Road America Sunday. The Final.

And the Winner is...

#66 Holy Rollers! It's really an Acura with a Dodge grille, but the body is so cut up, who could tell?

The battle for 2nd place came down to the final lap. With two laps to go, the #26 MR2 passed the #34 Subaru on the straight, with one lap to go, #26 had a short lead over #34, and there's no telling how many times they swapped positions on the 4 mile course, but #34 got ahead on the final lap to win by a car length. After SEVEN FREAKING HOURS OF RACING!!! (See photo at right.)

EC #7, Team Brown, Miata, 96 laps
1. #66, Holy Rollers, Acura, 95 laps
2. #34, Top Fool Elemonator, Subaru Impreza, 94
3. #26, Shake N Bake, Toyota MR2, 94
4. #33, Tubby Butterman, BMW 325, 93
5. #01, My Little Pony, Mustang, 91
6. #3, Three Sheets, Contour, 91
7. #00, URA Tool, SHO, 90
8. #21, Brake Dusters, BMW 540, 87
ISS #168, 21-Gun Racing, Ford Escort, 82
9. #18, The Danish Flash, Mustang, 81
10. #15, United Nations of ChumpCar, Acura, 79
11. #20, Corner 12 Crew, 79
12. #14, It's Just a Datsun, Datsun 210, 74
13. #98, SHO Time Racing, Mustang SHO, 68
14. #49, Slugworks, Honda Civic, 65
15. #8, Eggboy Racing, SHO, 64
16. #68, Sgt. Shitbox, BMW, 56
17. #99, Team Short Bus, VW, 46
18. #24, Bear Patrol, Lexus, 41
19. #44, Dragon Somethin' Porsche 944, 19
20. #23, Hofmeister Kinky, BMW 325, 17
21. #22, Carpet Munchers, Neon, 12
22. #46, Cougar Bait, Saab 9-3, 8

Road America Sunday. Update #6.

1. #66, Holy Rollers, Acura, 79 laps
EC #7, 79
2. #26, 77
3. #34, 77
4. #33, 76
5. #01, 75
6. #00, 75
7. #3, 73
8. #21, 69
9. #98, 68
10. #18, 67

The rain has stopped, but it is still quite cold with temps in the upper 30s and a brisk wind out of the south. We're talkin' wind chill folks!

The final drivers are in the cars, hoping their particular piece of crap will stay running for just one more hour.

#99 Team Short Bus has packed it in for the weekend. Cracked head is the reported failure.

#8 Eggboy is now on the trailer as well. They are still shown in 13th place on the 3 o'clock lap chart, but three cars are only a few laps in arrears so will pass for position.

#68 Sgt. S#!tbox BMW is out after crashing their car.

It looks like there are 16 cars still running.

Road America Sunday. Update #5.

At 2:00 pm: Two hours remaining.

EC #7, 65 laps
1. #34, 65
2. #26, 65
3. #8, 64
4. #66, 64
5. #01, 63
6. #00, 63
7. #33, 62
8. #3, 61
9. #15, 57
10. #21, 57

#44 Dragon Somethin' Porsche 944 just turned in their transponder. Blown head gasket and transmission woes.

19 cars still running.

Road America Sunday. Update #4.

The standings at 1:00 pm:

1. #66, 51 laps

2. #01, 50

3. #26, 49

4. #34, 49

EC #7, 49

5. #8, 48

6. #00, 48

7. #3, 47

8. #33, 47

9. #68, 46

10. #21, 43

#66 Holy Rollers Pontiac Sunfire Acura Integra continues to lead. They are making good speed on the straights and staying out of trouble on the wet track.

#34 Top Fool Elemonator Subaru Impreza is doing well in the corners thanks to the beauty of AWD, but they are not fast on the straights.

#21 Brake Dusters BMW has no alternator, so the team is swapping batteries about every half hour. Their other team car, #23 Hofmeister Kinky BMW, is out with a blown engine.

#8 Eggboy Racing SHO is still on track, but expects to be heading home soon. They were having issues with the differential late yesterday and started the day without 1st or 2nd gear. They plan to have the SHO ready in time for Iowa.

#44 Dragon Somethin' Porsche spent a lot of time in the pits trying to track down an overheating issue. Their radiator lost coolant late in yesterday's race due to a leak and they parked it on the final lap.

#24 Bear Patrol Lexus hit a wall and had to come in on a tow rope.

