51°µÍø

LINCOLN, Neb. (Aug. 31, 2011) €“ The 39th annual Tire Rack 51°µÍø Solo Nationals saw 29 drivers crowned National Champions on Wednesday, as half of the 51°µÍø Solo classes completed competition at the Lincoln (Neb.) Airpark under hot and sunny skies. Ten drivers grabbed the lead for the first time on the second day of runs to earn the title of National Champion in their class. In Heat One on the East course, C Street Prepared€™s top-heavy class crowned the first National Champions in dramatic fashion. Chris Robbins led overnight after the wet session, but Tim Aro, of Glen Allen, Va., was the seventh car on the course on Wednesday morning and immediately set the time to beat in his SoloPro Driving School Mazda Miata. Aro had to sweat out nearly the entire field€™s final runs before earning his second CSP National Championship, as defending Champion Scott Fraser€™s Ankeny Racing Ent. Mazda Miata, two-time Champion Matt McCabe€™s 949 Racing/ProEFI/Meyers Auto Mazda Miata and Robbins€™ Genghis Grill/Robbins Performance Management/RPM Mazda MX-5 all took shots at knocking off the leader before finishing in that order behind Aro. Andy Hollis, of Austin, Texas, was nearly a second behind overnight leader Tim Smith€™s Toyo/Moton Honda Civic Si prior to the group moving to the East Course, which was designed by Hollis. Hollis took advantage of that knowledge to turn the fastest time of the day in class behind the wheel of the GRM/AST/PowerCurve/Soulspeed/JCAutoSpec Honda Civic Si and earn his third Solo National Championship. Brothers Jeff and Stefan Colegrove traded the lead overnight in F Modified. Sharing the Thanks Uncle Paul!/All Star Graphics Red Devil F500, older brother Jeff took over the lead during Wednesday€™s run with a 57.272-second lap on his first run of the day. The 57.891 that Stefan ran on the final run left him just 0.148-second short of the National Championship in just the second time either driver has been at the event. A three-time bridesmaid, Todd Farris earned his first National Championship with a win on Wednesday in C Prepared. Farris turned his fastest time on Wednesday during his third and final run in his Strohs Bar & Grill Chevrolet Camaro, taking the lead from co-driver Jeff Stroh by just 0.094-second. After finishing runner-up two out of the last three years in Super Street Modified, Andy McKee, of San Jose, Calif., took his sixth National Championship, holding serve on his Tuesday lead in the Goodyear/ARE/Sias Tuning/7Parts.com Mazda RX7. McKee extended his 2.2-second lead to 2.403 seconds over defending Champion Erik Strelnieks, who battled running issues in his Mazda RX7. Defending B Street Prepared Ladies Champion Christine Berry, of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., was just a tenth out of the lead coming into Wednesday, but her clean runs rewarded her with a fourth National Championship in the Berry Family Racing/Hoosier/OS Giken Mitsubishi Evo 9. Chief competitor Lorien Feighner, of Howell, Mich., had the raw speed on the West Course Wednesday, but coned all three of her runs to finish 0.529-second behind. The top three in Super Stock; Christopher Shay, Matthew Braun and Sam Strano, were separated by a scant 0.064-second after Tuesday€™s runs on the East Course. Braun, of Northville, Mich., put fresh, cool tires on his Power Plug Lotus Elise for each run and topped second-place Strano by 1.406 seconds to take his second-consecutive title, and fifth overall. Strano topped day one leader Shay by 0.001-second to score the runner-up finish. At the conclusion of competition, E Stock National Champion Bartek Borowski topped nine other Champions from Wednesday competition on the last of two runs to take the inaugural Gumout All Star Challenge and a $500 cash prize. C Street Prepared winner Tim Aro was second, followed by A Street