Tire Rack SCCA Solo Nationals opening day sets stage for championships

The first of four days of competition that make up the 43rd Annual tire Rack® SCCA Solo National Championships Presented by Garmin VIRB saw drivers in 38 different class set times on the two championship courses at Lincoln Airpark, which has served as the home of the largest motorsports competition in the world since 2009.

The first two heats on each course were heavily affected by overnight thunderstorms that dumped over an inch of rain in the Lincoln area. Racers awoke to thoroughly wet conditions, which made grip non-existent on the concrete surface at the airpark. Drivers who utilized precise steering inputs and tempered throttle control were rewarded with fast times. Here is a summary of Tuesday's on-course action:Heat One on the East Course featured some big fields, big names and big competition. In F Street, 46 drivers took to the rain-soaked East Course for the opening runs of the week. Among those drivers was Brian Heitkotter, who was the pre-event favorite to walk away with the class title. Instead, Matt Ales leads the field with Heitkotter 0.755-second back when Ales caught the course at it's driest moment, and capitalized.Compared to the East Course, the West Course has a reputation of being the faster drying of the two. That held true once again in heat one as a technical course, with the addition of wet but drying conditions, made finding suitable grip difficult but doable. In B Street, Andrew Smedegard may have been the best example of how finding the right line paid huge dividends. Smedegard found 2.5 seconds on his third run, pushing him to second. That leaves him only 0.425-second behind class leader Alex Muresan, well within striking distance.Matthew Glagola and Randall Wilcox are in the midst of an extremely tight battle for supremacy in Super Street Modified. Glagola said he was happy with his second run, regardless of the still-slick conditions from the overnight rain. Wilcox is planning to come off his corner swinging on Wednesday by putting down an early fast lap to erase his scant 0.019-second deficit.Garrett Farmer is the story in D Street Prepared. Farmer, competing in his second autocross event ever, crowdfunded his entry fee after an invitation from his friend, and longtime SCCA Soloist, Mike Casino. As a college graduation gift to himself, Farmer modified his BMW 318 and is in the process of visiting each of the lower 48 states.CAM-Traditional provided some after-lunch drama, not only for its racing, but an on-track incident. Mary Pozzi sits atop the standings with a 0.109-second lead over Indianapolis 500 Champion Al Unser, Jr. Richard Trujillo held on to fourth in the class despite breaking his right-front wheel and needing a tow off course.Andrew Pallotta looked to have things locked down in E Street until Michael Ron threw down a flyer on his last lap of the East Course. That run allowed Ron to move to the top of the leaderboard by 0.323-second. As the reigning Solo Driver of the Year, Pallotta will try to pull some magic from his sleeve on Wednesday.C Street Prepared was the class of attrition. Two cars, including that of a title contender, suffered major mechanical issues. Billy Davis leads the class, but Reijo Silvennoinen is only 1.049 seconds back. However, the engine of the car shared by Silvennoinen and Tim Aro expired. That forced Silvennoinen to sit out his last run.Another trophy contender, Neal Tovsen, had issues with the steering rack of his car. The question becomes can these drivers get their machines back together in time to make the call for tomorrow's runs, and salvage their personal goals at Nationals?In Street Touring Sport Ladies, this day was a long time in the making for Nicole Wong as she took a 0.817-second lead into the overnight break. Throughout the development of her Honda Del Sol both team and driver struggled with confidence in the machinery and themselves. However, it all came together on Tuesday where Wong was consistently faster than her class rivals.To find additional information on the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships Presented by Garmin VIRB, including full results and links to live audio and video, visit SCCA.com/SoloNats.LINCOLN, Neb. - The top two runners in each of the 37 classes competing Tuesday and Wednesday in the 43rd Tire Rack® SCCA Solo National Championships presented by Garmin VIRB at Lincoln Airpark with class, leading driver, hometown and car; second place driver, hometown, car and gap behind first place. *Denotes Supplemental Class, will not crown a National Champion.B Street: Alex Muresan, San Francisco, Calif., Honda S2000; Andrew Smedegard, Stevens Point, Wis., Honda S2000, 0.425-second.B