I'm Number Two! I'm Number Two!

As SCCA regions go, the SWVR is fairly small. But we're smack dab in the middle of a handful of bigger regions, all about 3-4 hours away. I've always tried to get out and run with those groups. It's good to see how other folks run their events and it's always interesting to match your skills up against a new group of drivers.

This year, I've followed several of the SWVR to the Steel Cities Region, which runs around Pittsburgh. I've been running there semi-regularly, because (a) it's in the girlfriend's neck of the woods and she graciously lets me go play; (b) they have a great regular venue in the Vehicle Dynamics Area (aka "a big flat piece of asphalt with no landscaping or light poles!") at BeaveRun Motorsports Complex; and (c) they have a Street Tire class, in which cars from from all the open classes that run on street tires rather than slicks compete against each other. The Street Tire class is particularly cool since I'm into the "show up and drive" mode this year.

I've run four events with SCR this year and developed an amazingly annoying consistency - I've finished second every time. Behind three different people. It's very frustrating. I'm thinking of getting one of those big foam hands with two fingers to put on the car's antenna or something.

This past weekend was SCR's biggest event, run in conjunction with the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix. The PVGP is a really neat event, running through the downtown streets around Schenley Park. But the course is really narrow, lined with walls and the like, and limits participation there to smaller slower cars. A few years back, they started running an event for the bigger faster cars at Beaver Run the weekend before the Schenley Park races, so SCR piggybacked an autocross along with it.

And, yes, I finished second. Saturday and Sunday. And overall. ARHGHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Having said that, here's some action shots from the weekend, taken by my fellow SWVR peeps Martin and Tara: