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Photo: Bruce Morton Image
TOPEKA, Kan. (June 11, 2008) – Sports Car Club
of America, Inc. announced today a new rewards program
for drivers who hold active participation streaks at
the National Championship Runoffs®. The program
benefits will first be awarded at the 2009 event.
Designed to reward Club Racing drivers who have supported
the Runoffs continuously throughout the years, SCCA
has developed a program of benefits including: early
registration and parking spot selection; car number
priority; ability to participate in a special test
day; priority event registration; and a discounted
Runoffs entry fee.
“The Runoffs has been through a transition period
since 2004, and it is important to recognize the racers
that have supported the event over time and through
the transitions,” SCCA Club Racing VP Terry Ozment
said. “The program we have developed will reward
these drivers without adversely affecting anyone who
did not attend the Runoffs in the previous year.”
While specific details of each program will be finalized
in 2009, the following components have been confirmed:
Registration
There will be three tiers of the opening of Registration
and entry acceptance for the event. Drivers with
10 or more consecutive years of active participation
will be able to register first, followed by drivers
with one to nine years of consecutive participation.
Finally, drivers who did not participate in the event
the previous year will be able to register for the
event. The final details of the timing of this will
be determined at a later date, although it is expected
that the early registration periods will not last
for more than one week each.
Parking
Like Registration, paddock parking spots at Road America
will be first available to the drivers with 10 or
more consecutive years of active participation. The
group with one to nine consecutive years of active
participation will be able to choose next, followed
by those drivers who did not participate in the previous
year’s event. The timing will likely coincide
with registration.
Car Numbers
With registration being a stepped process, so will
the assignment of numbers. Any driver remaining in
the same class will have the right to the same number
the following year during the early registration
period. Likewise, any available number may be selected
by drivers during this early registration period.
Once general registration opens, all numbers will
be available. If two drivers had the same number
in different classes of a combined race group in
2009, the number will go to the driver with the most
seniority first based on consecutive years of active
participation.
Special Test Day
For 2009, the SCCA National Championship Runoffs will
hold three days of qualifying (Tuesday through Thursday)
with one session for each class each day. The Monday
between the traditional promoter test week and the
start of qualifying will be made an additional test
day open to all drivers but with registration preference
to drivers based on consecutive years of active participation.
Initial invitations will be made based on the driver
with the most years of consecutive Runoffs participation
to the least. Additionally, all drivers with an active
participation streak will run the test day at half
price the normal rate of a test day. All remaining
slots will be opened up for registration on a first-come,
first-served basis at the regular test day price.
Entry Fee Discount
In 2009, any driver who participated in the previous
year’s event will receive a $50 discount on
their entry fee (limit one class entry per driver).
For any of the programs utilizing a list based on
consecutive seniority, car class will not be factored.
For instance, Dave Weitzenhof’s current streak
is at 33 years. The fact that this streak included
four different classes is inconsequential to the list.
Participation is defined as having been entered in
the event and turned a wheel on track during the official
event. Multiple classes campaigned in the same year
still only count as one year of participation.
The 2008 SCCA National Championship Runoffs will be
held Oct. 6-12 at Heartland Park Topeka. In 2009, the
event will move to Road America. For more information
about the event, please visit www.scca.com/runoffs.
For the current list of active participants at the
Runoffs, click here.
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