park, his home track. The test was very productive as Bob told me that the car was great. Expecting that he was going to be a rocket when he got to Topeka, Nuby was in for a rude awakening as the car was 'terrible loose' during the Saturday test day. Three major changes were made and the car was better, but he blew the motor in the third session before another trio of big adjustments could be confirmed. The set-up was proven solid on Monday when Bob topped the field. On Tuesday, in the horrible conditions, he thought better of it and pulled in after just a handful of laps. Bob has bolted on Hoosier R45s for this final qualifying run, but thinks the R55s may be better...we'll see.

- Iam Sweeney asked about Brian McCarthy so I went and tracked him down. Brian is well down the order right now, but admitted that he just wasn't in the zone on Monday when the conditions were right, getting caught up in a number of risky grouping around guys who were all over the place. The Tuesday session did not provide the conditions for him to move up, so he's bolted on sticker Hoosier R45s for his attempt to escape the middle of the field.

- I spoke with Brice Livermore as well, and he said that they simply got the set-up all wrong on Monday. After making calculated adjustments for Tuesday's run, the car felt much better, even despite the slick conditions. Livermore is on Hoosier R55s, but they are a few heat-cycles old as he's watching the budget. He's got a better set ready for the race.

- One driver who has had a rough go thus far is Pacific Northwest frontrunner Stephen Saslow. After running well at the Labor Day National, Saslow had a big 'off' in turn nine on only the second lap of Runoffs effort, backing into the wall, damaging the left rear considerably. It is expected that a right rear rod end broken when he powered over the turn nine curbing, sending his car into a spin and then into the wall. Saslow and his father have worked for the past three days getting the car back together and this will be an important run for him, as he needs to make it all happen right now.

The session is about to begin so I'm heading to the mock grid to shoot for our EFCN Photo Grid, which will hopefully be available on Thursday night or Friday morning.

[hojo]

Hey Rob,

How's our lone Canadian - Randy Smith doing and what tires did he end up going with?

Thanks for these reports, it's great stuf

[grimes34]

Livetimingmyass

[hojo]

it stumbled yesterday when the vees were up too...

vee people want to know!

[Rob Howden]

