Much action, tension, variation and elation were experienced May 5-7, 2023, at Thunderhill Raceway Park. Plenty of SCCA® members departed Willows, CA, feeling as if they’d experienced an entire, exciting season of road racing after only 72 hours. But that was the plan all along for Hoosier Racing Tire SCCA Super Tour’s (HST) first-ever visit to the circuit, which was hosted by SCCA’s San Francisco Region.
The hybrid extravaganza featured HST points races Friday and Saturday around two different three-mile layouts at the venue. Sunday then saw 30-minute Regional races across Thunderhill’s enormous five-mile course for all seven run groups. Results cemented Western Shootout Championship winners, and the reward was one glorious and colorful trophy.
Points accumulated over three days of racing determined Western Shootout Championship winners. The weekend’s scoring structure was 25 points for each race victory, and 21 points went to the runner-up. Points were then doled out to others starting with 18 and descended to a single point for the 20th finisher.
Inaugural Western Shootout Championship Winners: Below are provisional winners of an inaugural Western Shootout Championship with Class: Name, Hometown and Car. Video of victory podium celebrations can be found online at the SCCA Road Racing Facebook page.
American Sedan®: Roger Eagleton; Burlingame, CA; Ford Mustang
E Production (tie): Albert Correia; San Jose, CA; Porsche Boxster
Sean Lovett; Petaluma, CA; BMW E30
Formula Atlantic®: Joe Briggs; Healdsburg, CA; Pro Formula Mazda
Formula Continental®: Daniel Swanbeck; San Jose, CA; Van Diemen RF01
Formula Enterprises®2: Caleb Shrader; Tigard, OR; SCCA Enterprises FE2 Mazda
Formula F: Denny Renfrow; Kelseyville, CA; Piper Honda DL7
Formula Vee®: Blake Tatum; Stockton, CA; Crusader Formula Vee
Formula X: John Ertel; Half Moon Bay, CA; Star Formula Mazda
GT-2: Tony Colicchio; Campbell, CA; BMW M3
GT-3: Larry Hansen; Redding, CA; Nissan 350Z
GT-X: Casey McLoed; Placerville, CA; Ford Mustang
Spec Miata: Jason Rawlins; Gaston, OR; Mazda Miata
Spec Racer® Ford Gen3: Caleb Shrader; Tigard, OR; Spec Racer Ford Gen3
Prototype 1: Jim Devenport; Alamo, CA; Elan DP02 Mazda
Prototype 2: Tim Day Jr.; Scottsdale, AZ; Stohr WF1
Super Touring® Lite: Tim Auger; Monterey, CA; Acura Integra
Super Touring® Under: Wilson Powell; Danville, CA; BMW M3
Touring 1: Don Van Nortwick; Las Vegas, NV; Ford FP350S
Touring 2: Roger Eagleton; Burlingame, CA; Ford Mustang
Touring 3: Sean Lovett; Petaluma, CA; BMW E46
Touring 4: Ben French; Citrus Heights, CA; Mazda Miata
Progressing to Portland: Even though Sunday’s Western Shootout Championship race was a Regional event with no Hoosier Super Tour points offered, many devout HST competitors involved themselves in the competition to embrace three days of racing at one fantastic circuit. Many of those drivers now pack up and quickly head to Portland International Raceway (PIR) for a May 13-14, 2023, event hosted by SCCA’s Oregon Region. That will be HST’s third and final West Coast stop of the year, and the 1.977-mile circuit with 12 turns always produces some great racing. Register today to be part of the experience.
HST action from PIR will be broadcast live, online and free with the Hoosier Super Tour enhanced video and audio package. Gregg Ginsberg and Brian Bielanski will be making play-by-play observations, and DriversEye Live will deliver video from upwards of 12 cameras around the circuit.
Accessing the broadcast online is easy. Everything is streamed at the SCCA YouTube channel and SCCA Facebook page. Post-race video interviews with some Saturday winners, and Sunday victory podium celebration videos, can be viewed at the SCCA Road Racing Facebook page. Live Timing and Scoring will also be available at www.scca.com/live.
Photo: (Left to Right) Don Van Nortwick, Casey McLoed, Tony Colicchio, Roger Eagleton and Larry Hansen were the first set of drivers to win Western Shootout Championship trophies.
Photo by SCCA Staff