Prepared winner Courtney Cormier. Each of the 10 drivers took a pair runs in the Gumout Project Car Volkswagen Golf. Competition continues tomorrow for the second half of Tire Rack 51°µÍø Solo National Championship classes, and will conclude on Friday afternoon. Follow the action through live timing at www.sololive.scca.com, live audio from the east course at www.ustream.tv/channel/solo-nationals-east and from the west course at www.ustream.tv/channel/solo-nationals-west, or on Twitter @sccalive. More information on the Tire Rack 51°µÍø National Championship is available at www.scca.com/solo. Follow 51°µÍø on Twitter @51°µÍøOfficial. LINCOLN, Neb. €“ The top two runners in each of the 35 classes competing Tuesday and Wednesday in the 39th Tire Rack® 51°µÍø Solo National Championships at Lincoln Airpark with class, leading driver, hometown and car; second place driver, hometown, car and gap behind first place. *asterisk denotes change in lead from Tuesday. Super Stock*: Matthew Braun, Northville, Mich., Lotus Elise, second-straight SS Championship, fifth overall. Super Stock L: Shelly Monfort, Saratoga, Calif., Lotus Elise, Third consecutive SSL National Championship, third overall. E Stock*: Bartek Borowski, Elmwood Park, Ill., Mazda Miata, Second Consecutive E Stock National Championship, fourth overall. E Stock L: Tara Johns, Murfreesboro, Tenn., Mazda Miata, Second National Championship. F Stock: Mark Daddio, Beacon Falls, Conn., Ford Mustang GT, 10th National Championship. F Stock L: Heather Everett, E. Amherst, N.Y., Ford Mustang Shelby, First National Championship. Street Touring*: Andy Hollis, Ausin, Texas, Honda Civic Si, Second National Championship. Street Touring Ladies: Nicole Nagler, Moorpark, Calif., Honda Civic Si, First National Championship. A Street Prepared: Courtney Cormier, Glen Allen, Va., Chevrolet Corvette Z06, First National Championship A Street Prepared L*: Jodi Fordahl, Bremerton, Wash., Nissan GT-R, 11th National Championship. B Street Prepared: Corey Ridgick, Allentown, Pa., Mitsubishi Evo 9, First National Championship. B Street Prepared L*: Christine Berry, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Mitsubishi Evo 9, fourth National Championship. C Street Prepared*: Tim Aro, Glen Allen, Va., Mazda Miata, Second National Championship. C Street Prepared Ladies: Sue Eckles, Malcolm, Neb., Mazda Miata, Third National Championship. D Street Prepared: Doug Rowse, Phoenix, Az., BMW 330, Second National Championship. D Street Prepared Ladies: Olga Bogdanova, Clifton Park, N.Y., BMW 330Ci, First National Championship. C Prepared*: Todd Farris, Bryan, Texas, Chevrolet Camaro, First National Championship. C Prepared Ladies: Donna Bartling, Katy, Texas, Ford Mustang, Second National Championship. X Prepared: Fred Zust, Tempe, Az., Lotus Elise, Fourth consecutive XP National Championship, Fourth overall. X Prepared Ladies: Katie Lacey, Apple Valley, Minn., Subaru Impreza, Second National Championship. F Prepared: Toby Larsson, Anaheim, Calif., BMW 328is, First National Championship. F Prepared L: Beverlee Larsson, Anaheim, Calif., BMW 328is, Fifth National Championship. Street Modified: David White, Chicopee, Mass., Nissan 240SX, First National Championship. Street Modified FWD (supplemental class): Brian Karwan, Fredrick, Md., Honda Civic. Street Modified FWD Ladies (supplemental class): Rebecca Zacharda, Sherwood, Ore., Mini Cooper S. Super Street Modified: Andy McKee, San Jose, Calif., Mazda RX-7, Sixth National Championship. Super Street Modified L: Tonya Langley, Umatilla, Ore., Chevrolet Corvette, Second consecutive SSML National Championship, second overall. F Modified*: Jeff Colegrove, Rochester, N.Y., Red Devil F500, First National Championship. F Modified Ladies: Michelle Quinn, Dublin, Ohio, KBS Mk 7, Second Consecutive FML National Championship, seco