May 2007 Race Report
As this was a three day event including both a Regional and a National race there would be plenty of competing agendas and priorities for the weekend. Will Schrader who has a first and second place National finish from Thunderhill was looking to pad his lead in the NORPAC Division while also trying to turn around a poor start to his ORRRC Championship defense.
Fenn Bourland, Brian Towey and Ken Sutherland all had multiple priorities, as well. Others were there to build National Points totals that would earn them invitations to Topeka while a gaggle of others were there to add to Regional and Northwest Miata Challenge points totals.
Both practice sessions were dominated (barely) by ORRRC leader Towey in the #26 DentDevil machine only to have his qualifying partner and Miatacage.com teammate Ken Sutherland win pole for both races – including the setting of a new track record of 130.377 in National qualifying. Results...
Bourland, Schrader, Brian Richards, Bruce Wilson and Geoff Cochran were all factors but Sutherland could not be matched. There were rumors that Jeremy Braun in the FMR car was fast in the first practice session, but there was no transponder to confirm this – blame being cast upon Pat “Shenanigans” McFall. Any hope of confirming the speed was ruined in the tire wall between turns 4 and 5 and the tub may be a total loss – Jeremy was un-hurt and new car was found to continue the weekend.
Both races featured race-long multi-car battles for the lead that included Bourland and Schrader but would come down to last lap thrashes between Sutherland and Towey. Sutherland would prevail twice in the #94 Wyatt Fire Protection car by margins of .592 and .222.
The top 5 in the Regional race were completed by Schrader, Brian Richards and Bourland Results.... Geoff Cochran finished a lap down after an early altercation that included contact with the nwspecmiata.com car of Bruce Wilson and Ed Iverson didn’t run out of gas for a change.
In the National it was Sutherland and Towey followed by Bourland then Schrader and Richards. John Mefford caught Bruce Wilson who had been balked by lapped traffic on the last lap to claim sixth – important as Mefford is planning on a trip to Topeka in the “factory” Miatacage.com car.
|