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Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 – Report and Photos

Tom Malloy. 69 McLaren M8E Picasa
Tom Malloy. 69 McLaren M8E

Report and photos by David Ferguson

The Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 was held April 25-28 at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. Sanctioned by HSR, the 36th running of the Mitty saw more than 400 entries challenge the 12-turn, 2.54 mile road course.

David Hobbs served as grand marshal for the 2013 Speedfest Mitty, which also featured a classic Can-Am reunion and honored MG as the featured marque.

Hobbs, a veteran of almost every type of sports car racing including Le Mans, Can-Am, Formula 5000, IMSA and even the Indy 500, is currently a commentator for the US television coverage of Formula 1 racing. He graced the event with a wealth of stories from his racing experiences and comments on the current state of racing.

Rain was forecast for the weekend, following a perfect spring day for Friday’s practice sessions. Saturday greeted the participants with some early morning rain which affected some of the qualifying sessions, but by mid-morning the rains left, allowing for a full slate of races.

There were several memorable races, highlighted by the Can-Am race of course. Craig Bennett in a 1974 Shadow DN4 beat Jim Pace’s 1968 McLaren M6B by four seconds, but what stood out is the cars and the noise they make. Spectators were given a case study on why the series was sometimes called “rolling thunder”.

The International / American Challenge saw a good dice for the lead between Cody Ellsworth in a 1973 Porsche 911 and Jody O’Donnell in a 1969 Chevrolet Corvette until the Corvette suffered a brake failure. But what really made it memorable was that 71 cars started the race. And these 71 cars represented just about every make or model that tugs at the heart of sports car enthusiasts – Cobras; Corvettes; Mustangs; Porsches; BMWs; Cougars; GT40s; MGs; Triumphs; Loti; Ginettas; Sunbeams; Camaros; Corvairs; Volvos and Datsuns were all there. Watching them snake down the famed Esses at Road Atlanta was an awesome sight. They kept coming, and coming…and coming. It’s a testament to the drivers that the race was completed without one full yellow caution.

The weather turned for the worse on Sunday with rain, rain and more rain. Subsequently, the early morning Classic GT enduro only saw 15 cars entered, racers and spectators started to leave and by 10:00am the car corrals were empty and vendors were packing up. The organizers decided to combine races for the afternoon sprints, and even with that change, one race had only two entrants. Groups Two, Three and Five had over 170 entries for the weekend, but their combined race on Sunday only had 28 entries. And race they did.

Doc Bundy in a 1964 Lotus 23 and Patrick Wilmot in an 1984 Ford Mustang raced each other hard. Bundy did not enjoy the typical lightweight advantage, as the Lotus aquaplaned easily on the many puddles now present at Road Atlanta. He finally spun a full 360 degrees coming out of the very fast turn 12, but gathered up the sports racer to finish second behind Wilmot. Bundy, who has raced all over the world for over three decades, called this the worst conditions he had ever raced under.

All in all, the 2013 Speedfest Mitty was an interesting weekend. Among the more interesting cars entered to race or exhibition laps included the Johan Woerheide’s 1981 Porsche 935 in the lovely JLP race livery, 1969 Porsche 917 of Christian Zugel and Mazda’s 1990 Le Mans-winning 787B and a later 1992 RX-792P.

Photographer David Ferguson documented the 2013 Mitty by HSR, offering the following picture gallery that shows the strong field of entrants, in addition to the spectacular views found on the French countryside. We split up the 215 pictures that David took into two galleries. The first gallery starting below features our favorite 50 images, all displayed in the full-width view of our website. The second gallery (and race results), meanwhile, can be found on the last page of the article and gives a comprehensive view of all the photographs.

Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 – Top 50 Photo Gallery

 

1988 Jaguar XJR-7 GTP
1988 Jaguar XJR-7 GTP
Danny Burnstein. 70 Porsche 914/6
1970 Porsche 914/6
1972 BMW CSL
1972 BMW CSL
1966 Shelby GT 350
1966 Shelby GT 350
1968 Mercury Cougar
1968 Mercury Cougar
1968 Chevrolet Corvette
1968 Chevrolet Corvette
1980 March 80A
1980 March 80A
1971 Porsche 914/6
1971 Porsche 914/6
1961 Porsche 356
1961 Porsche 356 of Vic Skirmants
1959 Lotus 18 Formula Jr.
1959 Lotus 18 Formula Jr.

Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 – Top 50 Photo Gallery Page Two

 

1960 Aston Martin DB4
1960 Aston Martin DB4
Byron De Foors. 68 Porsche 911S
1968 Porsche 911S
Debra Graves. 1963 Jaguar E-Type
1963 Jaguar E-Type
Randy Williams. 59 Triumph TR3
1959 Triumph TR3
Miles Whitlock's 1949 Jaguar XK120 oversteering at 12 trying to stay ahead of Cliff Murray's Porsche 356 and Stacey Schepen's Morgan.
Miles Whitlock’s 1949 Jaguar XK120 oversteering at 12 trying to stay ahead of Cliff Murray’s Porsche 356 and Stacey Schepen’s Morgan.
Doc Bundy in the 1964 Lotus 23B
Doc Bundy in the 1964 Lotus 23B
F5000 Power - Tom Malloy's 1975 AAR Eagle leads the 1976 Lola T332 of Rick Parsons through turn 12F5000 Power - Tom Malloy's 1975 AAR Eagle leads the 1976 Lola T332 of Rick Parsons through turn 12
F5000 Power – Tom Malloy’s 1975 AAR Eagle leads the 1976 Lola T332 of Rick Parsons through turn 12
Rolling Thunder!
Rolling Thunder! Start of the Can-Am race.
Byron De Foor. 65 Lola T70 Mk1
1965 Lola T70 MkI
1967 Matich SR3 Can-Am
1967 Matich SR3 Can-Am

Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 – Top 50 Photo Gallery Page Three

 

1974 Shadow DN4
1974 Shadow DN4
1969 Lola T163
1969 Lola T163
1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIB
1969 Lola T70 Mk IIIB
1981 Frisbee Can-Am
1981 Frisbee Can-Am
1969 McLaren M8E of Tom Malloy
1969 McLaren M8E of Tom Malloy
1969 Porsche 917 at speed
1969 Porsche 917 at speed
1975 Lola Schkee DB1
1975 Lola Schkee DB1
1969 Lola T163
1969 Lola T163
1969 McLaren M8E at speed
1969 McLaren M8E at speed
1981 March 817 Can-Am
1981 March 817 Can-Am

Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 – Top 50 Photo Gallery Page Four

 

1972 McLaren M8-FP
1972 McLaren M8-FP
1975 Lola Schkee DB1
1975 Lola Schkee DB1
1974 Shadow DN4
1974 Shadow DN4
1969 McLaren M8E
1969 McLaren M8E
The Esses from behind the fence
The Esses from behind the fence
Gunnar Jeannette - 1969 Porsche 917
Gunnar Jeannette – 1969 Porsche 917
Weldon Munsey - 1992 Mazda RX-792P
Weldon Munsey – 1992 Mazda RX-792P
1975 March Formula Atlantic
1975 March Formula Atlantic
1965 Chevrolet Corvair
1965 Chevrolet Corvair
1969 Porsche 911
1969 Porsche 911

Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 – Top 50 Photo Gallery Page Five

 

1970 Boss 302 Mustang
1970 Boss 302 Mustang
1960 Aston Martin DB4
1960 Aston Martin DB4
1965 Ford Mustang Fastback
1965 Ford Mustang Fastback
Gene Felton's 1976 Chevrolet Nova
Gene Felton’s 1976 Chevrolet Nova
Doc Bundy in a 1964 Lotus 23B struggles with aquaplaning while leading eventual race winner Patrick Wilmot's 1984 Ford Mustang
Doc Bundy in a 1964 Lotus 23B struggles with aquaplaning while leading eventual race winner Patrick Wilmot’s 1984 Ford Mustang
1967 Mini Cooper in turn Five. The aptly named Rains Racing Alfa Romeo GTV ran out of traction.
1967 Mini Cooper in turn Five. The aptly named Rains Racing Alfa Romeo GTV ran out of traction.
Diehard fans
Diehard fans at Road Atlanta
Leigh Derby, 68 Triumph Spitfire racing under nasty conditions.
1968 Triumph Spitfire racing under nasty conditions.
There's always one that's got to jump in the puddle and make a splash.
There’s always one that’s got to jump in the puddle and make a splash.
1959 Austin-Healey Sprite
1959 Austin-Healey Sprite

