Given that the Runoffs are at Daytona this year, I think we're going to see healthy fields based on two primary reasons:
1) it's Daytona, how cool is that?
2) pretty much anyone can win this thing

I doubt there's ever been a more "toss a bunch of names in a hat and draw one out" national championship race in the history of the class.
So... thoughts? Here are mine.

SRF:
As of 8/29 we have 39 entrants. I count fully 1/3 of them who I expect can and potentially will be in the front pack. There could be more.
I think anyone would be crazy not to consider Cliff White as the front runner given his runs there in early August (with his "play" motor), his past history as a national champion (twice now), and his "good motor" going into the purple people eater for the Runoffs. That being said, I could envision 10-15 SRF's crossing S/F covered by 1.5 seconds at 130MPH with any of those drivers winning by a nose. It's going to be nuts.

SRF3:
33 entrants as of 8/29. I could see fully half of this field having a shot at winning. My gut feel is that they won't be bunched up quite as tightly at the checkered but we will see. Right now I think I have to give the nod to Cougar but Brian, Tray, Scott Rettich, Todd Vanacore and several others will absolutely have something to say about it.

Of course rain and cautions could really throw things up in the air. Watch us get a hurricane rolling through there all week... that would be interesting.

So place your bets, whether homer local favorites or just a finger in the wind.
Who's your pick for each class this year?

Hello. Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Dominic Mandile, and I am out of the Washington D.C. Region of the Sports Car Club of America. I am a second generation SCCA member to my father, who began bringing me to the track at a very young age. He raced SRF for 20+ years, and I immensely enjoyed every single moment of watching him. Though he sold his car in 2013, Spec Racer Ford will always hold a special place in my heart. Throughout his journey with Spec Racer, I have paid close attention to SCCA Club Racing, and especially the National Championship Runoffs. I have fond memories of watching Richard Spicer win back-to-back national championships on Speed Channel in my family room in 2001 and 2002, and being thrilled because my father had raced against him earlier in those years. I have composed my own "Who Win Win?" articles for all 28 Runoffs classes, and I would like to share my articles for both the SRF and SRF3 national championship races. Being new to the forum, I am a little confused on how to upload the two files since they are word documents. Could someone please explain how I would go about doing that? Thank you very much.

Copy and paste would probably be the simplest way to post your articles on the forum. Open your document in Word. Select the the text you would like to post and click "copy". Then "paste" it within the quick reply box to this thread on the forum.

Thank you for your help Mr. Jankovskis. Here are my predictions for the SRF and SRF3 national championship races...