#3 has now set the fast lap of the day at 3:34.744. Lap times are about 30 to 40 seconds slower than Saturday due to the wet track.

Road America Sunday. Update #3.

Racing resumed after about a 40 minute Safety Break due to weather.

At 12:00 noon:

1. #66, 36 laps
2. #26, 36
EC #7, 35
3. #34, 35
4. #01, 35
5. #00, 35
6. #8, 34
7. #3, 34
8. #24, 34
9. #68, 33
10. #33, 31

The cars that have dropped back a couple of laps, #3 and #8 in particular, slid off course and had to be extracted from the mud. The wet track has put a lot of drivers in the "sudden loss of talent" category.

Road America Sunday. Update #2.

Black flag for inclement weather. Radar shows heavy thunderstorms in the vicinity.

As of 11:00am

1. #8, 32 laps
2. #66, 31
3. #26, 31
4. #68, 30
5. #34, 30
6. #00, 30
7. #01, 30
EC #7, 29
8. #24, 29
9. #3, 29
10. #49, 28

#46 Cougar Bait has put their car on the trailer, reason unknown.

#22 Mutt Cutts is also on the trailer. The car slid off into the kitty litter (puppy litter?) on turn 12 and tossed the timing belt. The car is a Neon, covered on all external surfaces with carpeting. It has a red carpet tongue, black carpet nose and eyes, and a carpet tail wagging in the back. The corner workers refer to it as "number 22 fuzzy".

#86 Team Phoenix replaced a broken sway bar overnight, but a seized power steering pump has put an end to their weekend.

#33 Tubby Butterman has made up a couple of their Margin Of Victory (MOV) laps awarded as a result of yesterday's win. The MOV penalty was 7 laps.

#3 Three Sheets and #24 Bear Patrol are also nipping away at penalty laps, setting fastest times among the ChumpCars.

Road America Sunday. Update #1.

The standings as of 10:00 am:

[EC] 7 Team Brown, Miata, 20 laps

1. 66 Holy Rollers, Pontiac Acura, 19

2. 26 Shake N Bake, Toyota MR2, 19

3. 21 Brake Dusters, BMW, 19

4. 3 Three Sheets, Contour, 19

5. 8 Eggboy, SHO, 19

6. 01 My Little Pony, Mustang, 19

7. 34 Top Fool, Subaru, 18

8. 00 URA Tool, SHO, 18

9. 49 Slugworks, Honda, 18

10. 68 Sgt Shitbox, BMW, 18

11. 15 U.N. of C.C., Acura, 18

Road America Sunday. The Start.

Another day, another race at Road America. The ChumpCar staff is alert and ready, despite spending too many hours and too many hard earned dollars at Siebken's bar last night.

The Hofmeister Kinky team (#23) is switching cars. The BMW 325 that they had intended to run this weekend blew a transmission during Friday's testing, so they ran their backup BMW 318i (last season's Space Oddity car) on Saturday. The 325 trans-plant was finished on Saturday, so that is the car they will be driving today.

The #11 Lowered Expectations Acura is on the trailer with a blown engine.

#43 ISS Ford Probe stayed home with a weak clutch.

My count says 24 cars on the track for the pace laps.

At the moment the track is wet thanks to overnight rain. There are thunderstorms in the forecast, with possible strong winds. If there is lightning in the area, the cars will all be black flagged and brought into the pits for safety.

There was a bit of sleet as the race started, and that turned to sleet pellets (not quite hail) about 9:30am.

Checkered Flag on RA1!

Time for Beer and Bratwurst!!!

1. #33 Tubby Butterman BMW 325, 126 laps

2. #24 Bear Patrol, Lexus, 121

3. #8 Eggboy Racing, Ford SHO, 119

4. #21 Brake Dusters, BMW 540, 119

5. #34 Top Fool Elemonator, Subaru, 117

6. #44 Dragon Somethin', Porsche 944, 116

7. #01 My Little Pony, Mustang, 116

8. #49 Slugworks, Honda Civic, 114

9. #66 Holy Rollers, 113

10. #15 U.N. of ChumpCar, Acura, 111

11. #00 URA Tool, Ford SHO, 109

12. #168 21 Gun Racing [ISS], 105

13. #26 Shake N Bake, Toyota MR2, 103

14. #22 Carpet Munchers, Neon, 102

15. #14 It's a Datsun, Datsun 210, 97

16. #20 Corner 12 Crew, 96

17. #68 Sgt. Shitbox, 95

18. #99 Team Short Bus, VW Golf, 95

19. #46 Cougar Bait, Saab 9-3, 95

20. #23 Hofmeister Kinky, BMW 540, 95

21. #43 STD [ISS], , 95

22. #98 SHO Time Racing, Mustang, 86

23. #86 Team Phoenix, Shadow, 82

24. #18 The Danish Flash, Mustang, 76

25. #3 Three Sheets, Ford Contour, 66

26. #11 Lowered Expectations, Acura, 47

#7 Team Brown completed 127 laps, but was running in the EC category so is not included in this list.

