SCCA Pro Solo - Schenker Earns First Gumout Super Challenge At El Toro

Schenker Earns First Gumout Super Challenge at El Toro SCCA Tire Rack ProSolo

IRVINE, April 12, 2011: Bill Schenker, of Corona del Mar, Calif., earned his first career Gumout Super Challenge win at the Tire RackŪ SCCA ProSolo last weekend at the El Toro ProSolo, winning the C Street Prepared class and topping the bracket-style finale.

Always one of the more popular stops on the ProSolo schedule, the Cal Club Region-hosted event drew 222 autocrossers to the El Toro Airfield and southern California sunshine for some hot competition.

Schenker drove his 1999 MiataRoadster/ChaseCam/OS Giken/Motul Mazda Miata to a 1.674-second win over Scott Fraser in a 2001 Ankeny Racing Enterprises Mazda Miata. The CSP class win left Schenker as the fourth seed in the 32-driver Gumout Super Challenge bracket.

Once into bracket competition, Schenker advanced through the opening three rounds to face Paul Brown, from Los Alamos, N.M., in one semi-final. Brown had pulled upset after upset to reach the final four, entering the bracket as the 32nd and final driver into the field following a third place finish in the A Stock class competition.

Brown knocked off top seed Mike Simanyi, from Santa Ana, Calif., who topped the Street Modified class in his 1995 OS Giken/AST/Metric Mechanic BMW M3 before advancing to meet Schenker, where his underdog run ended.

In the top half of the bracket, another upset run was occurring at the same time. Craig Naylor, from Arcadia, Calif., finished second to Kraig Klippel in Street Touring Sport during class runs, sneaking into the Super Challenge field as the 31st seed. Naylor knocked off Super Street Modified winner and second seed Andrew McKee, in the 1993 Goodyear/ARE/7parts/SiasTuning Mazda RX-7, in the opening round.

His run started, Naylor advanced his 1995 QUICKdocs Mobile Notary Mazda Miata to the semi finals against the third seed, Alex Muresan. Muresan, from San Francisco, won the D Stock class competition in a 1988 Acura Integra R.

Naylor advanced to the finals against Schenker where, having already knocked off the second and third seeded drivers, ran out of magic against the fourth seed. Brown won the consolation round against Muresan to finish third.

In the Ladies Challenge, defending Ladies Overall ProSolo champion Christine Berry, of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., drove her 2006 Berry Family Racing/Hoosier/OS Giken Mitsubishi Evo to her second consecutive Challenge win at El Toro, topping Leslie Cohen in the finals. Cohen, of Cardiff by the Sea, Calif., was the ladies Class 1 champion in a 1989 Toyo Tires/C2 Motorsports Honda Civic Si during class competition.

Guillermo Clark took the Bonus Challenge win in his first-ever autocross.

Elsewhere at the event, Kencey Christopher earned the prize for best start after scoring a perfect .500 light in her Formula Junior A class Renspeed Top Kart. The Redondo Beach-native will earn a free entry to her next Tire Rack ProSolo event based on her exceptional reaction time.

The Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo Tour continues with the Blytheville ProSolo, April 30 – May 1, at the Arkansas Aeroplex in Blytheville, Ark.