2017 ARRC & Right Coast Formula F Series Update #1
Hi,
We had previously announced that we had put the 2017 ARRC on November 3, 4 & 5 on the Right Coast schedule as a “flash mob” event. We subsequently contacted the kind folks at the Atlanta Region of SCCA and inquired as to the possibility of inserting a Formula F/Club Formula F only race group into the ARRC race program during the weekend.
We are extremely pleased and very grateful to the Atlanta Region and AJ Schramm in particular; to announce that there will be a 50 mile Formula F/Club Formula F only race scheduled on Sunday, November 5th. As this event is still 6 months away, we do not have a weekend schedule as yet but we have requested that our race group be scheduled toward the beginning of the Sunday program.
Road Atlanta and Formula F have a long and storied history. From 1970 until 1993 the Formula Ford race at the SCCA National Championship Runoffs was one of the most anticipated and aspired to events each race season. Which driver in which chassis with whose engine was going to win? Road Atlanta is a fabulous, challenging race track and a great venue for Formula F and Club Formula F.
Our discussions with the Atlanta Region have been very productive and we are viewing the 2017 weekend as the first in a series of special events to be folded into the ARRC program in the coming seasons. Our ability to schedule these special events is directly linked to the level of participation that we can demonstrate.
Our long term plan beyond the 2017 event is to try and schedule a full Right Coast weekend in 2018. A second successfully completed event would give us the momentum that would lead to scheduling an East Coast 50th Anniversary of Formula F in the United States at Road Atlanta in 2019.
We think it would be very difficult to duplicate the phenomenal event that commemorated the US 40th Anniversary event at Road America in 2009. So we are setting our sights a bit lower in the hopes that we could get a very large field of FF/CFF/HF cars from the eastern half of the country to come to Road Atlanta. We would of course welcome and be overjoyed to have participation from drivers all over the country, but we are trying to be realistic.
We have a very good team working toward this goal. “We” means that I will have some very experienced and highly regarded individuals helping me put this together. Since the beginning of the 2016 Right Coast season I have had the invaluable help and guidance of Mike Rand, one half of the team that organized the legendary 40th Anniversary event. The Right Coast Series has benefitted greatly with Mike’s involvement and his willingness to participate in this plan gives me great confidence that we can pull it off. Additionally, we will be able to lean on the considerable skills and experience of a couple of other individuals who we have chosen not to name in order to give their families sufficient time to change their names and relocate.
We have a 2 ½ years to organize this and while that seems like a long time, it really is not. We are taking this one step at a time and the first step is to attract a large entry and execute a successful 2017 ARRC/Right Coast race event. We need your participation to achieve this first goal. While we understand that the event is six months away it would be helpful if we could begin to compile a list of drivers who think that there is a high probability that they would attend the event.
So, give this some thought and please get back to us at your earliest convenience. We will continue to provide updates as plans and schedules develop. Please stay tuned.
Best regards,
Joe Marcinski
