SoCal Spec E30 does “Redneck Roundy Round Racing!”

From the makers of “SoCal Spec E30 Le Mans Start”, we bring you, SoCal Spec E30 does “Redneck Roundy Round Racing!”

While sitting at dinner the Friday night before the event, someone at the table mentioned that we should rent the 1/4 mile paved oval and do some more racing after the end of our main event was over at 2:00PM. Shortly after the customary laughing and thinking it was a stupid idea, the subject was taken up with the head of the powers that be within the SoCal NASA region.  After the expected back and forth head shaking and chuckles, all that could be heard was what a stupid idea it was…than, “let’s do it!”

10 drivers would show up and try their hand at a circle track. After all, it’s not hard, turn left, go straight and turn left again, repeat until you are so dizzy you can’t see straight…so that’s exactly what we did. This was a “for fun” event with the groups participation being voluntary. On top of that, we decided to do something a little different to finish the race that none of them where aware of. The thought was since we are doing something that hasn’t been done, let’s kick this up a notch and bring it to the next level!

The plan was to stop the cars short of the finish line. Make them get out of the cars via a second green flag and then run across the finish line. Once over the finish line, they would be required to grab an “adult soda” with the first driver to finish his beverage being declared the race winner!

There you have it.  A new low in SoCal Spec E30!  A great time was had by not only the drivers, but the hundreds of spectators that came up to watch.

Willow Springs – Round Three of the Season

Saturdays morning warm-up and qualifying session showed that the new Toyo RR tires were much faster than its predecessor. The previous track record was held by David Reed at 1:39.794. Weather conditions at all tracks greatly control every car in every class’s ability to lay down a fast lap. Conditions must be just right to challenge a new record, much less break it. The weekends harsh winds and cooler temps made it even more of a challenge!

Buttonwillow – Round Two of the Season

Round 2 of the 2013 SoCal racing season sent the NASA Spec E30 racers to their home track at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. 15 teams showed up to do battle on track and all were pleasantly surprised to find almost perfect weather conditions. 75F and sunny all weekend long, coupled with the outstanding performance the new Toyo RR spec tires has been providing, would only mean one thing…a new track record lie in wait.

March – Auto Club Speedway – Season Opener

Anticipation for another exciting season with the SoCal NASA Spec E30 series kicks off at AAA Speedway. 12 teams trekked to Fontana, CA for the first race of the season where the new Toyo RR’s would be put through their paces for the first time under competition.  The expectations were for huge improvements over the previous spec tire. The standing track record was set at this same event last season by Allan Hauser, who laid down a blistering 02:03.041.

The SoCal group would also be welcoming 2 new drivers to the series. Mark Powell would join us from the Arizona region in his newly purchased E30. Ken Pearson, from the CMC series, would also be joining us piloting his freshly built #50 Spec E30 race car!

After the morning warm-up, it was obvious to the group that the new

Toyo RR works very well with the Spec E30. Some struggled with dialing in tire pressures, but they would soon get that figured out by days end.

SoCal Spec E30 Finale – Buttonwillow

Usually, November at Buttonwillow is the time to bring out the full treads in SoCal, but this weekend was different.  While the weather was much cooler than what the guys are used to at this track, the usual rain spared the group its normal guest appearance.   However, the season finale at Buttonwillow was nothing short of the knock-down, drag out fight to the finish that everyone anticipated.  All of the top position drivers would show up ready to battle it out for their final season points.

SoCal Spec E30 Round 6 – Buttonwillow

After 2 ½ months of being out of their race cars, the SoCal Spec E30 gang was itching to get going.  The SoCal also welcomed back Chris Donnelly who has been absent from the grid while refreshing his engine.   Some drivers took advantage of a Friday test day before the race weekend.  Others would simply use the warm up session Saturday morning to dust off their skills and get back into their groove. However, not only would they be looking for their mojo, they had to contend with a newly resurfaced section of the track approaching Cotton Corners.

July AAA Speedway SE30 Race Report

As is traditional, discussion of the weather must always be the first thing on the drivers mind since the weather has the most influence in the racing ahead. Once again, the SoCal NASA weather didn’t disappoint.  Clear skies, gentle breezes and temps in the low 80′s would make for near perfect racing conditions. Many minds were focused on breaking the existing track record of 2:03.216, which was set by Rius Billing, but nearly broken at the event held earlier this year in March.  However, this is the point in the season where the guys start to seriously contemplate their points. In fact, for many that was their biggest concern.