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    1. #1
      Join Date
      Nov 2012
      Posts
      296
      Country Flag: United States

      2015 Ohio Musclecar Challenge is in the Books- Complete Recap



      OHIO MUSCLECAR CHALLENGE
      August 21-23, 2015
      Written by Brandy Phillips
      Photos by Orange Cone Racing



      For those living near the Ohio area, there is one particular event that sparks curiosity. Maybe because it’s an event that sells out quickly or maybe it’s
      because the event includes elements that many of us do not get to experience at other race events. Whatever the reason may be the Ohio Musclecar
      Challenge should be an event to consider.




      Bob Bertelsen hosts the Ohio Musclecar Challenge, which was held at the end of last month at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex.




      The event is limited to 60 participants. Though a couple of drivers could not make the event at the last minute, there was a lengthy wait list that quickly
      filled those openings.




      The event is a three-day event with quite nice accommodations. Two local church groups provided lunch on Saturday including shredded beef sandwiches,
      side dishes and homemade cookies.




      The event center was also open to the drivers where they could cool down in the air conditioning, get something to drink and enjoy some additional cookies.
      The event center overlooked the North Road Race Track, which was where most of the racing was held.




      Enough about the food though, the racing is probably what most of you are curious about. Registration took place Friday along with a driver’s meeting.
      Then drivers were divided into two groups: Early Class (pre 1981) and Late Class (post 1981). There were a total of forty cars in the early class and twenty
      late class that attended the event.




      A handful of drivers are names you might recognize such as Brian Finch, Chris Jacobs, Larry Woo and Bryan Johnson (to name a few).




      Once registration and the drivers meeting were complete, drivers buckled up and headed out to the Track Cross portion of the event.




      Now some might be asking what in the world is a Track Cross. Many are familiar with an autocross set-up that includes a large parking lot, a sea of traffic
      cones and a timing system. At the Ohio Musclecar Challenge a section of the road course was used to make a very fast and technical autocross on a much
      larger scale; hence the Track Cross.




      The Track Cross ran just like an autocross. Each driver took to the course one at a time with the goal of running the fastest time. The Track Cross went
      late into the evening Friday night allowing drivers to get in some practice runs before completing their three final runs for the official scoring.




      At the end of the day scores were finalized and results were in. Brian Finch and his ’71 Camaro placed 1st in the early class. Larry Woo and his ’69 Camaro
      claimed 2nd while Danny Kind in his ’69 Camaro took 3rd place. In the late model class Bryan Johnson took 1st in his ’13 Camaro, Chris Jacobs 2nd in his
      ’01 Z06 Corvette and Mark Mikula 3rd with his ’11 Mustang.




      The Track Cross was just the start of the race weekend. Saturday brought faster speeds and more competition as competitors hit the road course. Again
      drivers ran the North Track, but this time it included the full 1.6 miles course.




      Drivers were divided into four groups; each getting six track sessions lasting twelve minutes. Though you might think twelve minutes is not much time
      that’s 8-10 laps X 6 sessions equaling an average of 50-55 laps total. That is a lot of seat time in one day.




      When racing ended at 5pm Saturday results were calculated:


      EARLY CLASS:
      Brian finch ‘71 Camaro with a 1:02.422 1st Place
      Danny King ‘69 Camaro with a 1:03.415 2nd place
      Mark Greenisen ‘65 Tempest with a 1:04.060 3rd

      LATE CLASS:
      Bryan Johnson ‘13 Camaro with a 1:01.784 1st
      Chris Jacobs ’01 Z06 Corvette with a 1:03.869 2nd
      Justin Snow ’02 Z06 Corvete with a 1:06.963 3rd




      As Saturday came to an end, the Ohio Musclecar Challenge participants sat down for a rib-eye steak dinner sponsored by BFGoodrich. The Real Living
      Ministries and Upper Room Fellowship were kind enough to help serve the group while drivers were able to relax, enjoy a good meal and reflect on the day.




      Sunday was the final day of racing at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex. The morning was met with another drivers meeting preparing for the
      autocross portion of the event; a fast pass track that allowed several cars on track at the same time.