EFCN Trackside Live: Formula Vee - Wednesday Qualifying

2008 Formula Vee Runoffs polesitter interview (2.2 Mb)

Pos / No. / Name / Make-Model / Sponsor / Q1 / Q2 / Q3
1. #35 Brad Stout - Webster Groves, MO - Vortech FV - 1:48.342 / 1:49.389 / 147.055
2. #65 Michael Varacins - Burlington, WI - Speed Sport AM-5 - Speed Sport Eng / Veetech / Hoosier - 1:48.283 / 1:53.458 / 1:47.409
3. #94 Bob Neumeister - Pueblo, CO - Vortech - VORTECH HOOSIER TIRE,REDLINE OIL - 1:47.811 / 1:57.025 / 1:48.143
4. #08 Jeff Loughead - Darien, IL - Vortech CR-04 - Hoosier, LLoughead DDS, JLoughead M - 1:49.958 / 1:50.774 / 1:48.523
5. #04 Steve Dreizler - Shell Knob, MO - Vortech 2002 - Competition Data Systems - 1:49.282 / 1:52.511 / 1:48.636
6. #15 Jeremy Grenier - Point Of Rocks, MD - Womer EV-3 - Ski Motorsports,Hoosier,Quicksilver - 1:49.409 / 1:49.476 / 1:48.638
7. #7 Lisa Noble - Manhattan, KS - Vortech - Littlefeat.net Hoosier Tire - 1:48.894 / 1:49.762 / 1:49.089
8. #05 Brian McCarthy - Sacramento, CA - BRM Anduril - BRM Engineering - 1:50.911 / 1:52.660 / 1:48.945
9. #37 Charlie Hearn - Houston, TX - Vortech 2004 - Hearn Contractors,Noble,LRE,Si - 1:50.007 / 1:50.629 / 1:48.983
10. #80 Stevan Davis - Powder Springs, GA - Racer's Wage - Goodyear, ButlerEngines, Valvo - 1:49.319 / 1:49.607 / 1:49.012
11. #77 Jim Kearney - Lancaster, PA - Protoform P3 - Invisible Glass-Hoosier-Protoform - 1:49.020 / 1:52.730 / 1:49.919
12. #03 Patrick Hughey - Lawrence, KS - Vortech 04 - UNIFORMS P.R.N. - 1:50.357 / 1:50.736 / 1:49.054
13. #27 Donald Schanche - Marco Island, FL - Vortech 2008 - Hoosier Noble Racing - 1:49.085 / 1:50.677 / 1:49.195
14. #17 Rick Shields - West Mifflin, PA - VDF-2 - ARS INC/VEESPORTS RACING/AUTOWERKS - 1:50.409 / 1:50.855 / 1:49.134
15. #57 Gary Blanarik - Baden, PA - Caracal SB - Sewickley Car Store Porsche Audi - 1:50.918 / 1:52.249 / 1:49.140
16. #87 Dennis Andrade - Brush Prairie, WA - Vortech D & D - D & D Racing - 1:49.802 / 1:49.639 / 1:49.483
17. #3 Bruce Livermore - Stillwater, MN - Mysterian X-M2 - Beebe/VeeTech/LRE/BRP/Hoosier - 1:50.667 / 1:50.915 / 1:49.606
18. #72 Roger Siebenaler - Williston, VT - Mysterian M-2 - Autowerks/Hoosier Tire/VSR - 1:49.692 / 1:50.383 / 1:49.648
19. #68 Ed Womer - Suitland, MD - Womer EV-3 - Autowerks,Goodyear,Womer Race Cars - 1:50.411 / 1:50.081 / 1:49.663
20. #5 Ron Whitston - Neenah, WI - Protoform P2 - Subway Sandwiches, Hoosier - 1:51.009 / 1:51.854 / 1:50.173
21. #11 Leroy Coppedge - The Dalles, OR - VDF 1 - Ron Chuck/Woodstock Racing - 1:50.801 / 1:56.508 / 1:50.222
22. #6 Phillip Holcomb - Longmont, CO - Citation 88V - Peak Performance - 1:50.743 / 1:52.719 / 1:50.344
23. #09 Stephen Saslow - Sammamish, WA - Tsunami MKIII - RIM/TCRMotorsports.com/BRM/SRRacing - 1:56.434 / 1:55.271 / 1:51.381
24. #06 Dean Curtis - East Stroudsburg, PA - Womer EV-3 - Womer/Dawe'sMotorsports/Goodyear - 1:52.542 / 1:52.164 / 1:51.517
25. #49 Randy Smith - Troy, ON - RTJ RS - VMS, Head to Hoof Equine Supp. - 1:55.697 / 1:52.486 / 1:51.521
26. #74 Mark Edwards - Los Angeles, CA - Glandring - Red Line/Hoosier - 1:53.942 / 1:52.514 / 1:51.531
27. #4 Mark Felsen - Denver, CO - Vortech FV - LYNX WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS - 1:52.122 / 1:54.512 / 1:51.739
28. #19 David Scaler - Flemington, NJ - Mysterian CM2 - Chassistools.com / Autowerks - 1:52.317 / 1:52.666 / 1:51.808
29. #97 Nick Maurus - Winnetka, IL - Citation 06V - Probe, Inc./Vee Tech/LRE - 1:53.523 / 1:54.832 / 1:52.166
30. #36 Dale Rader - Reading, PA - Protoform P-2.5 - Total Automotive Centers - 1:52.735 /1:52.987 /1:53.081
31. #10 Eddie Cadena - Houston, TX - Protoform P2 - Goodyear/Noble Racing - 1:53.628 / 1:54.618 / 1:53.005
32. #47 Paul Eric Taylor - Denver, CO - Mysterian M2 - 1:56.852 / 1:57.000 / 1:53.142
33. #99 Jon Tate - Arlington, TN - Protoform P2 - SONYA - 1:53.244 / 1:56.574 / No Time
34. #0 Michael Lauer - Cottonwd Fls, KS - Caracal C - 1:57.339 / 1:56.092 / 1:53.845
35. #39 Jeffrey Wilt - Dallas, TX - Caracal D - Tired Dog Racing - 2:02.097 / 1:56.886 / 1:54.598
36. #91 Warren Holcomb - Denver, CO - Mysterian M-2 - 1:55.874 / 1:57.158 / 1:54.635
37. #40 Donald Manthe - Santa Rosa, CA - FV Lynx - 1:54.814 / 1:54.945 / 1:54.884
38. #25 Charles Turner - Mission Viejo, CA - Protoform P3 - Turner Motorsports Marketing - 1:56.766/ No Time / 1:55.699

[wroché29]

Same live problems as last year. Continuous improvement? ...not so much.

[smsazzy]

EFCN Trackside Live: Paddock Update - Wednesday Pre-Qualifying
Saslow and his father have worked for the past three days getting the car back together and this will be an important run for him, as he needs to make it all happen right now.

Just to clarify, Brian McCarthy worked countless hours to help us get the car back together. I wouldn't be on the track if it wasn't for Brian. His lack of "zone" on Monday may be attributable to us finishing my car at 8pm on Sunday night.

