SOLO: National Tour Peru summary

Winners Endure Weather, Competition at Peru Solo Tour Competition at Peru Solo Tour

TOPEKA, Kan. (July 7, 2004) -- As if the top competitors at last weekend's The Tire Rack® SCCA Solo National Tour event in Peru, Ind., didn't have a hard enough time fighting for a win, Mother Nature did her part in making things just a bit tougher.

Strong storms blew into the area Saturday evening, knocking down canopies, a registration tent and a couple of portable bathroom units in the process. The storms moved on, however, and soloists wrested the attention of those in attendance from the weather back to action on the course.

D Stock, featuring 17 drivers including out-of-this-world driver Mark Daddio, of Beacon Falls, Mass., provided enthusiasts the best show, perhaps, as Daddio trailed G.H. Sharp, of Kernersville, N.C., by 0.180-sec. after the first day. But Daddio, known as "The Alien" in Solo circles, began Sunday by ripping off the class' only time under 60 seconds (59.994) in his Grassroots Motorsports/Hoosier 2004 Dodge SRT-4.

His work done, Daddio then sat on the sidelines and literally held his breath as Sharp, in his Rick Hendrick BMW/SFMotorsports 2002 BMW 330Ci, and Richard Wise, of Ballwin, Mo., in his Auto Tire 1997 Acura Integra R, challenged but fell short, giving Daddio the DS win by 0.197-sec. over Ballwin. Sharp finished third, 0.243-sec. off Daddio's mark.

In another outstanding class battle from the weekend, Paul Kozlak, of Harleysville, Pa., outlasted a determined effort from his spouse and emerged victorious in A Stock.

Driving the couple's Red Haus Racing 1997 Porsche 993, Kozlak put his best effort forward on his final run (58.268) and overcame a day-one, 0.136-sec. deficit to his wife, Lynne, to earn the win. Lynne also posted her best mark on the final run (58.439), but it wasn't enough to overtake her husband. However, it was good enough to finish 0.231-sec. ahead of the Discount Tire 1989 Chevrolet Corvette driven by third-place finisher Mark Presley, of Dublin, Ohio.

Bradley Lamont, of Chicago, Ill., picked up his first-ever SCCA National Tour win in B Stock, beating out Steve Wynveen, of Germantown, Wis., by 0.759-sec. Wynveen, owner of the Over6racing.com 2001 Honda held a sizeable lead going into the final run of the day. But Lamont pulled off an almost miraculous feat, cutting 1.4 seconds off of his previous best time of the weekend to take the win and beat the team owner. Martin Brown, of Waterford, Mich., in his Raymond&Assoc. Construction 2001 S2000, wound up third.

Richard West, of Richmond, Va., got an unexpected gift in Street Touring Xtreme when then-leader Todd Meade, of Pataskala, Ohio, was disqualified from the competition for driving in an off-limits area of the Grissom Aeroplex. West, in his Webb Motorsport, KW Suspension 2003 Mini Cooper S, took the win by 0.892-sec. over Jeff Brown, of Liberty Township, Ohio, whose 1998 Acura Integra Type R was 0.686-sec. faster than Chris Fenter, of Appleton, Wis., in his 2002 Subaru Impreza WRX.

In Street Modified 2, Danny Popp, of Cincinnati, Ohio, left his familiar A Street Prepared surroundings long enough to toy with the SM2 field and come out with a win. Driving his Ecklers/McCluskey Chevrolet/RAFT 2003 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, Popp posted a 5.456-second margin of victory over Paul Dornburg, of Owensboro, Ky. Dornburg, in his Incontinent Racing 1973 Porsche 9111t, finished comfortably ahead of Matt Coleman, of Louisville, Ky., who finished 0.625-sec. behind.

Entry lists showed Coleman driving a 1997 Corvette, but a wreck last Wednesday left the car irreparable. According to Coleman, his insurance company paid him "on the spot." The quick cash enabled him to locate and buy a New Jersey-based, fifth-generation Corvette on the internet.

Coleman flew to New Jersey, picked up the car and drove it back to Indiana in time for practice on Friday.

The Tour next heads to Bremerton Speedway in Bremerton, Wash., July 24-25, for the final stop of the 2004 The Tire Rack® SCCA Solo National Tour before September's The Tire Rack® SCCA Solo National Championships in Topeka, Kan.

For more information about the Tour or the National Championships, visit www.scca.com.

-scca-