Race 15: Spec Racer Ford Gen3

Dawn of a New Era
1. Tray Ayres
2. Kerry Jacobsen
3. Cliff White

When the Sports Renault was introduced in 1983, the response could only be described using one word: overwhelming. Hundreds of orders were placed the same weekend of the unveiling, and the demand for the racecar kept growing, so much in fact that by 1986, SR was the most popular SCCA national class. The 1.7-liter Renault motors were reliable and the cost of running in the class was comparably inexpensive. This left drivers thinking “can these cars get any better?” The answer came in the form of a new engine package that was released for competition starting in 1993. The 1.9-liter Ford Escort engines under the rear deck gave the machines more punch and even more dependability. Similar to today, there was an overlap of old and new power in the fields from ’93-’96. Nearly two decades later, another package has become legal for the category. The Renault-to-Ford conversion took a little getting used to for the competitors, but that was nothing compared to the difference that a reduction of 100 lbs and an addition of 20 horses makes in terms of performance from the Gen2 to the Gen3. Full grids of Gen3 entries have competed throughout 2015, and on average, the leaders have been an astonishing 2-3, and as many as 4 seconds faster per lap than the leaders of Gen2 on any given circuit. The speed differential should definitely make the qualifying sessions fascinating, as the two classes will share the track for all four. As always, the race will be impossibly tight and down-to-the-wire, but keeping a record on which drivers have converted and which have yet to is quite an undertaking, and made even more difficult because there are a few in the class who will run the Gen3 package for the first time in September. The key to success for the inaugural championship race will be seat time in the new car, and there are few out there that have more laps logged than Tray Ayres. Tray is consistently on the very northern end of the results sheet, and was one of the first to receive his conversion kit. In 2014, he had a head-start, participating in the SARRC Invitational Challenge, where he looked right at home in a racecar that was still getting the bugs worked out. He has scored two victories in 2015 that came at Road Atlanta, where he put on an absolute clinic in the wet stuff, so watch out if the drops fall at Daytona. Possessing the checkered flag has already gone to his head, and he wears it proudly on his helmet. Mr. Ayres is ready to transfer some black and white to his hand, but he will be the special on the supper menu of a big cat predator known as Kerry “Cougar” Jacobsen. The Florida driver is making a return to SRF for the first time in a decade after delving into many different divisions of racing over the past few years. He has had great acclaim for Erik Skirmants, Mike Davies, and the rest of the SCCA Enterprises body for putting together a racing car that has made him enthusiastic to drive a Spec Racer Ford again. A lot can happen to someone in ten years, and for Kerry, it has meant a sensational spike in raw pace. When he took a broom to the first weekend of the year at Homestead-Miami, many may have thought, “Who is this gentleman in the crimson car, looking at us in his mirrors?” The mystery was short-lived, and he showed that he was here to stay. Jacobsen was the face of the Southeast Majors conference this year, having the title well sewn up before the finale. Like several, he took part in the regional event hosted by Daytona in May. The action was close between him and Tray, and by the end of the weekend, Kerry added another victory to his collection and set a new lap record in the process. The only detail that fates him just short of the gold is his unfamiliarity with the driving styles of many of the top drivers in SRF, knowledge that the majority of the pilots he will be dicing it out with have. Jacobsen will go home with a medal, but it is difficult to say he win score any higher than a silver. Two championships and a silver medal in the past three years have left “Boom Boom” White tickled purple! He is probably one of the most surprising drivers Spec Racer has had because he usually puts himself under the radar by not running much during the year, and then proceeds to rock the field at the Runoffs. Cliff White should not be overlooked for the run to the gold, as he really elevates his gusto in big-race situations. An aggressive, lead-early style of racing makes him one to follow, and he will have no shortage of company for this one. From the initial glance, it may be surprising that Brian Schofield is not included in the top three, and that is due to a slew of mechanical issues that he has experienced over the passing months. Schofield has been unstoppable at the Runoffs, and it may be a mistake not to predict him to stand on the podium, but based on his season, he will either drink from the straw of victory or fail to finish the race. One of the four racers mentioned above will be the national champion, but they will have a bountiful number of groupies. From the west end of the country, Mike Miserendino will be looking to become the Fangio of SRF with a 5th title, T.J. Acker will be searching for his second career medal, and the Pro Drive Racing School team of Todd Harris, Johnny Tipton, and Steve Fogg have the speed of Oregon in their hands. Scott Rettich is normally an obvious pick for the podium, but he is several months behind having not converted his car until early May. Despite this, proving people wrong is what he is best at, and improved facial aerodynamics from last year should be helpful to his chances. Chad Galloway has stepped up his game considerably, finishing a strong 2nd at the June Sprints. Jim Goughary, John Greene, and Jean-Luc Liverato have the credentials to roll with the big dogs as well. The dark horse contender to watch in this one is Bobby Sak. His in-car footage throughout the season shows just how racy and competitive he can be, and he has shown no trouble swapping positions with the best in the country. John Bisignano tells viewers every year to get off the couch and join the fun, but unless you are planning on being at the speedway come race time, there is no other place you will want to be once the fur starts flying.





