Back in the Saddle! April 21, 2002
Well, at least it didn't snow. The weather had been sunny with temperatures in the 80s just a few days before, but the typical blustery cold start of the Glen Region's 2002 Solo season was not to be denied. We old timers (i.e., those with more than two years of Glen Region experience) were not fooled. April 21st may be well into spring, but sweatshirts, winter parkas, and gloves were everywhere; we were ready! Back in the saddle, again, indeed.
The seasonal opener was held at the Iroquois Foundry in Waverly, a site last visited in August of 2001. Although small, Course Chief Casey Creamer and the Gang (definitely NOT the Sunshine Gang) took full advantage of what the lot offered constructing a "double NASCAR," one counterclockwise track connected to and running within a larger counterclockwise track. The course for this event was rumored to have a good pace and flow, resulting in some big grins and even "jollies" as Casey puts it. Also to the Gang’s credit, the design resulted in very few off-courses and only a minimum amount of cone killing. In fact, I don't think that either Joe Kilmer or Mark Lockhart knocked over more than one cone in any run. That's got to be personal bests for those two.
Back in the saddle was an appropriate name for the event. Not only did it mark the start of the new season, but the continuation of some great traditions. First of all, the event saw the return of several of the Glen Region Dynasties: The Bacalleses, Bullocks, Hurds, Metcalfs, Pierces and Tyburskis were all there. Second, Rob Craig showed all that no matter how nice a car he drives, parts still fall off. In his defense Rob said, "At least it’s solid stuff now, not oil… that’s progress!" Finally, Thak Chaloemtiarana showed up with a "Number 2" (B.K. meal) even if he wasn't participating. Some traditions are just too time-honored to be baulked. Of the 48 participating drivers, 18 car classes were represented from H-Stock all the way up to A-Modified. Each driver was allowed 6 runs to show their stuff before final judgment.
In the end, it was Tom Mikulka continuing his "King o’ the PAX" tradition taking the fastest PAX (index) time of the day in his brand new 2002 black Subaru WRX and Brian Scotti taking the overall fastest raw time of the day in his road-race-prepped Van Diemen Formula 2000. There was a good novice turn out (even though only five registered as novices) and the class showed some promising talent, with the top novice driver Eben Bullock finishing ahead of more than half of the field. We may have seen old traditions remain, but new traditions appear to be developing. Scott Ostrowski handed off the office of "Chief of Tech Inspection" to Joe Kilmer.
This event was also the debut of a new course feature for the Glen Region: lane lines. Powdered lime lines were dispensed to help drivers' eyes look ahead to the appropriate cones and reduce the chances of getting lost due to the notorious Sea-of-Cones Syndrome. Driver’s comments were favorable and tweaks will be made as necessary to maximize the benefit.
It was also nice to see some of the regular F&C (Flagging and Communications) crew in attendance. Even though they did not drive, Peg and Joe Willer selflessly worked the start for all 5 run groups and both heats. Our new RE Barb Luther was even there to show her support. Finally, we'd like to extend a huge thanks to Tom Kisloski and the Iroquois Foundry for the site and all the volunteers who made this event a success. The season schedule and results are posted on the Glen Region website at www.glen-scca.org. Click on Solo II.
