Report and photos by Dennis Gray
The 2011 Legends of Motorsports Powered by HMSA historic racing season came to a close at Florida’s Sebring International Raceway on December 2-3. The season finale of Legends’ sophomore season of competition saw a field of approximately 60 historic racing cars compete on the legendary 3.7 mile, 17-turn Sebring road course.
“This weekend has been very competitive and we are pleased with the quality of cars that turned out for this year’s finale,” said Bobby Rahal, Series Co-Founder and 1986 Indianapolis 500 champion. “The fan reception here in Sebring has been great, it’s always such a pleasure to witness these historic cars showcased on a track as legendary as Sebring.”
Notable entries at the 2011 Legends of Motorsports Sebring races were the BMW CSLs of Scott Hughes and Henry Schmitt; Porsche 935 of Steve Tetreault; 2007 Porsche RS Spyder driven by Christian Zugel; Lorne Leibel’s 1964 AC Cobra; Jim Stengel’s 1972 McRae GM-1 F5000 and 1972 McLaren M8F; 1966 Shelby GT350 of Curt Vogt; Doc Bundy in his Lotus 23B; Archie Urcioli’s 1965 Lola T70 Spyder; 1969 McLaren M6B and 1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIB of David Ritter; among others.
In addition to the on-track action, Legends of Motorsports Powered by HMSA celebrated the 50th anniversary of Phil Hill’s Formula One World Championship with a special historic timeline exhibit and slide show. A limited edition art print commemorating Hill’s championship was given to all participants as well as to the first 200 fans that purchased a 2-day ticket. Hill’s son Derek served as honored guest at the event.
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Photo Gallery (click image for larger picture and description)
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Race Report
Saturday’s feature races got underway at 11:20 a.m. under initially threatening skies at the Sebring International Raceway. The five feature races battled it out on the 3.7 mile road course through most of the day with the final feature wrapping up around 4:00 p.m. The first featured group of the day was the IMSA GT/GT200, won by Toby Bean in his 1975 Chevy Dekon Monza. Joining Bean on the podium were second place, Henry Schmitt in the 1974 BMW 3.5 CSL and third place, Bob Seitz in the 2005 Porsche 996 Cup.
Running in the second feature race of the day were the 2 Liter Sports Cars, S2000, Formula Libre and F5000 categories that were led to the checkered flag by Travis Engen in his 2001 Lola T97/20. Finishing second was Keith Frieser in his 1972 Lola T290 with Jim Stengel in his 1972 McRae GM-1 taking third.
The third feature race of the day the FIA Makes/USRRC/Classic Monospoto groups saw Chris MacAllister take victory in his 1972 Mirage M6. Also on the podium was Craig Bennett in a 1965 Lola T70 and David Ritter in a 1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIb.
In the fourth race, the Thunder & Lighting group was watched closely by racers and fans alike as fan favorite Brad Hoyt tried for the podium. Ultimately though, it was the 1966 Shelby GT350’s that went one, two and three across the podium. Curt Vogt took the checkered, Leo Voyazides second and Gary Moore rounded out the Shelby trifecta.
Taking the fifth featured group, the GTP/Group C/Can-Am group, was Christian Zugel who clocked a weekend best lap of 1:57.46 in his 2007 Porsche RX Spyder. Second in the group was Toby Bean in his 1990 Chevrolet Intrepid and taking third was Jeff Borghesi in his 1999 Lola B2K40.
A field of 19 cars entered the featured 90-minute Enduro held during the 2011 Legends of Motorsports Sebring historic races. The 2007 Pescarolo Judd 1 of David Porter took the checkered flag after completing 39 laps, followed by the 1971 Chevron B19 of Chris and Alex MacAllister and the 1976 Chevron B36 of Rick Carlino. Porter’s fastest lap of 1:58.535 (112.372 mph) was nearly 14 seconds over the next quickest entrant.
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Group One Feature Race
1. Toby Bean, 1975 Dekon Monza
2. Henry Schmitt, 1974 BMW 3.5 CSL
3. Bob Seitz, 2005 Porsche 996 Cup
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Complete Group One Results
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Group Two Feature Race
1. Travis Engen, Lola T97/20
2. Keith Frieser, Lola T290
3. Jim Stengel, McRae GM-1
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Complete Group Two Results
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Group Three Feature Race
1. Chris MacAllister, Mirage M6
2. Craig Bennett, Lola T70
3. David Ritter, Lola T70 Mk IIIB
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Complete Group Three Results
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Group Four Feature Race
1. Curt Vogt, Shelby GT350
2. Leo Voyazides, Shelby GT350
3. Gary Moore, Shelby GT350
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Complete Group Four Results
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Group Five Feature Race
1. Christian Zugel, Porsche RS Spyder
2. Toby Bean, Chevrolet Intrepid
3. Jeff Borghesi, Lola B2K40
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Complete Group Five Results
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Enduro Feature Race
1. David Porter, Pescarolo Judd 1
2. Chris MacAllister / Alex MacAllister, Chevron B19
3. Rick Carlino, Chevron B36
4. Jim Stengel, Pratt & Miller RM2
5. Henry Schmitt, BMW 3.5 CSL
Legends of Motorsports Sebring 2011 – Complete Enduro Race Results
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[Source: Legends of Motorsport; photo credit: Dennis Gray]
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Hello Dennis,
Great photos! Enjoyed visiting with you at Sebring Turn 7.
Jeff.
Again great photos and report from Dennis. However, with only 60 entries when it takes 100 to break even at Sebring is telling. SVRA has announced a reduced schedule for 2012 and so has HSR. I doubt if Legends will be back at Sebring next December unless there is a dramatic change in the sport. At the moment we have too many sanctioning bodies in the midst of a terrible recession (depression) and many are predicting either consolidation of the sanctioning bodies or the demise of one or more. Hopefully some common sense will prevail among the folks who run vintage racing.