Race 23: Spec Racer Ford

Time Pays Off
1. Denny Stripling
2. Bruce Myers
3. Grayson Strathman

First off, congratulations on new parenthood SRF! Your children look just like you, only their screams are a little higher. In just the first year, they will be following in those tire tracks and even share the circuit with you in qualifying at Daytona, sure to make you proud. While the machines in Gen2 remain the same, the competition in the class has been altered since the birth of the Gen3. While there are still notable names in the older division, many of the front runners have moved over to the new engine package. This will make for a different race with some new faces in the mix, but it also opens up the door for lead pack cabooses and second train front cars to step up and show what they are capable of. None more is this the case for Denny Stripling, the wily Texan who has risen to fame for his witty personality and entertaining in-car YouTube videos, that not only showcase his driving ability, but what is going on in his head underneath the helmet as well. When he put his multi-time divisional championship car up for sale, I believed that the dynasty of Denny was tragically coming to a close. However, the Lone Star State rep had no intention of bowing out. The old chassis was so banged up from so many years of bump and grind competition that, rather, he was in the market for a fresher machine that could take a serious run at the national championship for 2015. He is back in a newer SRF, and he has never been faster. What has amazed people about Denny as a competitor is his unmatchable ability to visit a racetrack he has never competed on before, be fastest in the practice and qualifying sessions, and take the checkered flag in the race, often setting a new track record in the process. While it may seem like witchcraft and wizardry, he attributes this amazingness to visualization by studying video of cars driving at speed on the particular courses, tackling it on the simulator when possible, and speaking to folks who have been to the tracks that he can take down tips and notes from. All of these preparative measures made him the man to beat this season as he ventured to the Southeast circuits on his bucket list, which included Sebring, Road Atlanta, V.I.R., and Watkins Glen. At least one win came from each two round Majors weekend he participated in, and bear in mind that pulling into the paddock, he had never set tires on any of the courses. Racer X has invested the time to the point now that he has earned himself the right of passage that is being crowned an SCCA national champion. Ready or not, it is time to make the donuts! Operation Dr. Bruce Myers hails from New Hampshire, but his style is anything but cold. He is another driver who has greatly benefitted from the addition of the new class because he has been the quickest in several meetings that he has entered over the seasons, but has been just off the pace of the leading herd on the big stage. The highlight of his Runoffs career was his 4th position grid spot at the 2013 event. Though much first lap shuffling sent him back in the field, he held on through all the car failures at the front to finish only two spots behind where he started. Being an active competitor on the East Coast with the given finale location automatically elevates his net worth as one to watch. Bruce keeps his nose clean, and sometimes that is all that is necessary to stay in contention in Spec Racer Ford. The Monster Energy sponsor is a perfect fit for curly-haired beast Grayson Strathman. In his young career, his progress has been speedy, and the transition from chaser to rabbit has been emphasized recently. Only a short list can top him, but he has yet to face Stripling or Myers this year. A quick built-in processor will need to be installed in Grayson to analyze the styles of his challengers, so let the device be free of bugs to give him a fighting chance. Since the first Ford conversion, Derek Schofield has not made an appearance, but a venue in his home state makes this his homecoming. Like Brian, Derek has years of successful Pro Spec Racer background and carries in his chromosomes the Schofield tradition of winning. Putting him outside the top 3 is faulty, but time spent away is ground lost on the leaders. Steven Coates and Adam Gottlieb have each found themselves in the winner’s circle and are slated to duke it out with the leaders. In his retirement, Chris Current has increased his number of outings, and as of this writing, has run the most weekends on the national level in SRF for 2015 with 16 complete rounds at eight total weekends. Chris has the means to surprise all of us with the Hagerman RacEngineering team backing him up, and an early year drive on Daytona is another box checked. It is difficult to do justice to everyone who is capable of winning, and made even tougher by the reality that a lead draft on a course like Daytona can include a dozen or more cars. With a separate championship for Gen2 and Gen3, drivers have the ability to contest a car in both classes. There are a few planning on pulling double duty, like Scott Rettich and Cliff White, and if they do choose to take part, the forecasted podium may take on a makeover. For anybody giving it a shot, it will be interesting to see how qualifying both machines will work, as everybody will have four sessions to play with. Though the offspring will most likely be the bigger talk of the event, the parental units are intent on showing how Daddy is still plenty capable of putting on a heart-stopping exhibition.

Denny – I fell that carnage, overly aggressive racing (punting others off the track) by a known perpetrator, drafting dynamics and full course yellows could let someone from way back get to the podium.

My sentimental favorite is Dave Donovan – a podium for Dave would be emotional for Lisa and many of us – his secret weapon is Dakota rides with him.

I’d like to see local guy Mick Robinson get up there – he has a chance.

Denny - you are my definite pick – you are well deserving of the podium and the win.

Of course I would love to be up there somewhere – but with advancing years comes the wisdom to accept the reality of that being unlikely. I just don’t want to be 4th – I’ve been 4th at the Runoffs and Sprints (yes Kramer a hundred years ago!) and 4th at those 2 races SUCK!!!

I’m mainlyam hoping for a safe race.

Denny, you've got to watch out... the next generation is very quick AND verbose. Best of luck, it will be a great race to see!

Nice write ups Dr. Dom!

I have said it before, Denny is my pick for Gen2. I am sure Cliff and Scott will make it tough but I just see my man Denny pulling it off. You probably can't count out Derek S. either. I don't think the pack will be as big as you think Denny

Gen3 is hard... Just toss Tray, Brian, Cliff, Scott, Cougar and a few others in a hat and start pulling names. If this were Vegas I think I would go with Tray. Vegas odds wise, he probably isn't the favorite, but he would yield a good payout and it wouldn't be a big risk putting your money on him! I wouldn't worry about mechanical gremlins Brian has had throughout the year. He has a thing for winning big races (Sebring, Sprints, Runoffs). Being the first ever Gen3 Runoffs champion sure counts as big!

I sure hope it doesnt rain, I think it would ruin a lot of good racing.

Rain in Florida ??????????? you're kidding, right???? Remember, if you don't like the weather in Florida,wait a few minutes, it'll change !!!!!

Thank you Miz! I am very happy you liked them.

Dr Dom- thanks for including me in the list- Yes the 5th place in 2013 was a great lift and hope to improve on that finish. But there are more fast drivers in this Gen2 group than you can possibly count. This year is special of course with so many of the fast NE regulars actually going to the runoffs.

Let me list you all the possible winners in this group from the NE alone- Herb Sweeney IV, Jeff Lehner, Rob Reed, Lee McNish, Randy Youngsma (all have had their moments of glory this year and with all the engine problems now hopefully sorted out, watch out. Yes I would probably put Denny, Scott, Derek, Donovan, Grayson in the lead pack - but watch for the NE guys working together once we all learn the track- (last time I ran Daytona was 1983- in a lay down enduro cart and we were a pack of 10). Should take a session or two but we'll get it down by Q1- assuming the weather holds.

Should be a great race- I would not and could not pick who will win. But I bet it is NOT the fastest car that does.