SCCA Pro Fax

07/09/96

SCCA PRO FAX
Volume 3, Number 16
July 3, 1996

CHILDREN S GRAND PRIX THIS WEEKEND: The Children s Grand Prix of
Minnesota, round nine of the 1996 Trans-Am Championship, is on tap
this weekend. All proceeds from the Children s Grand Prix will go to
the Cancer KIDS Fund to help children undergoing treatment for cancer
and other blood-related diseases. A number of the Cancer KIDS will be
honorary members of the Trans-Am teams, and will have the opportunity
to meet the drivers, get autographs and have photographs taken in and
around the Trans-Am cars. The Children s Grand Prix will be televised
on a same-day delayed basis on Sunday, July 7, from 9:00-10:30
p.m. (ET). Speedvision will broadcast the race on Monday, July 8,
beginning at 10:00 p.m. (ET).

SCHROEDER MAINTAINS LEAD, KENDALL CLOSING IN: Cleveland winner Tom
Kendall (#11 All Sport Body Quencher Ford Mustang Cobra) scored the
maximum 35 points (30 for the win, three for being the Raybestos
Fastest Qualifier, one for leading a lap and one for leading the most
laps) and thus made up a lot of ground (10 points) on series leader
Dorsey Schroeder, despite Dorsey s third-place finish in the #12
Raybestos Ford Mustang Cobra. Heading into this weekend s action,
Schroeder leads Kendall 213 to 205. Jamie Galles finished a
disappointing 27th at Cleveland (engine) in the #2 ICI/Glidden Camaro,
which dropped him to third with 171.

PICKETT GETS RECORD: Greg Pickett, driving the #6 Cytomax/Rain-X
Camaro, finished second at Cleveland to score his 44th top-three
finish, breaking Mark Donohue s record of 43. Pickett has now
accomplished a Trans-Am hat trick, as he also holds the all-time lead
in top-five finishes (69) and top-10 finishes (94).  Mark did it in a
lot fewer races, said the modest Pickett.  Records are made to be
broken, and we did it.  Pickett s second podium finish of the season
moved the Trans-Am veteran into fourth place in the 1996 Drivers
Championship (153 points) and gave Chevrolet seven points towards the
Manufacturers Championship. The Bowtie Brigade and Ford are knotted at
62 points apiece with six races to go.

HERO OR ZERO: Paul Gentilozzi (#5 HighwayMaster Camaro) had the pole
position for the ATCALL Trans-Am Classic in Cleveland, but mechanical
problems put him out of contention early.  We broke a rocker arm, said
Gentilozzi.  It wasn t a fatigued or stressed part, it s just one of
those things . . . like the broken spindle deal while we were leading
in Long Beach. Gee, it seems like this year, we re a hero or a zero
either we re up front and in solid contention or some freaky thing
like this happens.  Gentilozzi endured a lengthy pit stop to fix the
problem, returning to action down but not out.  We felt like we had to
go back out, even though we were 12 laps down, to try to collect
points, added Gentilozzi.  We really anticipated more attrition today,
but there really wasn t much and those that did go out, bowed out with
more laps. But hey, we had to gamble.  Gentilozzi s teammate Bill
Saunders (#8 HighwayMaster Camaro) finished sixth at Cleveland, tying
his career best.  I ran out of tire about three-fourths of the way
through and was just working to hang on to the position, said
Saunders.  The car was good most of the race although it developed a
push, so I had to back off.

FERGUS JOINS PHELON FOR THREE OF FINAL SIX: Trans-Am team owner/driver
Dale Phelon has added road racing veteran John Fergus to his team for
three of the final six races (Trois-Rivieres, Watkins Glen and
Reno). The team s plan is to run two cars in 1997, and run Fergus for
Rookie of the Year honors. Fergus, 44, has enjoyed tremendous success
in motorsports, having won three consecutive SCCA Solo II National
Championships (A Stock) from 1977-79. He joined the pro ranks in the
1980s, winning two Sports-2000 championships in 1988-89. Fergus, the
winner of 16 races in the Sports 2000 ranks from 1985-90, migrated to
IMSA GTU competition in 1991, where he won eight of 13 races en route
to the GTU Drivers Championship.

KENDALL THE CABLE GUY: Tom Kendall recently joined Paul Page and Jack
Arute as a color analyst for the Portland Northwest Tour race
telecast. Kendall, despite his limited experience (he provided
commentary for ESPN for two World Challenge races in 1990), got rave
reviews from one of his fellow broadcasters.  He did an excellent job,
said Arute.  He really did his homework and it showed on the
telecast. He knew a lot about the drivers. He did exactly what an
analyst should do and that was analyze.  He used the same skills on
the air he uses in the race car. The great thing is when the chemistry
clicks. I hope we get to use him some more.

FORMER WORLD CHALLENGE CHAMP EYES THE IRL: Having pocketed two
championships as a road racer over a 15-year career, most recently in
the 1995 World Challenge, David Murry is now setting his sights on
joining the Indy Racing League.  I went to Indy twice in May, which
intensified my desire to join the IRL, said Murry.  I m confident it
will all fall into place. I m quite determined. With any kind of luck,
we ll be in Loudon, N.H. (for the August 18 start of the 1996-97
season).  In 1995, Murry piloted his Rohr Racing Porsche 911 Turbo to
five wins in eight races, as he won the Drivers Championship and
helped earn Porsche the manufacturers title. This year, Murry was
leading the GT-1 class at the half way point of the 24 Hours of
Daytona, but saw his race end with a DNF when his Porsche 911 Turbo
developed engine problems.  Murry's teammates were Scott Goodyear and
Hurley Haywood.