            Best PAX PAX
Num Class Driver Name, Club Yr Make Model RawTime (Index) IndxTime
1 AM JOHN FLORENCE, 67 BOBSEY FV 39.825 (1.000) 39.825
6 BM BRIAN SCOTTI, 96 VAN DIEMEN RF96 36.486 (.951) 34.698
46 BS SKIP TESTUT, 01 HONDA S2000 38.237 (.827) 31.622
15 BS KENT SAWYER, 97 BMW M3 39.318 (.827) 32.516
5 BS ROB CRAIG, 97 BMW M3 39.826 (.827) 32.936
2 BS ERIC NAVESTAD, 00 HONDA S2000 40.894 (.827) 33.819
6 BS TEDD HURD, 87 PORSCHE 944S 41.770 (.827) 34.544
9 BS ED HURD, 87 PORSCHE 944S 42.262 (.827) 34.951
22 CS BOB STOWITS, 94 MAZDA MIATA 42.642 (.812) 34.625
99 CS SHAUN KOELEMEYER, 74 PORSCHE 914 43.360 (.812) 35.208
77 CS RICH CHERNOSKY, 88 TOYOTA MR2 44.451 (.812) 36.094
16 CSP TIM SCHRAUTH, 93 HONDA CIVIC 41.340 (.842) 34.808
63 CSP ANDY KLINE, 80 MAZDA RX-7 42.291 (.842) 35.609
34 DS TOM MIKULKA, 02 SUBARU WRX 38.238 (.798) 30.514
13 DS MEREDITH METZLER, 02 SUBARU WRX 42.812 (.798) 34.164
12 DSP ANTHONY CORNISH, 99 VW PASSAT 40.068 (.820) 32.856
19 DSP STEVEN MOSHIER, 99 PLYMOUTH NEON 40.394 (.820) 33.123
9 DSP JOHN LOCKHART, 01 BMW 330CI 42.239 (.820) 34.636
17 DSP ANDY SULLIVAN, 91 MERCURY CAPRI 43.039 (.820) 35.292
99 DSP PATRICK SKINNER, 99 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE GT 45.324 (.820) 37.166
17 EP MARC SEELEY, 72 OPEL GT 45.474 (.868) 39.471
7 EP TOM GRAY, 72 OPEL GT 45.829 (.868) 39.780
71 EP RANDY KOSTER, 72 OPEL GT 46.763 (.868) 40.590
47 ES NILE HEERMANS, 90 NISSAN 240SX 40.953 (.802) 32.844
21 ESP MARK LOCKHART, 99 FORD MUSTANG 40.236 (.826) 33.235
1 ESP JOE KILMER, 99 FORD MUSTANG 41.044 (.826) 33.902
98 ESP LIN HURD, 98 FORD COBRA 41.229 (.826) 34.055
5 F125 BRIAN METCALF, 98 BIREL SHIFTER 40.486 (.932) 37.733
15 FJR MATHEW METCALF, 98 BIREL SHIFTER 42.991 (.815) 35.038
94 FS LARRY RHODE, 94 FORD MUSTANG 43.094 (.809) 34.863
15 FSP CASEY CREAMER, 65 MINI COOPER S 40.133 (.817) 32.789
97 GS MIKE TYBURSKI, 94 FORD PROBE 39.770 (.785) 31.219
197 GS JEFF TYBURSKI, 94 FORD PROBE 40.671 (.785) 31.927
9 GS LEE BACALLES, 98 DODGE NEON 42.556 (.785) 33.406
36 GS BRYAN CONKLIN, 00 SUBARU INPREZA RS 42.995 (.785) 33.751
96 GS ZOREN BULLOCK, 96 PONTIAC SUNFIRE 43.195 (.785) 33.908
6 GS TONY BACALLES, 98 DODGE NEON 44.372 (.785) 34.832
47 HS MIKE TAVES, 84 BMW 318I 40.985 (.779) 31.927
13 HS CAMERON BULLOCK, 00 FORD FOCUS 42.401 (.779) 33.030
30 HS EBEN BULLOCK, N 95 NISSAN ALTIMA 43.037 (.779) 33.526
72 HS PETER RANDALL, 99 HONDA CIVIC 44.287 (.779) 34.500
141 STS DEREK WYMAN, 98 DODGE NEON ACR 40.546 (.784) 31.788
43 STS TODD TOTMAN, 96 PLYMOUTH NEON SC 41.162 (.784) 32.271
2 STS MATHEW MILLER, 97 ACURA INTEGRA 41.604 (.784) 32.618
4 STS MATT LOCKHART, 00 NISSAN MAXIMA 42.717 (.784) 33.490
178 STX KEN PIERCE, 87 BMW 325IS 41.700 (.801) 33.402
78 STX JOHN PIERCE, 87 BMW 325IS 41.727 (.801) 33.423
278 STX GREG PIERCE, 87 BMW 325IS 43.014 (.801) 34.454