FUMES

September 23, 2009

The SCCA returns home to "America's National Park of Speed."

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

(Posted 9/21, 11:30am) Detroit. A few years ago I wrote a column that resonated and reverberated throughout the world of American amateur sports car racing when I suggested that it was time for the SCCA's National Championship Runoffs to be held on the great road racing circuits in the U.S. rather than at the track in Topeka, which was considered "geographically expedient" at the time. Logistically more convenient or not, it was clear that Topeka - earnest and well-meaning as it could be - would never hold a candle to Watkins Glen, Laguna Seca, Road Atlanta or Road America, or even some of the other newer circuits recently built. And as I argued in that column, if you're going to test the mettle of the "best of the best" of American amateur road racers in order to bestow national driving championships in the broad spectrum of SCCA's racing classifications, then you should do it on the greatest circuits available in the country.

And lo and behold, when it was announced one year ago that this year's National Championships would be held at the great Road America, in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, for the first time you could almost hear the cheers coming from amateur road racers throughout the land.

The fact that Road America has retained the original circuit layout that visionary developer Clif Tufte first laid out by walking through a 640-acre piece of land in the Kettle Moraine country just down the road from Elkhart Lake is simply remarkable given the nanosecond attention span of today's society. And the village of Elkhart Lake's involvement with the beginnings of road racing in this country has been well-documented.

The village of Elkhart Lake - along with the Chicago Region of the SCCA - organized the first road race through its streets way back in 1950. Various county roads were used in the surrounding countryside to chart a circuit with a start-finish line in the heart of downtown Elkhart Lake. The first circuit was 3.3 miles long, but a reconfigured circuit 6.5 miles in length was used in 1951 and 1952. (The original course was registered on the National Register of Historic Places on February 17, 2006, and you can actually drive the old circuit today guided by signs that have been installed marking key locations on the course.)

When accidents - some fatal - occurred in other road races in places such as Watkins Glen and Pebble Beach in sports car racing's early heyday, government pressure was applied to discourage road racing on public streets and byways. It was then that Clif Tufte - along with some key initial individual shareholders - decided to build a permanent road racing facility. Little did they know back then that Road America would today be considered the greatest road racing circuit in America, and a perennial favorite of racing drivers of all stripes, nationally and internationally.

Road America held its first event - an SCCA National - on September 10-11, 1955 - and it has held races continuously since then with SCCA, USAC, Can-Am, Trans-Am, IMSA, CART, Champ Car, ALMS and AMA race weekends being staged. Road America's vintage weekend in July is considered to be second only to the Monterey Historics in prestige. And a trivia note? The very first officially-sanctioned NASCAR road race was held at Road America, in 1956.  

So here we are. After much hand-wringing and soul-searching, the SCCA will again stage its National Championship Week at a properly challenging, world-class road racing facility. Staging the Runoffs at Road America is significant for the sport, the SCCA and for the 600+ competitors gathering in "America's National Park of Speed."

Even though racers started arriving at the bucolic surroundings in tiny Elkhart Lake at the end of last week, the championship races are slated to begin Friday and run through Sunday at the majestic 4.048-mile, 14-turn circuit.

Twenty-four class champions will be crowned this weekend, and while I can safely say some hearts are sure to be broken, I'm also sure that some lifelong dreams will be fulfilled, such is the nature of the sport and the level of competitiveness at the SCCA's premier amateur event. 

But regardless of the results, I'm quite certain the memories will live on forever.

Publisher's Note: Tim Gaffney at speed at Mid-Ohio this summer in his '88 Reynard SF88 Formula Continental. Tim is an executive with AMCI, quite an accomplished racer and a good friend of The Autoextremist. Tim has extensive racing experience including a stint in Japan in Formula Nissan and F3000 ('93 - '94), SCCA SPEED World Challenge ('01), as a Team Lexus factory driver in the Grand-Am Cup ('01 - '03), a Porsche GT3R in Grand Am ('05), a Banner Racing Corvette in Grand Am Rolex ('06), and in various SCCA and vintage racing events. The aim for our little racing effort this season was to have Tim qualify for the SCCA Runoffs - which he did - finishing 4th in the Great Lakes Region (one point out of third) in his "vintage" Reynard so we could get to Road America - "America's National Park of Speed" - for the championship event.  And with fresh tires and a new engine ready to go, hope springs eternal for this weekend! - PMD 

(Photo of one of two AE billboards at Road America by C. Thomas, longtime Autoextremist reader)

Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD

 (Courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives)
Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, August 20, 1983. The No. 6 Zakspeed Ford Mustang GTP driven by Bobby Rahal/Geoff Brabham (Rahal up) in the pits during practice for the Pabst 500 at Road America. The duo would finish 3rd the next day in the 115-lap, 460-mile race behind winning teammates Klaus Ludwig/Tim Coconis in the No. 06 Zakspeed Ford Mustang GTP and the No. 83 Electramotive Datsun 280ZX Turbo driven by Tony Adamowicz/Don Devendorf.

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" hosted by Autoline Detroit's John McElroy, with Peter De Lorenzo and friends this Thursday evening, September 24, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.

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