Speedfest Mitty 2013 – Main Photo Gallery (click image for larger picture and description)

[nggallery id=536 images=15]

 

Speedfest Classic Motorsports Mitty 2013 – Race Results

 

Group 1
1- Craig Bennett 74 Shadow DN4
2- Jim Pace 68 McLaren M6B
3- Toby Bean 69 Lola T70 Mk IIIB

Group 2
1- Craig Chima 62 Lotus Super 7
2- Ray Morgan 64 Merlyn M VI
3- Tom Trabue 65 Porsche 911

Group 3
1- Doc Bundy 64 Lotus 23B
2- Randy Williams 67 Jaguar XKE
3- Jonathon Ziegelman 70 Porsche 914/6

Group 4
1- Travis Engen 01 Lola T97/20
2- Marc Giroux 97 Lola T97/20
3- Richard Duffey 97 Lola T97/20

Group 5
1- Cody Ellsworth 73 Porsche 911
2- Charles Rayhall 71 Porsche 814/6
3- Jeff Dernehl 74 Mazda RX3

Group 6
1- Travis Engen 05 Audi R8
2- John Reitman 02 Lola B2K40
3- Justin Ehrlich 12 Radical SR8

Group 7
1- Howard Katz 75 Toj
2- Tanner Baker 08 Ligier JS49
3- Shane Morris 11 Radical SR3 RS

Group 8
1- Mark Furcini 05 Charger
2- Maurice Hull 06 Charger
3- Brian Norman 06 Charger

Group 9
1- Donald Soenen 95 Mustang Trans Am
2- Simon Gregg 02 Corvette
3- Richard Howe 89 Mustang Trans Am

Groups 2, 3 and 5 (combined due to rain)
1- Patrick Wilmot 84 Ford Mustang
2- Doc Bundy 64 Lotus 23B
3- Tom Trabue 65 Porsche 911

Groups 4 and 6
1- Chris Forrer 91 Swift DB4 2000
no other finishers

Groups 7 and 9
1- Shane Morris 11 Radical SR3
2- Marius Avermarg 07 Porsche Cup
2- Gary Ball 07 Porsche Cup

Klub Sport Porsche Challenge
1- Charles Rayhall 71 914/6
2- Jay Javetz 70 914/6
3- Mark Gold 70 914/6

MG Feature race
1- Jerry Richards 72 MGB GT V8
2- Larry Ligas 69 MGB GT V8
3- Bill Bartlett 72 MGB GT V8

Jack Lewis Enterprises International/American Challenge
1- Cody Ellsworth 73 Porsche 911
2- Larry Ligas 61 Jaguar XKE
3- Charles Rayhall 71 Porsche 914/6

Louis Chevrolet Vintage Enduro
1- Larry Ligas 95 Ford Mustang
2- Lee Giannone 66 Porsche 911
3- Gordon King/ Andy Greene/ Burt Levy 70 Royale RP-4

Louis Chevrolet Classic GT Enduro
1- Bill Riddell 09 Porsche Cayman
2- Cody Ellsworth 73 Porsche 911
3- Frank Beck 72 Porsche 914/6

Louis Chevrolet Historic GTP/WSC/DP Enduro
1- Tanner Baker 08 Ligier JS49
2- Shane Morris/ Danyel Torres 11 Radical SR3 RS
3- Marius & Viet Avermag 07 Porsche Cup

[Source: HSR; David Ferguson]