January 2021
It is that time of the year again. The 2021 San Francisco Region Competition Licensing School will be held on February 12th – 14th. Each year this event provides driving enthusiasts the opportunity to develop their skills and become a full-fledged club racer. The San Francisco Region school is the only club run school in California that features three full days of track time with three race events to conclude the school. There are many good driver schools; however, the SFR school sets itself apart from the rest by teaching its students not just how to drive fast, but real racecraft.
Read more about it in the January 2021 issue of The Wheel!
It is that time of the year again. The 2021 San Francisco Region Competition Licensing School will be held on February 12th – 14th. Each year this event provides driving enthusiasts the opportunity to develop their skills and become a full-fledged club racer. The San Francisco Region school is the only club run school in […]
December 2020
I have said it more times than I can remember the best way to make autocrossing more fun is by making it longer. Every year SCCA Sacramento hosts its annual Enduro autocross. The format for the weekend consists of Saturday being a practice day. Each driver gets three tries at a two lap course. Clocks are running, but scores are not tallied. Sunday every driver gets to run the same course, but it’s one shot, five lap winner take all run . If you DNF, hit a cone, get lost, etc well enjoy the rest of your laps because you’re done. Trophies are awarded to the first place winners only. Every year Doug Hubbard has his normal autocross speech about cones and safety, but at the enduro he always reminds drivers that you have to remember to breathe. You won’t be able to hold your breath for the five laps. It has to be one of the funnest autocrosses all year. Car count was healthy at 93 drivers for the event. The event was held at Thunderhill Park.
Read more in the December 2020 issue of the Wheel
I have said it more times than I can remember the best way to make autocrossing more fun is by making it longer. Every year SCCA Sacramento hosts its annual Enduro autocross. The format for the weekend consists of Saturday being a practice day. Each driver gets three tries at a two lap course. Clocks […]
November 2020
The last race of the 2020 season was the McCarthy Memorial Races at Thunderhill Raceway, a three-day, three-race weekend. Two races were slated for the three-mile course and the Sunday races were scheduled for the five-mile course. Weather was a concern for the weekend, with forecast heat and wind. It was an ambitious schedule, made all the more challenging due to the lean volunteer Worker crews and the strict pandemic protocols. All the Workers were able to come in for a grab and go lunch, with plenty of places to spread out to eat outdoors.
Read more in the November 2020 issue of the Wheel!
The last race of the 2020 season was the McCarthy Memorial Races at Thunderhill Raceway, a three-day, three-race weekend. Two races were slated for the three-mile course and the Sunday races were scheduled for the five-mile course. Weather was a concern for the weekend, with forecast heat and wind. It was an ambitious schedule, made […]
October 2020
Thirteen Workers and 31 Drivers from Northern California went to the 2020 SCCA National Runoffs at Road America in Wisconsin. The weather was mostly chilly but sunny fall weather, which led to stunning displays of fall foliage. There was one rainy, messy test day on Saturday, after which it was dry weather throughout the event.
Road America is a 640- acre facility in Wisconsin farm country, with a 14-turn, 4.048-mile circuit. This year marks the fifth time the Runoffs have been held at this track.
There were three days of testing, each day with more cars at a cheaper fee.
Read more in the October 2020 issue of the Wheel!
Thirteen Workers and 31 Drivers from Northern California went to the 2020 SCCA National Runoffs at Road America in Wisconsin. The weather was mostly chilly but sunny fall weather, which led to stunning displays of fall foliage. There was one rainy, messy test day on Saturday, after which it was dry weather throughout the event. […]
September 2020
Sac Solo Round 11
Well the car count just keeps getting bigger and bigger at the SCCA Sacramento autocross events hosted at Thunderhill. I guess you just can’t beat a good site, good courses and friendly executive board. There were 90 drivers that showed up to race, which is a great turn out. All covid-19 safety measures were in place to make sure we have a safe place to race.
It is really amazing to see the Street classes running, so deep. The
average of all the Street Classes was five drivers. The smallest was E-Street with one driver and the most was Super Street with ten drivers. It is also pretty cool to see new life breathed into H-Street with the likes of Honda Fits, Fiats and Mini Coopers battling it out on the pavement.
