The East Coast Supercharging Corvette Challenge - Strip Show

Recently, we told you about the Corvette Challenge, a federation of five individually sanctioned race series held in several different states and designed for Vette owners of all levels of driving experience ("Mounting a Challenge," Apr. '06). With the first quarter of the '06 Challenge season now in the books, we thought we'd bring you up to date on this year's highlights.

The East Coast Supercharging Corvette Challenge (ECSCC), held at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park, in Englishtown, New Jersey, got off to a successful start, averaging more than 70 entrants at each of the season's first three races. The first race was won by Joe Signore, who capitalized on a superior reaction time to drive his Torch Red '98 convertible past John Trescott's identically colored '04 coupe in the finals. This was the second event victory of Signore's Challenge career.

In the next race-the first of the season to award points-veteran Challenge competitor Jim Kovitch captured his first event win in eight years of series competition, piloting his white '88 Anniversary Vette to victory over Eric Fischer's rare Fairway Green '98 coupe. Tom Anderson was also a first-time Challenge victor in the third event. He cut a quick light in his white '91 coupe to defeat Jerry Muniz and his black '05. Still, with two different winners in the first two points races, Muniz was able to grab the top spot in the ECSCC championship standings.

The New Jersey series also offers two separate heads-up classes. The Vette Doctors Pro 8 Shootout Presented by Neverlift Racecraft is an all-out class in which 8-second potential is necessary to be competitive. Paul Ziajski qualified his Cartek twin-turbo '02 Z06 in First place with a blistering 8.72-second pass at 157.21 mph. But it was Ziajski's skill on the tree that got him the win in the finals, where he defeated Angelo Valla's 555ci nitrous-injected '73. Ziajski managed a .040 reaction time on the .400 Pro Tree and ran an 8.629 at 157.72 mph to Valla's quicker (but losing) 8.379 at 165.40.

The other heads-up class, the Cartek Racing Pro 10.0 Index presented by Silly Goose Racing Stables, showcases a slightly less radical group of cars (no quicker than 10 seconds in the quarter). Interestingly, Ziajski took some boost out of his twin-turbo Z06, tuned it to run in this class, and qualified in Third place. David Outten, meanwhile, took the top qualifying spot in his '90, posting a 10.049 at 133.34 mph. These two had it out in the semifinals, with Ziajski taking the win by a .018-second margin. Ziajski went on to win the event when Alan Eckert ran his Navy Blue '01 under the index (9.838 at 142.04) in the finals.

For more information on the New Jersey Corvette Challenge series, visit www.corvettechallenge.info.

The West Coast Corvette Challenge (WCCC) is also three races into its season. This series runs on two tracks in California and includes one race in Las Vegas. The winner of the first event was Gary Combs, who drove his silver '03 coupe to victory over Jim Lane. Combs managed a Second-place finish in the next event, falling to Mike Villeneuve and his burgundy '05. And in the third race, Jim Holland piloted his Torch Red C5 to the winner's circle, defeating Robert Piroumian. Combs currently holds the championship lead, thanks to his two finals appearances.

For more information on the WCCC, go to www.corvette-challenge.com.

The Horsepower Sales Corvette Challenge (HPSCC), held at Moroso Motorsports Park, in Jupiter, Florida, has completed two of its scheduled races, having lost a third to inclement weather. The second largest of the Challenge series in terms of participation, the HPSCC is averaging around 30 Corvettes per event. Dino Ramirez took his C4 to the winner's circle in the first race of the season, defeating event organizer Bob Mancuso and his C5. After the second event was rained out, Jamie Jamison drove his star-spangled C3 past John Perez's C5 in the third race to claim his first career Challenge win. Ramirez currently holds a one point lead over Mancuso in the championship standings.

For more details on the HPSCC, point your browser to www.corvettechallengemmp.com.

The RevXtreme Florida Corvette Challenge (RCC), held at Bradenton Motorsports Park, has managed to complete only one race as of this writing. Series regular Craig Gingerich won that event in his Pewter C5 coupe. Gingerich took the win over Marc Fisher, who also drives a Pewter C5. It's worth noting that Fisher is in the process of developing Florida's third Corvette Challenge series, this one held at the eighth-mile track in Lakeland. The Lakeland group does not have its own Web site yet but can be reached through the drag-racing section of the Corvette Forum (www.corvetteforum.com). For more info on the RCC, visit www.flacorvettechallenge.com.

The Carolina Corvette Challenge Presented by Jamison's Custom Corvette (SCCC) is also underway, having completed one of its two scheduled races at Carolina Dragway, in Jackson, South Carolina. Dwayne Schultz took his Pewter C5 to victory over Bryan Crocker in the lone race, besting Bryan at the lights and posting a 10.586 on a 10.50 dial-in.

For more information on the SCCC, go to www.carolinacorvettechallenge.com.