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For 2009, SCCA has moved the Runoffs to the venerable Road America circuit in Elkhart Lake, WI. The 4.0 mile layout is the quintessential power track and may have discouraged some Nissan competitors from attending. But look for tubeframe 350Z racers like Jim Goughary (GT2) and John Black (GT3) to be at, or near the top in their classes.
In Touring 2, there are only four Nissan competitors entered. Interestingly enough, they each hail from distinctly different parts of the country. John Baker is from Portland, OR and campaigns a Daytona Blue Z with backing from Jordan Schrader Ramis PC. Brian Kleeman is from the other side of the continent and was featured in last years SPEED broadcast when his very quick Inqusiqr3.com-backed red/black Z had a dramatic shunt (ironically with another 350Z) and went hard into a tire wall.
Our two Nissan Sport 350Zs will feature veteran racers--Rick Kulach (reigning SW Div T2 champ) from Dallas, TX and (me) David Muramoto, from Aurora, CO--in the cars we debuted last year. Another year of development means we've examined the SCCA rulebook closely and taken advantage of the update/backdate rule that T2 allows. In summary, Z's classified from '03-08 may use any of the parts homologated with those models. Kulach will be running full 350Z NISMO bodywork and I'll be running a VQ35HR swap.
Whether this helps us stay competitive remains to be seen. With turbo cars and V-8s exploiting those long straights, the third race on Friday (10:30 am) looks to be a tough nut to crack. Throw in the chance of rain all next week for qualifying and the crystal ball begins to fade...
Very sorry that Rob Hines won't be at the Runoffs this year. I heard his Z car had a bad shunt earlier in the season, but thought he was building another one.
He is David car wasn't ready in time to get the testing/races in. I don't think he feels the 350Z has much of a shot at Road America. It looks like I may have work issues foil my plans to make the long drive to the Runoffs. Client coming in this week. I would love to see Ricks car with the Nismo bodywork racing. Does he have an HR motor too? With the HR motor and bodywork the car will be quicker but I'm not sure that Road America is the track for the Z. Now if the Runoffs were at VIR.......
Mark-Thanks for the additional info on Rob. He's been the leading T2 Z driver for the past three Runoffs, hands down. We'll try to fill his big shoes this year.
Rick's Z has a VQ35DE Rev Up wih a fresh tune on the UpRev dyno. We'll be putting the freshly painted NISMO bodywork at the track as there were delays in getting all the pieces. My Z looks to be the only one with a VQ35HR and it has been a PITA to get it up and running. And you're right about the Road America not playing to the Z's strengths. But we're not giving it away without a fight.
Sorry to hear about your work issues this year. You'll be missed! Are you on the board for the VIR Runoffs selection in 2011? I'll go!
You bet Mark! It's been raining steadily since about 11 am and we'll see. Unfortunately, we've already seen some carnage. A T1 Vette lost brakes at the high speed run down to T3. Got it sideways, missed the turn and slid across the grass. Hit the concrete wall and broke the wall (and the car)! Driver hurt and cut from car, no word on condition...
After Wed and Thurs qualifying sessions, the verdict is in. Road America is NOT a Z friendly track, but there is some parity at the top. Race developed Evo IX, Solstice GXP and BMW Z4 M Coupe got down into the 2:31 range. Folks, that's COOKIN'!
As for the Z's, hats off to Brian Kleeman. He and the car's owner, Dave, have spent loads of time and money to get his Z into 10th place on the grid. The rest of the Z's qualified 15-16-17 and that running to a top speed near 130 MPH on no less than three sections of the track. Wow!
Good luck to the entire 350z family at the runoffs! I'm sorry I can't be there this year because Road America is a great facility, but Brian, Rick, David and others are doing a great job. Hope that things are more even next year.
Hello Rob- Thanks and good to see you on this thread! Not sure if we'll see things "even out" much for the 350Z at Road America. We simply lack the power-to-weight ratio necessary to be up front. With such parity at the pointy end of the grid, I doubt the CRB (competition racing board) will be inclined to do much in the off-season.
^ 350Z needs to move to T3. Look at the times. T3 quick cars are quicker than the 350Z but the times are right there. Remember the S2000 was a T2 car at one time.
^ 350Z needs to move to T3. Look at the times. T3 quick cars are quicker than the 350Z but the times are right there. Remember the S2000 was a T2 car at one time.
Unless the SCCA BoD changes the rules, T3 is a doomed class. Their participation numbers mean the class disappears next year and I'd guess the T3 cars get moved into either SSB or T2.
Final report for the Runoffs. Kleeman lost a hub and was forced to retire while running 9th. Rick Kulach finished 13th and I was 1.3 sec back in 14th. John Baker put a nice pass on me at T5 on the lap 2. I diced with his Z until retaking the position and chasing Kulach down. The TS programming of my VQ35HR really masked the potential of this motor and there'll be more development next year. The NISMO bodywork on Rick's car appeared to be effective at the high speeds that RA is run at. Watching from behind, it seemed his slip angles on corner exit were less extreme than what I experienced running essentially the same line. My Z was set up quite loose and I nearly lost it on several laps.
Top speeds into T1, T5 and Canada Corner were in the 128-132 MPH range. The leaders were doing 10 MPH more than that, lap-after-lap!
2009 SCCA Runoffs at Road America