Read more in the September Edition of The Wheel —->
Sac Solo Round 11 Well the car count just keeps getting bigger and bigger at the SCCA Sacramento autocross events hosted at Thunderhill. I guess you just can’t beat a good site, good courses and friendly executive board. There were 90 drivers that showed up to race, which is a great turn out. All covid-19 […]
August 2020
Road Racing Regionals 11 & 12
By Lynne Huntting and Blake Tatum
SFR’s Regionals 11 & 12 Driver Re-Education Event at WeatherTech Raceway was again conducted under the strict guidelines and protocols of Monterey County and the racetrack. We couldn’t call it a race and we were under a no-social media mandate. Such is life under Covid 19 and State Watch Lists. But we were able to have our weekend with more than 160 cars. It was nice to have a fuller F&C crew than seen of late, but we could have used more workers on other crews. However, everyone pitched in, crews cross-pollinated and we got the job done.
Two of our newer workers got Checkered Flags from race car drivers. Fred Lind/No.07 Ford Lightning truck gave his to Bud Tanner, who worked two days on Grid and filled in Sunday on Turn 7, when someone was ill. It was the first weekend for Jonathan Scher, who worked Emergency and he also received a Checkered Flag.
During the weekend, five new track records were set in Race One and three in Race Two. The drivers mentioned they missed having their families and friends there to watch, work and celebrate with them.
Read more in the August Edition of The Wheel —->
Road Racing Regionals 11 & 12 By Lynne Huntting and Blake Tatum SFR’s Regionals 11 & 12 Driver Re-Education Event at WeatherTech Raceway was again conducted under the strict guidelines and protocols of Monterey County and the racetrack. We couldn’t call it a race and we were under a no-social media mandate. Such is life […]
July 2020
Fresno Chapter Gives Back to the Community
By Yang Moua
On the weekend of June 13th and 14th, after more than three months of no autocross due to COVID-19, the Fresno Chapter was approved to continue the 2020 race season with events 4 & 5. The coronavirus guidelines were in place and each event was limited to 50 drivers but that did not stop the smiling faces underneath each driver’s mask. Everyone was happy to be racing again. The race weekend wasa special one, not only was it one of the first racing event approved tocontinue during the COVID period, the Fresno Chapter also donated over $4,000 to the Central California Food Bank. The CEO from the Central California Food Bank was on site Sunday morning to received the check. The donation will help provide over 28,000 meals for people in need.
Read more in the July Edition of The Wheel —->
Fresno Chapter Gives Back to the Community By Yang Moua On the weekend of June 13th and 14th, after more than three months of no autocross due to COVID-19, the Fresno Chapter was approved to continue the 2020 race season with events 4 & 5. The coronavirus guidelines were in place and each event was […]
June 2020
No Slowing for the Cone Zone The McKee Autocross Family
By Blake Tatum
If I could give you a roadmap that would lead you down a path where your teenage kids enjoy your company and look forward to spending weekends with you would you follow it? Of course you would, as parents there is nothing more precious than the time we spend with our kids. The McKee family has such a roadmap and it leads to an empty parking lot.
The McKee’s are a racing family. They consist of husband Andy, wife Teresa, and the two daughters Alana (13) and Erika (15). They spend about every other weekend 75% of the year traveling, pulling their trailer to Autocross events. Although the SCCA ProSolo is their favorite type of event, they attend local San Francisco Region events, National Events, and American Autocross Series events. Their vehicle of choice is a highly modified 1993 Mazda RX7 and a 2003 Emmick Kart. They have 14 national titles to their name (Andy 10, Teresa 4), and a podium finish for the oldest daughter at Nationals. In addition to the national titles they have a lifetime of memories that no amount of money can buy.
Read More in the June Edition of The Wheel —->
No Slowing for the Cone Zone The McKee Autocross Family By Blake Tatum If I could give you a roadmap that would lead you down a path where your teenage kids enjoy your company and look forward to spending weekends with you would you follow it? Of course you would, as parents there is nothing more […]
May 2020
The Woolley Brothers and Dad Race Team Story
Ken “Dad” Woolley:
When I was 9, my friend took me to the go-kart track in West Berkley. Briggs and Stratton, bumper all around, you know, little kidney-shaped track with tire walls on both sides. It was wonderful. Full throttle out of the turns, tires slipping and grabbing, next to the tire wall, tires flying by… zooming! I was hooked.
