American GT series announcement

[billnchristy]

Wilton, CT- The American GT Road Racing Association today announced the formation of its new racing series, the American GT Challenge, along with the series’ abbreviated rules and tentative 2004 schedule hosting seven races throughout the United States and Canada. The series is being developed by Woodson Duncan, former Grand-Am team owner and competitor, with technical input from Bob Sharp, Irv Hoerr, Bill Riley and Carl Wegner.

The series welcomes all purpose built, tube frame produced American touring or grand touring cars conforming to 2003 SCCA GT-1, Grand Am GTS or Trans -Am specifications will be allowed to compete. The American GT Challenge will promote parity by way of weight adjustments and wing height restrictions.

Said Duncan of the reasoning behind forming the new series, "Our objective is to contain costs, through a stable rules environment built around the American automotive tradition of ample affordable horse power. And to put the fun back in road racing for owners, competitors and the fans."

Woodson was quick to point out this does not imply a static series. The series will see upgrades that are effective at increasing both performance and competitiveness. Any upgrades that can withstand a cost benefit analysis, will only be incorporated into the rules if they can be afforded and benefit the majority of the field.

Presently the American GT Challenge has twenty five car numbers reserved. As well as receiving inquiries from competitors on a daily basis.

A tentative 2004 schedule has been introduced beginning Easter weekend April 11th at Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, South Carolina. The American GT Challenge will make stops at Mosport during the traditional Victoria Day weekend and is working towards concluding its inaugural season with an event in the Dominican Republic.

For more details and a complete schedule, visit the American GT Challenge web site, www.americangt.com.

[gttouring]

good news- i got this a bit ago and couldn't sound better

[Fogelhund]

Congrats to the guys for getting this together. Good Luck with the season. I wish I could attend the Mosport race, but it kind of conflicts with the expected delivery of my third child. Decisions, Decisions.

[billnchristy]

If they make it to LRP for either the Memorial day or ALMS event I will see them, and since they have no TV Ill make sure to snap some real good pictures...I was thinking of bringing my Minidisc recorder and getting some sounds to make into .wavs or .mp3s, would anyone enjoy that?

[noise boy 2]

Originally posted by billnchristy
If they make it to LRP for either the Memorial day or ALMS event I will see them, and since they have no TV Ill make sure to snap some real good pictures...I was thinking of bringing my Minidisc recorder and getting some sounds to make into .wavs or .mp3s, would anyone enjoy that?

I knew I wasn't the only one, I am not sure if I posted any of these here, but have a listen. I did these at sebring.

http://home.earthlink.net/~hayeska/disc1track28.mp3

http://home.earthlink.net/~hayeska/disc2track160.mp3

http://home.earthlink.net/~hayeska/disc2track183.mp3

Ask nice and I will tell you how I did them Robert

[billnchristy]

Not bad...I heard a Panoz in that first one!!

It shouldnt be hard to do, I just need to keep the sensitivity down so the mic. doesnt overload, Ive done concerts but not loud cars...what kind of mic did you use?

[noise boy 2]

Well here's the deal, I am a retired professional audio engineer, now an account executive for a large mid-atlantic sound reinforcement company in my day job, and so I pilfered the shop for some gear . I used a Samson Mixpad 4 battery powered mixer, a pair of audio technica AT835A short shotgun microphones, and a sony MZ-N505 portable MD Player to record, however given the opportunity to do it again, I will probably use a pair of AKG C414 (large diaphram condensor mic) instead of the A/T units. I used part of a mic stand to mount a stereo bar, with one mic facing up the track, one mic facing down the track and then gaff taped the whole mess to the fence where I was standing(if you listen to the samples above with a pair of headphones the cars sound like they are driving directly through your head because of the seperation afforded by the short shotguns). I have about 5.5 hours of that stuff from sebring last year, and have been trying to figure out what to do with it. Another thing to remember is that the ones here are low quality transfers, if I were to go for broke and actually do a sounds of sebring 2003 CD I would do all of the transfer in the digital realm. The trick has been that I don't really know if there is much market for that, and I don't want to go into debt doing it for no reason. Robert

[GP Racer]

Well it really has the looks of being a good series, and I wish them alot of luck.

I'll be watching!

[Es Nes]

grand am gts?

[billnchristy]

The old AGT.

I have been told there will soon be a drivers link where you can look at the reserved numbers and car type with links to the team if they have a site.

There are nearly 30 entrants so far with the full range of GT machinery from Mustangs, Vettes, Jags, and Camaros.

[kmchow]

I'm less impressed with this new series. GT/touring car racing in the US is already fractured enough. The last thing we need is another series to further dilute the small sponsorship pool.

[gttouring]

This series is like a refuge place for all the Tubeframe racers out there, it won't interfere with ALMS/Garra, maybe Trans-am a little but most likely this will bring up the grass roots guys from SCCA another place to party for money.

[GP Racer]

With 30 entrants already lined up, it seems obvious that there is a niche that this series will fill.

PG has hijacked our Trans Am series, owning about half the cars in the field, with there new high-tech(expensive)engines, that nobody will be able to afford, hence no competition. He's burned alot of people in that series, so who he find's to compete in that series is a mystery to me.

Like gt said, this sounds like an old-fashioned, grass-roots series, where more drivers will have a chance to compete with cheap, V8, rear wheel drive power. It maybe fractured now, but its really PG's fault, not the American GT Challenge. There just filling a need.

[gttouring]

PG could have easily integrated the rule set that AGTC proposes, and found a way (i guess through awful weight systems) to balance out the cars, it does offer innovation and HUGE fields. why can't the High-Tech Engines out go the old engines anyway, i am sure they can work it out.
but not with PG at the Helm, it is an SCCA series anyway where is their input.

[Tim Northcutt]

Question:

There was reference to a race they will hold in the Dominican Republic....

Where???

I have found only one road circuit listed there, and I found it on only one site...

www.racingcircuits.net

When you get to this page, click on the "North America" index above, then on the lft side you will see a list of countries...

The Circuit is "La Cumbre"....the layout looks great...it has a "long" and a "Short" course configuration, but there is ZERO info about the circuit...

was it planned, but not built?

Is it a track that DID exist, but no longer does now???

Or are they planning an airport race or a street venue...

I'm just interested in knowing more about these plans in the Caribbean....

Thanks!

[billnchristy]

I shall ask.

[billnchristy]

Apparently there is a track or two down there as several guys go down there to race, or so I am told!!

[GP Racer]

I wonder what kind of market there is for racing in the D.R.? I've never heard of a stateside series going there.

It sounds, at least on the surface, like it could be quite expensive for a new series to take on a trip like that. But then again, Trans Am did very well going to Puerto Rico last season. It was a packed house there.

[gttouring]

i've never heard of any ventures into the Carribean- puerto rico was a surprise too, the layout has to be altered- it is too much like cleaveland..

[billnchristy]

Once again, heard from the series owners that the D.R. is where T/A cars go to die, apparently a lot of people have bought older cars that live there, I guess the consensus is to have the diehard teams go down and race with the locals.

Does anyone know why this type of car is so popular in the carribean/central america?

[gttouring]

its simply proabbly cheap and easy to work on, tube frame- and carbed, and it is "all-american" from what i here it still has the ring of the '50's era US down there...don't get into a politics fight for that one (why do i need to apologize so much around here?)