LIKE FATHER LIKE SON: Three sons of former F1 drivers started the
latest round of the Barber Dodge Pro Series race held at Watkins
Glen. Jeff Bucknum, son of Ronnie, started seventh and finished 19th;
Derek Hill, son of Phil, started 17th and finished sixth; and Philippe
Siffert, son of Jo, started 22nd and finished 9th in his first
U.S. race. Taking the victory was Geoff Boss, who had a
picture-perfect run in rainy conditions. The victory was Boss first of
the season and will perhaps be the spark he needs to turn his season
around (he had scored just 13 points through the first five
races). Fredrik Larsson continues to lead the Drivers standings,
despite spinning off course and into a wall, thus ending his day.

NEAL WINS/CREMER INJURED: Leon Neal held off a strong challenge by
Eric Heuschele to win the Neon Challenge race that was run as part of
the Medic Drug Grand Prix of Cleveland. Celebrity winner Alphonso
Ribiero (Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) chased down and passed Perry King
(Melrose Place) and held on to take Celebrity class honors.  Neon
Challenge driver Richard Cremer, of Kerrville, Texas, is home and
resting comfortably following a serious crash during Saturday s
qualifying session.  A series of tests and X-rays revealed that the
68-year-old former Runoffs competitor suffered two small cracks in his
C-2 vertebrae. Also injured in the single-car incident was IndyCar
observer (and SCCA member) Don Perry, of Levittown, N.Y. He suffered a
punctured lung and a broken collarbone when he was struck by the
barrier that Cremer s car impacted.

ATLANTIC ROOKIE MAKING HIS MARK: Toyota/Player s Atlantic rookie Paul
Jasper has been making quite the splash this year. He leads the rookie
point standings, ranks fourth overall and is coming off an exceptional
fourth-place finish at Montreal s Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve to match
the fourth he gained earlier in the season at Long Beach. The Lake
Forest, Ill. driver has certainly held his own and looks forward to
the upcoming July 13 Atlantic race in the streets of Toronto.  I love
racing in Canada, said Jasper, who drives for the factory BDJS/Ralt
American team.  The enthusiasm and encouragement from the Canadian
racing fans is phenomenal. While street courses are very difficult for
the drivers, Toronto always provides a great show for the fans.  The
Toronto race is a homecoming of sorts as team owner Brian Robertson is
a native of nearby Chatham, Ontario. The team has enjoyed success at
Toronto, as former BDJS driver David Empringham, a Toronto native,
took the BDJS Ralt to victory in the 1994 race.  While I would be
delighted to repeat the 1994 Toronto victory for the team, our goal is
to qualify and place in the top five, said Jasper.  There s so much
talent in the Atlantic series this year that at any given race there s
at least 10 drivers capable of winning.  Hopefully, my turn will come
at Toronto!

SHULTZ SCORES WINS FOR INDIANA, PURDUE UNIVERSITIES: Chris Shultz, of
Indianapolis, piloted his Electric Formula Classic racer to first
place in Saturday s 13-lap race at Burke Lakefront Airport. Driving
the University of Indiana/Purdue entry, Shultz averaged 62.750
miles-per-hour to beat second-place Richard Harrison (University of
Oklahoma) by 40.09 seconds. The Cleveland race was a part of the Asea
Brown Boveri (ABB) Series, which is sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing and
organized by Electric Vehicle Technology Competition (EVTC), Ltd., a
joint venture of Centerior Energy, Electric Transportation
Applications of Phoenix (Ariz.) and Arizona Public Service.

CAN-AM 30-YEAR CELEBRATION ATTRACTS RECORD FIELD: Thirty years ago,
they ruled the world of speed. The powerful, unlimited Group 7
machines of the SCCA-sanctioned Can-Am Challenge, driven by stars like
Denny Hulme, Bruce McLaren, Mark Donohue, David Hobbs, Brian Redman
and George Follmer, who for nine thundering seasons shattered track
records from coast to coast. This year, they re back in force. A
record field of 80 awesome Can-Am machines are expected to participate
in the special 10-lap Can-Am 30-Year Celebration event as part of the
Merrill Lynch/Brian Redman International Challenge at Road America,
slated for July 19-21.  By any measure, this is an awesome event, said
Redman, who drove in the original Can-Am series three decades ago.
Even in its heyday, the Can-Am never fielded such a large, and
impressive, array of cars.  In addition to Redman, other original
Can-Am drivers like Follmer, Hobbs and Vic Elford will be on hand to
compete. Included in the Can-Am 30-Year Celebration field are examples
of every championship-winning marque in the Can-Am s legendary
existence, including numerous variations of the McLaren M8s and
Porsche 917s that dominated the series, as well as the Lola T70 in
which John Surtees won the first Can-Am championship in 1966, and the
Shadow DN4 in which Jackie Oliver captured the 1974 title.

PORSCHE, CALLAWAY AND NGK OFFER WORLD CHALLENGE CONTINGENCIES: Porsche
Motorsport North America, Inc., Callaway Cars and NGK Spark Plugs have
joined the ranks of World Challenge contingency sponsors. Porsche, the
winner of two manufacturers championships the past two seasons in
World Challenge competition, has posted contingency awards for
independents racing the Porsche 911 in this season s S2 class. A win
in a Porsche 911 will earn a $1,500 bonus, while a runner-up finish
earns $750. Callaway Cars has posted awards in T1 for competitors
driving the Callaway SuperNatural Camaro C8, equipped with Callaway s
SuperNatural 383 engine and the Callaway CamAerobody package. Callaway
s payout includes $1,000 for a win, $500 for second and $250 for
third. NGK Spark Plugs has posted awards in all three World Challenge
classes, including $300 for a win, $200 for a runner-up finish and
$100 for a third.