SCCA Northern Conference holds summer party at Lake Michigan

Moderate and nearly perfect weather provided the ideal environment for Saturday's SCCA Northern Conference Round Seven at GingerMan Raceway, just seven miles fro the western beaches of Lake Michigan.

The 10-turn course was repaved in June, giving the drivers a chance to experience brand new asphalt. Many commented on the surface, with positive reviews on grip and texture.

Spec Miata was the first race to hit the track after lunch. The 28-car pack delivered the same close racing that has come to be expected from the Sports Car Club of America's spec classes. The surprise came three groups later. Looking down the Group 4 grid, the 35 Touring, Super Touring, and B-Spec cars included 18 Mazda MX-5s. The result was racing that looked to belong in Group 1, not Group 4.The top four Touring 4 cars, all Mazda MX-5s, maintained the closest racing of the group through the entire race. Michael Novak started on the pole in his No. 17 Roush/Caldwell Race Prep MX-5. Voytek Burdzy started second in class in his No. 7 Advanced Autosports MX-5. The two raced nose-to-tail for the duration of the 30 minute race. Burdzy got his best opportunity to take the lead on lap 12.Coming out of turn two, Burdzy got a run on Novak, but lacked the power to take the line going into turn three. He fell back in behind Novak and was not able to reemerge for the remainder of the race. As a consolation, Burdzy did set a new track record for Touring 4 with a time of 1:43:835.Formula Vee remains a popular class in SCCA racing even after over 40 years of class history. Eleven Vees hit the track at GingerMan. Three-time National Champion Michael Varacins dominated the FV class in the No. 65 Speedsport/Veetech/Hoosier SpeedSport AM-5/Volkswagen, finishing over nine seconds ahead of Andrew Whitston's No. 9 Rocket Motors/Subway/Hoosier Protoform P2. The race for third was the closest racing of the group. The third through sixth place drivers were racing in a tight pack through the half way point in the race. By the finish, it was a tooth and nail battle between Jeff Loughead in his No. 8 Hoosier Tire/L.L. Loughead DDS Vortech CR04 and Andrew Thomas Abbott in his No. 25 Hoosier/Vector Racecars Vector AM-1. The interval for Loughead to clench the final position on the podium was a mere 0.122-second.Full results and interviews with the winners are available on SCCA.com.The Northern Conference returns to action on Sunday at GingerMan, with racing beginning at 8:30 a.m. EDT. Live timing and notes can be found at SCCA.com/live.Official winners from Saturday's SCCA Western Conference U.S. Majors Tour Round 11 at Portland International Raceway, with class, name, hometown and car.American Sedan: Andy McDermid, Howell, Mich., Ford MustangB-Spec: David Daughtery, Fortville, Ind., Honda FitE Production: Joe Moser, Wilmette, Ill., Honda PreludeF Production: Michael Sturm, Grafton, Wis., Mazda MiataH Production: Greg Gauper, Hubertus, Wis., Honda CivicFormula 500: James Weida, West Lafayette, Ind., Scorpion W1/RotaxFormula 1000: Tyler Theilmann, Kiel, Wis., JDR 012Formula Atlantic: Denny Sideri, Uniontown, Ohio, Griffith GR93Formula Continental: Thomas Gaffney, Birmingham, Mich., Reynard SF88/FordFormula Enterprises: Hanna Zeller, Granger, Ind., Formula Enterprises/FordFormula F: Tim Kautz, Geneva, Ill., Piper DF3D/HondaFormula Mazda: Thomas Peet, Haslett, Mich., Formula MazdaFormula Vee: Michael Varacins, Burlington, Wis., Speedsport AM-5/VolkswagenGT-1: Michael Lewis, Poway, Calif., Jaguar XKRGT-2: Joe Koenig, Glenview, Ill., BMW M3GT-3: Joe Kristensen, London, Ont., Acura RSXGT-Lite: Joel Hipp, Norwalk, Ohio, Austin MiniPrototype 1: John Gyann, Darien, Ill., Stohr WF1Prototype 2: Anders Graff, Kohler, Wis., Prince LSRSuper Touring Under: Charles Tobel, New Hudson, Mich., Pontiac SolsticeSpec Miata: Justin Hille, Canfield, Ohio, Mazda MiataSpec Racer Ford Gen 3: Scott Rettich, Columbus, Ohio, Spec Racer FordSpec Racer Ford: Adam Gottlieb, Wilmette, Ill., Spec Racer FordTouring 1: John Buttermore, Wolverine Lake, Mich., Chevrolet CorvetteTouring 2: Tim Kezman, Franksville, Wis., Porsche GT3Touring 3: Patrick Womack, Burr Ridge, Ill., BMW Z4Touring 4: Michael Novak, Highland, Mich., Mazda MX-5Photo: Charles McCormick leads a tight group of Formula Vees during a battle for the third position in class.Credit: Nate Vestal, RedLinePhoto.com