Seven years later, when I got my first car, I soon realized, with the help of everyone that would ride with me, that I had an odd compulsive driving perversion. I would speed up in the turns, instead of slowing down. I couldn’t help it. Also, I seemed to be cursed… to always be the last one in a long line of cars. Why me?
And then the NMSL. The National Mandatory Speed Limit, 55mph max! Oh my goodness.
Read More in the May Edition of The Wheel —->
The Woolley Brothers and Dad Race Team Story Ken “Dad” Woolley: When I was 9, my friend took me to the go-kart track in West Berkley. Briggs and Stratton, bumper all around, you know, little kidney-shaped track with tire walls on both sides. It was wonderful. Full throttle out of the turns, tires slipping and […]
April 2020
By Blake Tatum, Photos by Jonathan Johnson
The 2020 racing season is only two races old and is really taking a licking. Regional Races 3 & 4 had promise written all over it as late as the Tuesday before the race. Entries would be bolstered by the addition of World Speed Formula Car Challenge, Brent Morgan’s Formula Pro F3 and F4 USA Western Championship, and Peter West’s Pacific F2000 series.
After over a month of bright sunny 70-degree weather, the forecast for the weekend was heavy rain. Which is always a buzz kill when it comes to entries. But the rain was the least of the concerns. Three days before the weekend the nation basically went on shut down because of the Covid-19 virus.
Basically any gathering in the United States was cancelled; the only reason the race was not cancelled was because SCCA races were considered participant driven events and not gatherings for spectators. To drive home that idea, track officials posted signs on the drive up to the track entrance that said spectators would prohibited.
By the time the first green flag flew for the weekend the clouds had mostly cleared and the sun was bright and shiny. The only problem was with the clouds gone, came a brisk wind out of the south. It is days like this that the three windmills in the middle of the track earn their keep. Even though the temperature read 59 degrees, it felt like 40 degrees.
Read More in the April Edition of The Wheel —->
By Blake Tatum, Photos by Jonathan Johnson The 2020 racing season is only two races old and is really taking a licking. Regional Races 3 & 4 had promise written all over it as late as the Tuesday before the race. Entries would be bolstered by the addition of World Speed Formula Car Challenge, Brent Morgan’s […]
March 2020
2020 Competition Licensing School
By Lynne Huntting
Thirty-four students received their Novice Permits at the 2020 SFR Competition Licensing School, after a busy three-day weekend at Thunderhill Raceway Park. It was a smaller class this year, but there was lots of quality. The educational duties were again handled by Kevin Rogers as overall Chief Instructor, with three veteran Group Leaders. The combined years of teaching experience was amazing. Returning instructors were supplemented by some new instructors, giving the school a good Instructor-to-Student ratio, with lots of professionalism and personal attention, and in some cases, one on one experiences. With the overall smaller enrollment, there were fewer passing challenges and practicing of the teaching concepts. So, a schedule change was approved which combined the two closed wheel groups for a practice session and one of their three races. One unintended consequence was that Saturday and Sunday’s schedule was shortened. No complaints there!
Read More in the March Edition of The Wheel —->
2020 Competition Licensing School By Lynne Huntting Thirty-four students received their Novice Permits at the 2020 SFR Competition Licensing School, after a busy three-day weekend at Thunderhill Raceway Park. It was a smaller class this year, but there was lots of quality. The educational duties were again handled by Kevin Rogers as overall Chief Instructor, […]
February 2020
The Formula F Resurgence
By Norm Marshall and Eric Little / Photos by Richard Gordon
Formula Fords are often referred to as mini F1 cars or little IndyCars, e.g. real race cars that react similarly to their big brothers. Iconic racers such as Mario & Michael Andretti and Aryton Senna are among hundreds of famous race drivers that started out in, or have raced Formula Fords.
Being the oldest and foremost road racing sanctioning body in America, SCCA has run and sanctioned more FF races than all other sanctioning bodies combined. 2019 marked the 50th anniversary of Formula Ford as an SCCA class.
Read More in the February Edition of The Wheel —->
The Formula F Resurgence By Norm Marshall and Eric Little / Photos by Richard Gordon Formula Fords are often referred to as mini F1 cars or little IndyCars, e.g. real race cars that react similarly to their big brothers. Iconic racers such as Mario & Michael Andretti and Aryton Senna are among hundreds of famous […]