SCCA – Heartbreak in Texas

Today, we were reminded of the dangers and risks inherent in all forms of motorsport, even autocross, in the most heartbreaking way. The Texas Region of the SCCA was holding a Solo Event in one of the parking lots at the Texas Motor Speedway just north of Fort Worth, TX. Kierstin Eaddy, a 14 year-old girl racing her Formula Junior kart suffered a fatal accident after finishing one of her runs. Speculation now is that it was a stuck throttle, but regardless, it is a reminder that the sport we…

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SCCA – Fun in the Sun at Heartland Park

This past weekend, the Kansas City and Kansas Regions of the SCCA held their first of three joint Solo Event weekends at Heartland Park Topeka. For the Kansas City Region, the Saturday/Sunday double-header were Events 6 and 7. If was the first two events of the year for the Kansas Region. Both the Saturday and Sunday courses were designed by Ron Williams and incorporated many of the elements from the 2013 SCCA Solo Nationals course. It was a very different experience to compete on 20 acres of wide-open asphalt for…

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SCCA – Photos from a Packed Weekend for the Kansas City Region

Tire Rack SCCA Starting Line This past weekend, the Kansas City Region of the SCCA hosted two fantastic events. On Saturday, the Tire Rack SCCA Starting Line driving school where students learned car control skills and autocross racing techniques from a variety of SCCA Solo National champions. It was a wet and wild day where students were thrown into the deep end to sink or swim, literally! Our SCCA Solo reporter, Jeremy Salenius was there to capture some of the action. Kansas City Region SCCA Solo Event #5 On Sunday,…

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SCCA – Mazda MX-5 Cup Joins the Double-Header Madness in Houston

Credit: Steve Bernstein

Double-Header Madness is in the air! The Verizon IndyCar Series and the Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires will share the NHK Stadium parking lot with the SCCA Pro’s Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by BF Goodrich, and every will run two! It’s a rare thing for the MX-5 Cup to join IndyCar for a race weekend, although it’s not unheard of, especially at Houston where the MX-5 Cup was a regular with CART and Champ Car. The championship points standings after four races thus far is in many ways…

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SCCA – KCRSCCA Solo Event #2 Wrap-Up

Sunday’s Solo Event #2 for the Kansas City Region of the Sports Car Club of America was a tale of two heats with weather affecting Heat 2 significantly more than Heat 1. Normally, there are three heats per event with total entries often topping 100 among all classes. Sunday’s forecast of thunderstorms, however, kept many of the less dedicated racers away. With fewer contenders, the event officials reduced the normal three-heat format to two heats so that each heat would have enough course workers to keep things running smoothly. The…

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Episode 226 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadOpenPaddock.net Podcast, Episode #226 – Tuesday, April 8th, 2014 Rally Dave Henderson – SP – Oregon Trail and Olympus – Cascadia I.R.C. Rally America on NBC Sports review Shaw’s GRC adventure GRC’s Indy Connection Barracuda Racing to GRC Andretti to promote GRC in DC Austin Cindric in GRC Lites Red Bull GRC Announces Sanctioning Agreement With USAC Reinvigorated Rhys Millen backed by Red Bull & Hyundai…again Also supporting new young talent Tyler Benson Ford / OMSE welcomes Red Bull & Bluebeam sponsors for their…

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SCCA – KCRSCCA Solo Event #1 in Photos

Well the Solo season is underway in the Kansas City Region of the SCCA, and it’s time for me to start the defense of my Street Touring FWD class championship. Some maintenance on Friday to replace the passenger side drive shaft on the Focus SVT didn’t go as planned thanks to a rounded-off nut. …and we were two nuts away from having the damned thing out, too. Oh, well, screw it. Popped the top on another beer, bolted it all together, and went to the pre-season testing session on Saturday…

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PR – Hometown hero Dean takes Mazda MX-5 Cup Round Two at Sebring

SEBRING, Fla. (March 14, 2014) – John Dean, of Sebring, Fla., scored an emotional victory in front of family, friends and supporters in Round Two of the SCCA Pro Racing Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by BFGoodrich Tires as part of the 62nd Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida. Kenton Koch, of Glendora, Calif., finished second, followed by Dean Copeland, of Bowie, Md. Dean bounced back to take the 0.542-second win over Koch, following a second place finish in Thursday’s Round One which was decided…

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PR – Koch tallies first Mazda MX-5 Cup win in Round One at Sebring

SEBRING, Fla. (March 13, 2014) – Rookie Kenton Koch, of Glendora, Calif., started his bid for the 2014 SCCA Pro Racing Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by BFGoodrich Tires Championship on the right foot, winning Round One at Sebring International Raceway as part of the 62nd Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida. John Dean, of Sebring, Fla., finished second, followed by Sebastian Landy, of Great Falls, Va., in third. Driving the No. 12 ALARA Racing/Mazda Motorsports Development MX-5, Koch was scored as the leader only…

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SCCA – Trans Am opens season with 50-plus car field at Sebring

Photo courtesy of Trans Am When the green flag waves for Trans Am competitors later today at Sebring International Raceway, a new and exciting chapter will begin for the 48-year-old series. For the first time since 1982, Trans Am will see a field with over 50 entries. This solid grid also appears to set a precedent for the 2014 season: John Clagett, President of The Trans Am Race Company, said next weekend’s race at Homestead has a similar number of participants. There were 51 entries for qualifying at Sebring, with…

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