A Modified Regardless of the wetness still on the East Course for Tuesday’s
second heat, everyone in A Mod ran
on slicks despite having trouble
getting the power down at the start
and navigating the tight chicane at the
finish. Gary Milligan had the fast time
of the day with a 53.787, giving him a
couple of seconds lead over co-driver
Joe Cheng in the Vancouver Special.
K.J. Christopher in a BBR he calls the
Phantom Menace was at 56. 3,
followed two seconds later by Bill
Gendron aboard the CK Dragon, and
Brian Garfield.
Typically A Mod is the fastest class
at Solo Nationals, but due in part to
the drying conditions during the
second heat – and in no small part to
a terrific drive in a really quick FSAE
car – Formula SAE held that
distinction this year. But the rules
allow only two drivers per car per
class, so third-driver Garfield ran the
University of Maryland’s FSAE
creation in A Mod.
On the second day’s tighter West
Course, Garfield had the fastest time
at 54.606. However, Milligan’s 55.0
gave him a 108.795sec total that
couldn’t be beaten. Cheng had cone
trouble and a DNF from the motor
cutting out. So the order after
Milligan was Christopher, 3.782sec
back, then Garfield and Cheng with
last year’s winner Dan Wasdahl just
out of the trophies.
“We started building this car in
2002 so this win has been a long time
in the making,” said Milligan,
although the car is declared a 2008
model. “We’ve chased a bad crank
sensor, ECU problems, aero balance
issues and I broke my hip one year. It’s
Nwst Vancouver Special 121.795
rewarding to finally complete a full
Solo Nationals.
“This really is a team effort. Joe and
I complement each other and Carol
Wong has been a great asset as well.
She reprogrammed the ECU and helps
out with our data acquisition and video.”
Said Garfield, “We’ve been working
with the Maryland FSAE drivers for a
few years now and they’ve been
getting better and better. I’ve driven a
few of the older cars but only had
three runs on the test ’n’ tune course
in this one before Nationals. It’s drag
limited so you put it in third gear and
A Modified Ladies
The Milligan/Cheng team recruited Carol Wong in 2010 to drive their
Vancouver Special in AML.
Unfortunately, the car broke last year
so she never completed a run on the
second day. With a DNF for the event,
she declined the champion’s accolades.
This year she was again the only
driver in the class but was able to
compete despite some electronics
problems. “The ECU fried itself so we
ordered a new one and had it
drop-shipped overnight,” Wong said.
“We plugged it in and prayed, but
things were good.”
In the fourth heat, Wong drove a dry
East Course on day one and finished
with only one clean run – but it was fast
at 57. 111. The West Course uncovered
more gremlins but she was able to
complete her first run, 64.684 including
a cone, finishing with a total time of
just try to stay flat on the gas the
whole way. It’s been a ton of fun.”
A MODIFIED
1. Gary Milligan Nwst Vancouver Special 108.795
2. K. J. Christopher CSCC BBR Phantom Menace 112.577
3. Brian Garfield WDC University of Maryland TR11 112.915
4. Joe Cheng Nwst Vancouver Special 113.882
5. Dan Wasdahl/NeOh (BBR/Phantom DVS-1); 6. Bill Gendron/NEng (CK Dragon); 7.
Stacey Strout/NEng (Dragon F1); 8. Jenny Williams/OhV (Proto s/s); 9. William
Goodale/NEng (Dragon F1); 10. John Haftner/SanF (Tui BH3); 11. Robert Barone/NEng
(CK Dragon); 12. Peter Smith/OhV (Proto s/s); 13. Phil Alspach/OhV (Lola T204).
A MODIFIED LADIES
1. Carol Wong
A MODIFIED
Gary Milligan
Northwest Region
Vancouver Special
121.795sec. So this year she was presented with her first Solo National Championships trophy and jacket. Jeff Cashmore
A MODIFIED LADIES
Carol Wong
Northwest Region
Thanks Joe & Gary!/
VCMC.ca
Vancouver Special
B Modified Ladies
“That’s what an autocross car should be like! I want one! It’s
like a drug!” bubbled Briget Sawatsky
after exiting Clemens Burger’s
LeGrand. “I asked Mark [her
husband] if we could buy one, but he
hasn’t answered me yet.”
In a marked contrast to last year,
when she lost C Stock Ladies by a
margin of 0.001sec, Sawatsky
shellacked the BML field winning by
almost six seconds.