If there is such a thing as Karma, Brian will win this whole thing!

[sweenrace]

Stephen,

it looks like you both got it together for the last qual...well done!

Ian

[Al Craighead]

EFCN Trackside: Formula Vee - Friday Race

The 2008 edition of the Formula Vee National Championship is now complete with the checkered flag waving here in Kansas. Getting a good launch at the waving of the green flag, Michael Varacins immediately moved out front, just ahead of Jeff Loughead and Brad Stout. While Varacins was initially able to pull out a sizeable advantage, once Stout found a way past Loughead, he immediately closed the gap on the lead. Within a few laps, Stout passed for lead in turn one. This commenced a see-saw battle for the lead between Stout and Varacins, with each driver taking turns out front. Behind the lead duo, the next best battle for position featured Bob Neumeister, Steve Dreizler and Loughead routinely trading third place. Just as it appeared the race was headed towards a last lap/last corner battle for the win, the yellow flags waved around the course for Steve Saslow spinning exiting the high-speed turn two and subsequently being hit by Eddie Cadena who rolled. As both drivers exited their cars, Stout captured his fifth career Runoffs gold medal behind the safety car. Varacins for a third straight year crossed the stripe in second, ahead of Dreizler, Neumeister and Loughead. With the win Stout ties Bill Noble for the most career FV National Championship titles.

2008 Formula Vee Runoffs race winner interview (1.8 Mb)

Race

1. Brad Stout -
2. Michael Varacins +0.940
3. Steve Dreizler +3.153
4. Bob Neumeister +5.480
5. Jeff Loughead +5.777
6. Charles Hearn +7.945
7. Stevan Davis +9.183
8. Roger Siebenaler +9.656
9. Rick Shields +10.157
10. Dennis Andrade +10.863
11. Phillip Holcomb +11.741
12. Ed Womer +12.720
13. Patrick Hughey +13.411
14. Bruce Livermore +14.441
15. James Kearney +15.072
16. Ron Whitston +15.964
17. Gary Blanarik +16.860
18. Lisa Noble +17.224
19. Leroy Coppedge +17.270
20. Dean Curtis +18.086
21. Randy Smith +18.885
22. Dale Rader +19.428
23. Mark Edwards +20.137
24. Paul Taylor +20.683
25. David Scaler +21.247
26. Mark Felsen +23.659
27. Nick Maurus +34.825
28. Michael Lauer +1 Lap
29. Charles Turner +1 Lap
30. Warren Holcomb +1 Lap
31. Don Manthe +1 Lap
32. Stephen Saslow +3 Laps
33. Eddie Cadena +3 Laps
34. Jeffrey Wilt +3 Laps
35. Don Schanche +4 Laps
36. Jeremy Grenier +9 Laps
37. Brian McCarthy +17 Laps
38. Jon Tate +17 Laps

Cheers,

[Al Craighead]

Evening race fans,

Having finally had the chance to walk the paddock after the race, managed to get some info.

Jeremy Grenier rapidly fell down the charts and eventually retired early due to his engine losing power.

Brian McCarthy reportedly retired with an engine problem.

Randy Smith battled overheating issues and a soft engine during the race.

Dean Curtis was hampered by a carburetor problem during the race, which killed power in all the right handed turns.

Eddie Cadena went to the hospital with a gash in his arm, but is expected to be released soon with some sitches. Unfortunately his car suffered major damage.

Steve Saslow's car reportedly suffered extensive damage due to his late race crash.

Cheers,

[hardingfv32-1]

Al

Thanks for the great coverage and info. Everyone on the board really appreciates it.

Brian

[Rob Howden]

Al

Thanks for the great coverage and info. Everyone on the board really appreciates it.

Brian

Thanks for the note, Brian. Our goal is to support this forum and its intended use and at the same time help elevate it with trackside race coverage and alot of great information on Formula Vee racing. This is out first Runoffs where we utilized this site and we'll do more next year. I had to leave Al by himself from Thursday on, and he did a great job flying solo for an event that really needs ttwo people to cover it correctly. We'll step up the coverage even more next year.

Also, I've already placed banner advertising for the site on both eFormulaCarNews.com and IndoorKartingNews.com, which will ideally help bring some eyes over here.

[FV80]

Steve Saslow's car reportedly suffered extensive damage due to his late race crash.

Stephen,
Are you recovered enough to give us a brief report on what happened and the damage to yours and Eddie's cars? That's REALLY the pits for both of you as I know that you both had previous crashes during the event. I also heard that Eddie required some stitches and reinjured his already hurt shoulder from the first crash - any injuries on your part?

Steve