SCCA National Championship Runoffs Begin New Chapter at Road America

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (Sept. 21, 2009) – Now in its 46th year, the SCCA National Championship Runoffs®, the Pinnacle of American Motorsports, will embark into new territory, as it travels to Road America, in Elkhart Lake, Wis., for the first time ever. Thousands of drivers, crew, staff and industry representatives have already descended on Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine Region for testing at the 14-turn, 4.048-mile road course, and from Sept. 22 – 27, more than 600 entrants will compete for 25 National Titles.

The SCCA National Championship Runoffs, a veritable “Olympics” of racing, has been named by “Car & Driver Magazine” as one of the top 10 events in motorsports. SCCA Club Racing drivers do not simply enter the Runoffs, they are invited, and to earn an invitation to the Runoffs, a driver must be amongst the top 10 in their class in one of nine SCCA Divisions, or be that class’ defending National Champion. Past SCCA National Champions include such legendary names as Bobby Rahal, Jimmy Vasser, Elliott Forbes-Robinson and Skip Barber.

The first Runoffs was held in 1964 and for the first six years, the event rotated between Riverside International Raceway, in California, and Daytona International Raceway. The Runoffs then moved to Road Atlanta for 24 years (1970 to 1993) before settling at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course from 1994 to 2005. The Runoffs spent three years at Heartland Park Topeka (2006 to 2008) before it was announced in 2008 that the event would move to legendary Road America.

The Runoffs begin with three days of qualifying from Sept. 22 – 24. Each class will receive three 25-minute sessions to set their best lap time and set the final starting grid. Racing begins Friday, Sept. 25 and will continue through Sept. 27. There are 24 race groups in all, varying from modern open-wheel cars, to high-power American muscle cars and even stock sedans straight off the showroom floor. Each race is 13 laps (52.624 miles) in length.

The 2009 SCCA National Championship Runoffs will go down as a milestone year in the event’s storied history. Not only for the move to Road America, but also for the move into the modern era of technology, with each race being broadcast live on the internet. The 2009 event will also be remembered for its ability to flourish in tough economic times; as other racing series watch their numbers dwindle, entries for the 2009 Runoffs are up 21 percent.

For all things Runoffs, including an event schedule, entry lists, results, live timing and photo galleries, visit www.scca.com/runoffs.