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The Last Stop before Lincoln!

This weekend we wave the white flag on The Road to Lincoln, as the 2016 Tire Rack Colorado Championship Tour signals the last lap before the big show in September. This Colorado event also represents the last opportunity to qualify for the coveted Triad Award, in advance of the Tire Rack Solo National Championship. And while the Tire Rack Colorado Championship Tour may be light on entries, it is no doubt heavy on competition.

Classic American Muscle has shown tremendous growth over the past few years and CAM makes up nearly 10% of the entries for this year’s Tire Rack Colorado Championship Tour. The class to watch will be CAM C with ten drivers listed. Look for the P-51 Mustang of Mike Trenkle to take home gold, but newcomer Roger Kroog, in the former James Darden ESP Camaro, will try to upset the blue oval party.

C Street will have eight drivers and expect to see a strong battle between the RX-8, various generations of MX-5s and the FR-S. The team of Bob Klingler and Dan Haydlauff will be in Pikes Peak form in the new MX-5. However, the characteristically fast Chris Mayfield courses may open the door for other makes to take home the upper trophies.

Colorado is home to arguable a few of the fastest Street Modified/Super Street Modified cars in the country. Unfortunately, Robert Thorne's "Big Bad Wolf" is under the weather for the Colorado Championship Tour. But fear not, Thorne will step into Chris Mayfield's E36 BMW M3 Sedan with his sights set firmly on the SM win and top PAX for the event. But where is Mayfield? If he enters, watching these two past National Champions contest for the top spot in SM will be worth the price of admission.

E Street has twelve drivers, and you'd be foolish to bet against Paul and Meredith Brown in the Spyder. However, local drivers Brian Kelly and Johnathan Kuo are dialed in to the unique PPIR surface and will benefit greatly from pushing each other all year. Could the amalgamation of Kelly/Kuo, a turbo MX-5, thin air and a fast Mayfield course be enough to disappoint the Browns?

There will be a new border war this weekend, between Texas and New Mexico, in Street Touring R. Jim Reyenga and Tom Reynolds both know how to win but Reynolds has been making the most out of his time back in the MX-5. However, the Reyenga S2000 may have just enough muscle to take the victory back to Texas.

As always, Street Touring S will have a strong showing at the Colorado Championship Tour. The familiar names here are Van Townsend and LaFonda the Honda. However, Van has taken a lot of time off this year to do some urban farming and to spend more time with his metropolitan chickens and goats. This may leave the door open for the team of Cassidy Coghlin and Jeff Tattershall to own the class. Still to be seen is if Kinch Reindl will make a late appearance on the entry list to team up with Townsend. If so, this is Reindl's event to lose.

Another great battle will occur in Street Touring U, with Lane Borg and his Corvette making the trip up from Texas to take on seven Colorado contenders. If Chris Gladu can escape ventilating another Subaru engine block and keep the tail lights behind the headlights, we may see a good battle. Also keep an eye on Mark Melchior in the V8 BMW. Melchior has made winning a habit this year with road course lap records and some impressive One Lap honors. He may be looking to add a National Solo trophy to the mantle as well.

Of course there will be a few "Twins" in Street Touring X to keep everybody honest, but we will also see an E30 BMW, one each Focus ST and Fiesta ST and possibly even a top secret "Toyota Hybrid" (however, this is most likely just code for another Subayota Twin). All eyes will be on the FR-S of Dave Santel and Greg Paine as they have been putting in the work to make a trophy run in September. Also keep an eye on New Mexico’s Andy McGibbon and local Justin Metz who are both capable of laying down some fast times.

Track the action live this weekend by tuning in to Ustream or Solo Live. Once you catch your breath, start making plans to be part of the Mile High fun next year.