22 DECEMBER 2018 scca.com
EVENT REPORT
SCCA members are like a family. Everyone in the Club
knows that. But surely, when
it’s your closest competitor, at
your home track, and every
tenth of a second is going to
count – that “family” shows itself
as more of an “estranged uncle
holding a grudge” – right?
Not in GT-Lite.
After a big crash in Tuesday’s
qualifying that involved contact
with a concrete barrier exiting
Turn 11, Troy Ermish was in a mad
scramble to repair the front left
corner of his LSEnergy/Rebello
Racing/Troy Ermish Nissan PL510.
“Joe Huffaker offered me his
shop if I wanted to stay,” Ermish
says. “He gave me the keys to
his shop and said you can stay
all night long if you’d like. I was
really appreciative of that.”
Luckily, Ermish was only an
hour and a half from his own shop
and had the tools he needed to
fix his car. Ermish pulled back
into Sonoma Raceway at 5 a.m.
on Thursday morning, running
on just three hours of sleep,
and landed on the Tire Rack
pole – less than a tenth ahead
of Huffaker, and another two
seconds from the rest of the field.
“I was probably dumb and
delirious, that’s why I was
faster,” Ermish jokes.
Sadly, though, the heavyweight
fight never materialized. Huffaker
pulled off on just the second
lap while chasing Ermish, a
broken left rear axle the culprit.
With that, Ermish was the
National Champion in GT-Lite,
with some 35sec to spare.
“It’s just hard to explain when
you’ve got the drive,” Ermish
says. “All of my life, I wanted
to be a professional driver.
This is as close as it gets.”
GT-LITE
Ermish and Huffaker have
sparred throughout the years
on the West Coast; always
friendly, good-natured rivals.
Ermish had gotten the best of
Huffaker on occasion, inching
closer and closer to a true
competitor. That final step was
put to rest during this Runoffs.
“The high of setting fast time
is almost as good as winning,”
Ermish says. “I couldn’t believe
I did it. As soon as I did that, you
get so much confidence. Before,
I always thought I could run with
him, but I thought I’d have to run
on the ragged edge to beat him.
I’d be on the verge of crashing.”
Behind Ermish were a pair of
Club Racing lifers, Joe Harlan
and Jonathan Goodale. The
pair battled for position deep
into the race, which became
for second place with the
retirement of Huffaker and
Peter Zekert (blown motor).
Harlan had been an engineer
and crew chief for a number
DREAM COME TRUE
Troy Ermish (MAIN) recovered from a crash during an early
qualifying session to take the pole and the win in GT-Lite.
Some 30 seconds behind at the checker were Joe Harlan
(BELOW) and Jonathan Goodale (FAR RIGH T).
RACE 3 | FRIDAY | OCT. 19, 2018 | 10: 40 A.M.
CHAMPION
TROY ERMISH
San Francisco Region
LSEnergy/Rebello Racing/
Troy Ermish Nissan PL510
of Runoffs cars over the
years but was making his first
appearance as a driver in the
Top Tech Motorsports/Nissan/
Hoosier Nissan 240SX.
Goodale, a second-generation
SCCA member from Colorado,
earned his second Runoffs
podium this year in his
Mazdaspeed/Hoosier/Hawk/
Summit Mazda MX- 5. His first
Runoffs podium came at Laguna
Seca in 2014 – another twisty
track that depends on driving and
handling rather than horsepower.
That’s no coincidence.
“I’m everything from building
the car to driving the car here
to setting up the paddock to
mounting tires,” Goodale says.
“My car hasn’t been on the dyno
in five years. That’s my story
with everything. But that’s what
this is – you and your friends
doing the best you can.”
Just a part of the success
stories from the SCCA family.
Reece White
Rupert
Berrin
gton
Ru
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Ri
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Corwine