With the season winding down the thought of championships enters people’s minds. Like many years, this one is coming down to the last race, NHMS South Oval. And for COM, our grand prize is the Overall Driver’s Championship which covers both Touring Class and Super Class. This requires a driver to not only participate in every event, but also needs to podium or better yet win every single event.
However, to keep things competitive, there is another factor where the larger the class is, the more Driver Points received. Going into the Watkins Glen event, Dave Wittmer was leading the way with a very narrow margin over Chris Taylor. Although both drivers won their class, Chris picked up a couple more points due to the huge turnout for T80.
Overall Driver Championship Standings
Current Standings:
- Chris Taylor – 80.67 points
- Dave Wittmer – 80 points
- Jeff Wasilko – 78.5
- Eric Breckner – 78
- Dave Lemoine – 77.17 points
Watkins Glen, this is a favorite for many and for good reason. The track is historic, it is world-renowned, it is smooth, it is fast, and yet it is unforgiving…this is where bringing your A game is a must, and sometimes the track asks for more. We keep coming back for not only the highest top speeds our cars will see all season, but the highest average speeds as well.
Paddock Heroes
Super A – Mike Hassler was putting his M4 to work running a 2:03.9, which was very evident with the smoke billowing off his brakes while he came off track. Nice driving man!
Super B – A class that had multiple DNS among other issues, and yet the STi driven by Ryan Cautcci not only ran the entire time, but also put down a commanding 2:07.5. Steve Cefalo took second place with a 2:16.6 with only a single lap run.
Super C – Seth Allen’s 2:20.4 earned him a second place spot in his Toyota WSR. The first place spot goes to Jon Cowen with a ridiculous 2:09.4
Super D – Jake Wile took the first place spot with a 2:10.5, but more importantly Jon Cowen went a second faster in Jake’s car.
Super E – The Miata class at it again with the 1st place spot going to Jeff Wasilko running a 2:20.0. He was immediately followed by Chris Parsons in a 2:20.4. The spread for the top 4 spots was under 2 seconds! Also, a collection has been started to purchase a muffler for Jeff Baker….please donate!
Touring Unlimited – A 2:01.2, 1st place finish, FTD, and track record goes to THE Victor Larin…where Victor went 4/4 on podiums that week.
Touring 100 – A classic Mustang vs Corvette battle occurred in T100 where Paul Kalinoski took the top spot in his Mustang with a 2:06.09. Steven Amanti in his Z06 was right on his heels with a 2:08.0.
Touring 90 – Brandon Travassos as our second favorite C7 Grand Sport driver ran a very consistent 2:03 to earn the first spot. Preston Peabbles was second place with his 2:07.0 in his Camaro SS.
Touring 80 – Apparently this was the class to be in. We had Ferraris, Civic Type Rs, Porsches, Camaros, Supras, Corvettes, and BMWs. When Chris Taylor isn’t busy gouging the track, he is busy winning first place trophies with times like his 2:07.5. The controversial Greg Barber was licensed this event, ran a 2:08.6, earned a 2nd place trophy, and won the Solo Cup Award, kudos all around. Abdias Garcia ran a very close 2:08.8 to claim the third place spot, and Brian Fisher rounded out the podium with his 2:10.9.
Touring 70 – Eric Breckner ran an astonishing 2:12.7 earning him a first place spot. Although, Andrew LaValley was the T70 guy to beat this event putting down fast times every day, he ended up 2nd place with a 2:13.5 in his S2000. Eric Martin managed to set his new PB of 2:17.5 during the TT in his Audi TT. And it was great to see Brandon Ganem get his RX8 back on track as well!!!
Touring 60 – 1st Place goes to none other than Dave Wittmer with a 2:12.6 in his BMW 128i, 2nd place to our very own El Presidente Bob Steenson with a 2:15.2 in his 330CI. Barrett Neidecker who is new to COM this year ran his first ever Watkins Glen event and put down some impressive laps with a 2:19.7 in the TT!
Touring 50 – Dave Lemoine, again…really? First place with a ridiculous 2:15.6, apparently those new coilovers paid off. Troy came in third with a 2:17.5. The big news for this class is Dan “Most Consistent” Baldwin who placed second with a blistering 2:15.8…I don’t even know who you are anymore Dan. Also, would like to give a shoutout to some great BRZ drivers Carlos Varela and Doug Flematti. This was Carlos’s first COM event and was convinced to drive out here by Abdias Garcia all the way from Cincinnati, Ohio. Doug showed up to our NHMS event with Brandon Travassos as his instructor. He blew his motor at a Palmer event, so he decided to go all in with a stage 2.5 block from IAG and then did all the work himself! He then ran through the extensive break in period, drove the car to Watkins Glen, put down some great times, and then drove home. Needless to say, I think we have some BRZ guys hooked!
Touring 40 – Dennis Herrick with an excellent TT putting down a 2:21.5 in his Miata. Chuck Tolley broke up the Miata party in his RX7 with a 2:22.1. Charles Nano finished in 3rd place with a 2:22.7. Big shoutout to Graham Cranston for getting back out there, it was great to see it!
Touring 30 – The man, the myth, the legend, Andrew Grigg again first place with a 2:24.1. Can we find some competition for this guy?