Street Ladies: Megan Contreras, Colorado Springs, Colo., Honda S2000; Suzanne Segal, Las Vegas, Chevrolet Corvette, 0.787-second.E Street: Michael Ron, Waukegan, Ill., Mazda Miata; Andrew Pallotta, Middleburg Heights, Ohio, Toyota MR2 Spyder, 0.323-second.E Street Ladies: Christina Peterson, Hillsborough, N.C., Toyota MR2 Spyder; Jennifer Bedell, Hillsborough, N.C., Toyota Spyder, 0.975-second.F Street: Matthew Ales, Redondo Beach, Calif., BMW M3 Coupe; Bryan Heitkotter, Fresno, Calif., BMW M3 Coupe, 0.755-second.F Street Ladies: Teddie Alexandrova, Fresno, Calif., BMW M3 Coupe; Lorien Feighner, Howell, Mich., Ford Mustang, 0.674-second.H Street: Greg Reno, Lawrence, Kan., MINI Cooper; Darren Seltzer, Oviedo, Fla., Ford Fiesta ST, 0.115-second.H Street Ladies: Holly Schwedler, Lakewood, Ohio, MINI Cooper; Melissa Britten, Fort Wayne, Ind., Toyota Corolla, 3.871 seconds.Super Street R: Grant Reeve, Sturbridge, Mass., Chevrolet Corvette; Matthew Braun, Northville, Mich., Porsche 911 GT3, 0.115-second.Super Street R Ladies: Shelly Monfort, Saratoga, Calif., Chevrolet Corvette; Learic Cramer, Columbia, Md., Porsche 911 GT3, 1.040 seconds.Street Touring Sport: Andrew Canak, Milwaukee, Wis., Mazda Miata; Jason Frank, Mount Pleasant, Wis., Honda CRX, 0.353-second.Street Touring Sport Ladies: Nicole Wong, Moorpark, Calif., Honda Del Sol; Hilary Anderson, Mount Pleasant, Wis., Honda CRX Si, 0.817-second.Super Street Prepared: Joe Tharpe, State Center, Iowa, Chevrolet Corvette; Courtney Cormier, Glen Allen, Va., Chevrolet Corvette, 0.594-second.Super Street Prepared Ladies: Donna Littlejohn, Columbia, S.C., Chevrolet Corvette; Amanda Minen, Tappahannock, Va., Chevrolet Corvette, 2.266 seconds.A Street Prepared: Aaron Miller, Pleasant Ridge, Mich., Mitsubishi Lancer; Geoff Clark, Monroe, Wash., Mitsubishi Lancer, 0.119-second.A Street Prepared Ladies: Catlin Snell, Monroe, Wash., Mitsubishi Lancer; Theresa Berry, Alta Loma, Calif., Mitsubishi Lancer, 1.477 seconds.B Street Prepared: Steve O'Blenes, Garden Grove, Calif., Mazda Miata; Frank Likert, Searcy, Ark., Mazda Miata, 0.376.B Street Prepared Ladies: Jodi Fordahl, Bremerton, Wash., Mazda Miata; Lauren Kane, Yorba Linda, Calif., Mazda Miata, 6.188.C Street Prepared: Billy Davis, New Haven, Conn., Mazda Miata; Reijo Silvennoinen, Calgary, Alberta, Can., Mazda Miata, 1.049 seconds.C Street Prepared Ladies: Tamra Hunt, Shelton, Conn., Mazda Miata; Katie Lacey, Apple Valley, Minn., Mazda Miata, 1.124 seconds.D Street Prepared: Eric Campbell, Canal Winchester, Ohio, BMW 330Ci; Mike Kuhn, Charlotte, N.C., Mazda RX-8, 0.210-second.E Street Prepared: Brian Peters, Litchfield Park, Ariz., Ford Mustang; Britt Dollmeyer, Carefree, Ariz., Ford Mustang, 1.023 seconds.E Street Prepared Ladies: Carol Kolk, White Lake, Mich., Ford Mustang; Laura Campbell, Paducah, Ky., Ford Mustang, 1.251 seconds.Super Street Modifed: Matthew Glagola, Atlanta, Ga., Lotus Elise; Randall Wilcox, Clarksville, Tenn., Mazda Miata, 0.019-second.*Super Street Modified Ladies: Tara Johns, Murfreesboro, Tenn., Mazda RX-7; Jojo Corrales-Kean, Wallingford, Conn., Nissan 240SX, 3.419 seconds.Street Modified FWD: Brian Kuehl, Durham, N.H., Honda CRX; Andy Hollis, Austin, Texas, Honda CRX, 1.445 seconds.Street Modified FWD Ladies: Kristell Janusz, Hunlock Creek, Pa., Honda Civic; Ginette Jordan, Terrell, N.C., Honda Civic, 1.092 seconds.A Modified: K.J. Christopher, Redondo Beach, Calif., Acme Special; William Goodale, Milford, Mass., Dragon, 5.573 seconds.F Modified: Jason Hobbs, St. Michael, Minn., NovaKar J9; Glen Barnhouse, Lolo, Mont., F200, 0.045-second.F Modified Ladies: Angela Barnhouse, Lolo, Mont., F500; Michelle Quinn, Trinity, Fla., KBS Mark VII, 1.893 seconds.D Prepared: Christopher Dorsey, Littleton, Colo., Toyota Corolla GTS; Ron Bauer, Seatac, Wash., Mazda MX-5, 0.824-second.E Prepared: Tim Smith, Atlanta, Ga., Honda Civic; Allen Kugler, Springtown, Pa., Honda CRX, 0.987-second.X Prepared: Fred Zust, Tempe, Ariz., Lotus Elise; Zachary Sober, Spring, Texas, Mazda RX-7, 1.169 seconds.*CAM-Traditional: Mary Pozzi, Salinas, Calif., Chevrolet Corvette; Al Unser, Jr., Albuquerque, N.M., Chevrolet Camaro, 0.109-second.*CAM-Sport: Scott Fraser, San Jose, Calif., Shelby Cobra 427; Clay Turner, Colorado Springs, Colo., Factory Five Roadster, 3.393 seconds.*CAM-Contemporary: Jacob Meuth, St. Peters, Mo., Ford Mustang; Christopher Carmenini, New York, Ford Mustang, 0.355-second.*Formula SAE: Wyatt Langston, Double Oak, Texas, FSAE; Erick Kohler, Haslet, Texas, UTA FSAE, 0.268-second.Image: Fred Zust wheels his Lotus Elise to the top of the X Prepared standings at the 2015 Tire Rack Solo National Championships Presented by Garmin VIRB at Lincoln Airpark.Credit: Rupert Berrington