Results at MyLaps.com

Some more reports from the pits after the race:

#11 Lowered Expectations Acura - blown engine

#46 Cougar Bait Saab - hose blew off the intercooler in the turbo stream. They tried to fix it but could not get it to stay on. They should be back tomorrow.

#44 Dragon Somethin' Porsche - Overheated on the last lap after a bolt wore a hole in the radiator. Parked it rather than risk damage.

Let's do this again tomorrow!!!

3:00 PM, 1 hour remaining

At 3:00 pm:

1. #7 [EC], 107 laps

2. #33, 106

3. #8, 101

4. #24, 100

5. #66, 100

6. #34, 99

7. #21, 99

8. #49, 97

9. #01, 97

10. #44, 97

The #7 car is a Spec Miata running in the EC category. The leading ChumpCar is the #33 Tubby Butterman BMW 325. The 3rd place car is the #8 Eggboy SHO which has spent several laps in the pits with ignition problems.

The #7 team reports they have been short shifting, running only up to 6000 rpm, but will rev up to 7000 rpm in the final hour. Look for quicker lap times from them. Or a blowed up motor.

#3 Three Sheets spent many hours in the paddock replacing a gearbox.

Two hours to go

At 2:00pm:

1. #7, 89 laps

2. #33, 89 (-1:20.043)

3. #46, 88

4. #8, 85

5. #66, 83

6. #21, 83

7. #24, 83

8. #34, 81

9. #01, 81

10. #44, 80

Several teams report that their fuel consumption is much higher here, probably due to higher race speeds. They are having to make stops for fuel every 1:20 to 1:30 instead of nearly 2 hours.

#8 Eggboy was in the pits for more work, this time an O2 sensor. They believe it is realted to their earlier ignition issues.

#66 slid off on the outside of the Carousel and hit the wall, but was able to continue.

#34 Subaru is running well. The team members have recently started a new web site for Crap Can racing... http://www.crapcanlive.com/

#00 SHO lost its exhaust. This is emabarrasing for the team because they own an exhaust repair shop in Elkhart Lake. On the plus side, they can make repairs overnight in their shop.

#21 Brake Dusters BMW 540 is stuck in 3rd gear. It's an A/T.

#68 Sgt. Shitbox BMW reports there is mud and slop on the inside lane of the Carousel, but clear if you stay out about a car width. There is also water dribbling across the track at The Bend.

#11 Lowered Expectations Acura is parked in the paddock, no one around to ask what happened.

#14 Datsun 210 is a former IT (Improved Touring) car that has been stripped of glass and made ChumpCar legal... almost. Tech gave the team 5 penalty laps for some go-faster bits that are IT legal. The car is not fast since it has a very stock 1400cc pushrod engine.

#98 Mustang spent a lot of time in the paddock for repair of the brakes. The team installed NEW rear calipers and rotors in addition to pads.

#84 had ignition and timing issues early on, but the car is now running well, according to StigDad.

#46 Cougar Bait was running well until just after the last update. They have been in the pits a couple of times for possible turbo problems.

#99 had overheating problems and a stuck throttle, but the car is now running well.

#33 is running smooth, though their team radio is on the fritz. They can hear the driver but he can't hear the pits.

The 1:00pm report

At 1:00 pm:

1. 7 Team Brown - Miata (EC), 71 laps

2. 33 Tubby Butterman, 70

3. 46 Cougar Bait, 69

4. 66 Holy Rollers, 69

5. 8 Eggboy Racing, 67

6. 24 Bear Patrol, 66

7. 21 Brake Dusters, 65

8. 34 Top Fool Elemonator, 65

9. 01 My Little Pony, 64

10. 49 Slugworks, 63

11. 68 Sgt. Shitbox, 63

#8 Team Eggboy has slowed considerably due to a failing coil. They do not have a spare, but they did borrow one from another team. They are also trying to find a replacement at a local parts store.

