Miata feature race at 20th ARRC by GRM

[Tom Donnelly]

My first thought was, why not just call it the Miata ARRC at Road Atlanta and just not invite all those pesky IT, GT, and others for the whole weekend?

And why not halfway through the race, the drivers can switch cars too? Or switch direction!

[Greg Amy]

I've always said that every event needs more Miata races...or more cowbell, I get those two confused.

- GA

[Tom Donnelly]

[240zdave]

My first thought was, why not just call it the Miata ARRC at Road Atlanta and just not invite all those pesky IT, GT, and others for the whole weekend?

And why not halfway through the race, the drivers can switch cars too? Or switch direction!

I guess this is because they don't have enough classes to race in already?

[Wreckerboy]

There are roughly 985,721 first gen Miatas. There is a class for each one.

[Tom Donnelly]

All kidding aside, is this the replacement for the Pro-It? If it is, then I am beginning to see what others are saying about the Atlanta region. If you don't have a Miata, you won't get decent track time at Road Atlanta.


Your comments about spectators getting another chance to see the Miatas was pretty much a cold slap in the face to all the other classes. Do you really think a one car class race is what people really want to see? You wanted feedback, well here it is. You posted on an IT based forum how there will be a "wonderful" new race for which we will not be included.

Don't piss down my back and tell me its raining.

[seckerich]

Just a couple thoughts from the cheap seats.

I remember Butch giving us all our own races for years even after numbers dropped to the point the region was losing money on us. We were told if we brought the cars we would still get our own group. We did not and the region has to make changes to remain profitable.

If you want your region to lose money, you have to be ready for the consequences. Bring the entries and you will get all the racing you can stand. Otherwise it is your BOD's job to cater to those that write a check. Like it or not this was always an IT centered race and way too many Atlanta IT drivers went to SM and the prep shops as well.

Talks among region leaders about a single 45 minute series for 2014 are well under way. Hang in there.

[Butch Kummer]

Nick should have explained the overall weekend schedule better:

Two of the seven run groups (not including Trans-Am) will be IT cars only (same run groups as the IT-Fest).

Each group gets two qualifying sessions on Friday - a 20-minute session in the morning and a 15-minute session in the afternoon.

The Pro-IT (or whatever it will be called going forward) is still on Friday afternoon - a 20-minute qualifier in the morning then a 45-minute race to close the day (presumably with a 2-minute mandatory pit stop if it's part of the new SEDiv program).

Warm-ups and then ARRC Championship races on Saturday.

Still have ECR qualifying Sunday morning and a three-hour ECR on Sunday afternoon.

Are you IT guys REALLY feeling like you're not getting enough track time?

What Nick is talking about here replaces what we used to advertise as a "bonus" race to help fill track-time on Sunday morning. Over the years we've tried big cars, SRFs, wings & things, and last year the first-ever B-Spec*Tacular (that was cancelled when only one car signed up). Another option is to shut the track down at 9:00 after ECR qualifying and run a couple more PDX sessions, but PDX is decidedly NOT spectator friendly (and yes, the ARRC by GRM DOES have spectators that show up for the weekend and for the Trans-Am race on Sunday).

Now that you know the whole story, get the knots out of your shorts and offer constructive suggestions...

[TomL]

Steve -

Anything you can share about the new 45 minute series? I assume it's a continuation of this year's effort to combine some Pro-IT and CCPS races. Are we talking about something to consolidate Pro-IT, CCPS, Tarheel Cup, and maybe one or more of the Florida enduro series into a single division-wide series? Would it be based on the Pro-IT/CCPS model of a larger entry fee that partly goes into a prize fund? And would they be run in conjunction with SARRC, the new Divisional series, Majors or some combination of those? Same classes - IT, SM, maybe SRF - or something else?

I'd definitely be interested in a "touring" pro series, assuming it was compatible with my SARRC plans.