Final 2014 Competition Update

[blindsidefive0]

The 2014 is coming to a head at the 2014 COMSCC Season Finale at NHMS-South Oval (Saturaday/Sunday, October 11/12). A lot is still up for grabs, including Driver Champion, 5 Class Championships, countless Season Podium Positions, and Season Awards. Official registration closed yesterday for NHMS, but with the standard bribe amount for Mark Swinehart (Registrar) and Peter Fontana (Treasurer), you might just be able to sign-up and save your season! Registration site: https://comscc.carclubreg.com/comscc/Default.aspx

Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park - 2 Wrap-up:
The Time Trial was a nasty one weather wise - a morning mist was mostly driven off by the first couple TT run groups, but then a light rain ended up washing out several competitors late in the day, reminding us that literally anything can happen at a COMSCC Time Trial.

- Starting with T30, class leaders Stephen Hosker and John Riopel fell victim to the weather while Stephen "Baller" Cohen won his first ever COMSCC TT
- T40 was once again the quietest nail-biter of a battle - Derek Tangard and Scott Rosnick were tied in the standings entering the event; Tangard dropped a 1:25.2 on his first lap (new track record), edging out Rosnick by 2 tenths while newly licensed Julie Wasilko took 3rd place ahead of Mark Swinehart and Rebecca Harvey who tied for 4th
- Back in New England, Jeff Wasilko scored a much needed T50 victory to stay within striking distance of class leader Chad Fox; Wasilko's new track record of 1:21.7 will likely become the new standard in T50 at TSMP
- Tom Greco won his first ever COMSCC TT in T60; Howard Roundy was on a wet track, but managed 2nd place
- In T70, Nick Fontana got to run on a mostly dry track, setting a new lap record of 1:18.9 and stealing FTD; Stephen Tise Jr. ran a solid TT to grab 2nd place with a 1:20.7
- Mario Fallas re-joined us for a TT, but the weather caused a DQ; another first timer, Anthony Deyoe, drove his GTO to a T80 victory
- Laura Fleming crushed her old track record with a 1:20.4, taking the win in T90; Darius Trinka was very fast in practice even though his car is several points short of the T90 cutoff, but he ended up running on a soaked track
- Bob Cairns and Dan Baldwin went head-to-head in T100, both on less than perfect surfaces, but Cairns ended up getting the T100 win
- Bill Hosselbarth completed a soaking TT to take Super D
- Nick Leung proved that it pays to show up - running without 3rd gear on a 3rd gear track, Leung was able to complete the TT for 11 points in Super C
- Same story in Super B with Cassie Johnston; she ran unopposed in a Miata to score championship points in Super B
- 4 awesome cars were slowed down by the rain in Super A, but Charles "Butch" King kept his truck mostly straight for the win
- Finally in Super Unlimited, Dan Darcy got the win in his beautiful yellow Lotus Cup-ish car by registering a single TT lap

Class Standings Update:
T30 - Stephen Hosker is your leader, but there is a 4-way battle for 2nd place with Barry Gammon (2nd), John Riopel (T-3rd), Peter Perrault (T-3rd), and Micah Spielvogel (4th) within 10 points of each other

T40 - Derek Tangard has a 2 point lead over Scott Rosnick, although the winner of NHMS-4 would own the tiebreaker for the Class Championship; 6 points separate 3 competitors for 3rd place, including Mark Swinehart and Julie Wasilko (tied for 3rd) and Rebecca Harvey (5th). Of note - does anyone remember when Derek Tangard borrowed a car at NHMS-1, finishing in 5th place? It seemed inconsequential at the time, like an early April MLB game, but Derek earned 3 points which are proving to be huge heading into the Season Finale.

T50 - Chad Fox controls his own destiny and can guarantee the Class Championship with a 1st or 2nd place finish; Jeff Wasilko is only 2 points behind Fox with the dropped event rules, but he needs a win and 3rd or worse by Fox to take the class (Fox would own a 3rd-place tiebreaker if he were to place 2nd); 2012 and 2013 Driver Champion Dave Wittmer will be dusting off his car (dying motor) to defend a podium class finish against Dave Lemoine

T60 - Howard Roundy can rest, but Sam Webster (2nd) cannot with Sarah Fuchswanz (3rd) and Roe Cole (4th) within striking distance

T70 - Nick Fontana has the class wrapped up, but again 2nd place is up for grabs between Stephen Tise Jr. (2nd), Lou Milinazzo (3rd), DJ McArdle (4th), and Peter Rokel (5th)

T80 - A class no one has yet to own, Nick Derosa and Mick Demopolous still share the lead (Derosa currently holds the tiebreaker), but another 7 drivers (van Gelder, Croteau, Barra, Preston, Kim, Nirenberg, and Deyoe) have a mathematical shot at the class

T90 - She needed the win at Thompson to do it, but Laura Fleming will be the class champion; Bob Brooks will finish a solid season in a highly respectable 2nd place

T100 - Bob Cairns needs to phone a friend to run against him in T100 for his class lead to result in an official COMSCC Class Championship; any takers?