Road America Saturday, Race Update #2

At 11:50am:
1. 7 Team Brown - Miata (EC), 51 laps
2. 8 Eggboy Racing - SHO, 51 (-0.194 sec)
3. 46 Cougar Bait, 50
4. 33 Tubby Butterman, 50
5. 44 Dragon Somethin', 48
6. 66 Holy Rollers, 47
7. 24 Bear Patrol, 47
8. 21 Brake Dusters, 46
9. 34 Top Fool Elemonator, 46
10. 01 My Little Pony, 46

#3 reportedly hit a wall and continued. Don't know which corner. They are in 14th place, 9 laps down.

#168, an ISS car (sponsored by the 21-Gun Saloon), is stuck in 3rd gear but soldiering on in 19th place.

Standings at 11:00am

1. 8 Eggboy Racing, 36 laps

2. 46 Cougar Bait, 35

3. 66 Holy Rollers, 34

4. 21 Brake Dusters, 34

5. 33 Tubby Butterman, 33

6. 44 Dragon Somethin', 32

7. 01 My Little Pony, 31

8. 26 Shake N Bake, 31

9. 3 Three Sheets, 31

10. 15 United Nations of ChumpCar, 30

11. 34 Top Fool Elemonator, 30

12. 68 Sgt. Shitbox, 30

13. 24 Bear Patrol, 30

Fastest Lap: 2:56.769 by #8. (That's about 10 seconds faster than any other car.)

#101 Chimney Mechanics did not start..

#86 Team Phoenix is the Shadow of Stiggy & StigDad. They are having rough running issues early on and have made several pit stops.

#44 Dragon Somethin' Porsche 944 has spun several times and is being black flagged.

The Corner 12 Crew Honda was entered as car #27, but has #20 on the doors. It will be shown in results as #20.

#18 Mustang was in the pits early on to replace a failed belt.

We do not have the fancy-schmancy instant live laps update capability this weekend, but will instead be getting hourly updates via fax machine (how 1990's!). Look for the first update soon.

The Home of Cheese Curds & Cow Farts

Up in Wisconsin, Up in Wisconsin

The weather isn't very nice.

Up in Wisconsin, Up in Wisconsin

They do their racing on the ice.

(-- Lou & Peter Berryman [& Winker])

It's above freezing this morning... barely. But it's supposed to warm up into the 40s. Cloudy and there was a bit of rain earlier.

Cars are rolling out onto the 4+ mile Road America race course, one of the premiere race tracks in the U.S. and the world! And before I could get this posted, the green flag is out at 9:13.

We have about 30 cars ready to start. Some scratches, some additions from the earlier list. Here is what I was given, but I think there are a couple more changes. Cathy left early this A.M. for Martinsville to hang out with NASCAR guys.

00 URA Tool

1 My Little Pony

3 Three Sheets

7 Team Brown

8 Eggboy Racing

11 Lowered Expectation

14 It's Just a Datsun

15 United Nations of ChumpCar - Acura

18 The Danish Flash - Mustang

21 Break Dusters - BMW

22 Carpet Munchers - Neon

23 Hofmeister Kinky - BMW

24 Bear Patrol - Lexus

26 Shake & Bake - Toyota MR2

27 Corner 12 Crew -

33 Tubby Butterman - BMW

34 Top Fool E-Lemon-ator

43 STD (ISS)

44 Dragon Somethin'

46 Cougar Bait

49 Slugworks

50 Team Bratwurst ???

68 Sgt Shitbox - BMW

86 Team Phoeniz

98 SHO-time

99 Team Short Bus

101 Chimney Mechanics (ISS)

168 21 Gun Racing (ISS)

Test & Tune Day at Road America

Crap cans are on the track for test & tune day. Still a little snow on the inside of some corners (easily avoided), and lots of snow in shaded areas where the corner crews are located. One corner guy got his 4WD truck stuck on the way to his station!

Weather is mild ... for Wisconsin ... in early April ... with some sunshine and temps in the 40s. Looks like rain to the west, however.

The course we are using includes "The Bend" after the Carousel and before the Kink to slow cars down. Still plenty of room to go fast before Canada Corner.

Friday photos are posted on the ChumpCar Facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/CHUMPCAR-World-Series/102985012345