      After everyone completed 12 laps, drivers concluded their Ohio Musclecar Challenge experience and waited for the team to calculate the final results.




      Autocross remained open for fun runs until 4pm allowing drivers to get some extra seat time if desired though many drivers started to prep for their
      journey home after the award ceremony was complete.




      The three-day event wrapped up just as quickly as it started. After three days of racing, drivers and event coordinators were exhausted.




      Throughout the three days drivers averaged a total of 70 laps between the Track Cross, Road Course and Autocross. That’s quite a bit of driving within a
      three-day time span.




      The event concluded with smiles and memories just as it had done each of the following years.




      We want to thank Bob Bertelsen for providing us with a quick recap and photos of the event. For those that have any questions, want to check out the full
      photo gallery or are possibly thinking about attending next year’s event, head over to Orange Cone Racing: http://orangeconeracing.com/index.php
      (BTW We Miss You Too Sam!!!)



      Top Three Drivers In Each Event/ Class:


      Track Cross- Early Class:
      1) 39.281 Brian Finch 1971 Camaro
      2) 39.323 Larry Woo 1969 Camaro
      3) 40.052 Danny King 1969 Chevy Camaro z28

      Track Cross- Late Class:
      1) 39.383 Bryan Johnson 2013 Camaro
      2) 40.269 Chris Jacobs 2001 Corvette Z06
      3) 41.377 Mark Mikula 2011 Mustang GT

      Road Course- Early Class:
      1) 1.02.422 Brian Finch 1971 Camaro
      2) 1.03.415 Danny King 1969 Chevy Camaro z28
      3) 1.05.060 Mark Greenisen 1965 Tempest

      Road Course- Late Class:
      1) 1.01.784 Bryan Johnson 2013 Camaro
      2) 1.03.869 Chris Jacobs 2001 Corvette Z06
      3) 1.06.963 Justin Snow 2002 Chevy Corvette Z06

      Autocross- Early Class:
      1) 33.882 Brian Finch 1971 Camaro
      2) 34.444 Larry Woo 1969 Camaro
      3) 34.770 Mark Greenisen 1965 Tempest

      Autocross- Late Class:
      1) 33.819 Chris Jacobs 2001 Corvette Z06
      2) 35.334 Donny Freise 2015 Mustang
      3) 35.343 Bryan Johnson 2013 Camaro


      Overall Winners- Early Class:
      1) 02:15.585 Brian Finch 1971 Camaro
      2) 02:18.860 Larry Woo 1969 Camaro
      3) 02:18.905 Danny King 1969 Chevy Camaro z28

      Overall Winners- Late Class:
      1) 02:16.127 Bryan Johnson 2013 Camaro
      2) 02:17.957 Chris Jacobs 2001Corvette Z06
      3) 02:25.891 Donny Freise 2015 Mustang











      To view the complete list of times and standings for each driver please visit:
      http://orangeconeracing.com/eventsre...php?eventid=56






      For more photo coverage on the 2015 Ohio Musclecar Challenge visit:
      http://s1243.photobucket.com/user/or...ar%20Challenge
      Brandy Morrow Phillips
      Site Contributor

      WWW.PRO-TOURING.COM

      Follow me for the latest event news on Pro-Touring.com

    2. #2
      Join Date
      May 2007
      Location
      Mooresville, Indiana
      Posts
      1,878
      Country Flag: United States
      We absolutely love this event and look forward to next year. Thanks to everyone that participated in the "we miss you Sam" pictures.

    3. #3
      Join Date
      Mar 2011
      Location
      Long Island NY
      Posts
      47
      So my Mustang had an engine failure while unloading off the trailer,but I still had a great weekend! Bob did a once again great job hosting, and everyone there are some of the coolest and nicest people on the planet! Thank you to everyone who offered to let me share their rides! And I got some time with my son who squeezed the weekend in to a hectic time frame. ( I had to drop Kenny off at school on Sunday night for Monday a.m. classes) The Mustang got torn down to find a non engine piece of metal in one of the cylinders....I have no idea what,why or how. I'm just glad it failed on the trailer and not on the track!....Still good to be me!

      Kenny Sr.

      Beat it like a rental car!




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