Super D - With COMSCC President John Spain touring the country, Greg Hosselbarth could very well win the class (and tiebreaker) over Spain for the Super D Class Championship

Super C - Chief Instructor Will Martins can hang out in the stands and still win the class, but Nick Leung has made a huge surge late in the season (including a gutsy TSMP-2 TT with only 2nd/4th gear) to work himself to 2nd place, 7 points ahead of 3rd place Gordon Andrade with 1 event to go

Super B - Again, Cassie Johnston could have packed it up in the rain at Thompson, but her 11 point win has given her a 10-point lead over Marc Fuchswanz

Super A - Charles "Butch" King owns the class, but yet again 2nd place is still open with Mike Fuchswanz (T-2nd), Dana Johnston (T-2nd), and Bill McMahon (4th) within 5 points of each other

Super Unlimited - Dan Darcy is the leader, but he's going to need some help to make the Class Championship official; anyone have spare Formula cars to run at NHMS?

Driver Champion:
After getting washed out at TSMP-2, Stephen Hosker is out of contention for Driver Champion, leaving 4 competitors in the hunt:

1) Chad Fox - 81.43
2) Bob Cairns - 79.00
3) Laura Fleming - 78.00
4) Jeff Wasilko - 77.43

NHMS-South Oval Season Finale - What to Watch For:
Forget October baseball or the Chase for the Cup... NHMS-4 is shaping up to be the most exciting season finale in recent memory. Here is just a preview:

- In summary, there is more on the line at NHMS-4 than any other Season Finale in years - between Driver Champion, Class Championships and Podium Positions, Season Awards, and even individual Lap Records, NHMS-4 is worth attending even if just to watch the action!
- Driver Champion - it's a special season when 4 competitors are within 4 points of Overall Driver champion heading into the final event. Fox, Cairns, Fleming, and Wasilko have completed a combined 28 TT's this year, and their season-long effort has resulted in an all-or-nothing final event
- Class Championships - there is not a single COMSCC class where both 1st and 2nd place are decided. 5 classes (SB, SD, T80, T50, T40) will come down to NHMS-South Oval for the Class Championship. All other classes have a potential battle for 2nd place, in some cases involving 4 or more competitors.
- Season Awards - While Howard Roundy is a shoe-in for the British Cup, Corvette duo Bob Cairns and Laura Fleming are 1 point apart for the American Iron Award, and it looks like Jeff Wasilko should hang on for the Miata Cup (tiara). Several qualitative awards have yet to be voted on (e.g. Japanese Cup, Most Improved, etc.), but NHMS-South Oval is the last chance for competitors to make a final impression prior to voting.
- Lap Records - with the new classing system, only 1 TT has been run at South Oval, and it was done with relatively hot and slow conditions earlier this season. In terms of weather, if this NHMS event is anything like last year, look to see lap records up to ~1.5-2s faster than what's already in the books...just remember that your competitors will be running faster as well!
- The Oval - it's a real privilege and treat that COMSCC gets to run the South Oval at NHMS. It has been said that the South Oval is one of the biggest, baddest, scariest, and most challenging turns on the entire COMSCC schedule.
- Camaraderie - it's tough to explain, but the Season Finale is always a fun event in the paddock and garage; this is not your typical mid-season NHMS event
- Foliage - why not come up to the NH Lakes Region to enjoy some beautiful mid-October leaf peeping...perhaps while cresting the hill at T8 near triple digit speeds with some serious slip angle...

I don't even have to say it - if you aren't going you must be missing a couple spark plugs. Sign-up now, and we'll see you in Loudon: https://comscc.carclubreg.com/comscc/Default.aspx

[blazer178]

Nick thanks for the great write up and a nice job at Thompson

[djsteviec]

Thanks Nick!

I will be climbing the ranks next season, so Steve and John- I'm coming for ya!

[MiataSteve]

Damm rain! Ok Steve, aka Baller...bring it on!

[Bobc]

Nick, nice work both here and at Thompson.
Bob

[hroundy]

I love these write ups. I can't wait for NHMS. Thanks Nick.