Event Type: Time Trial (TT), Club Racing Experience (CRE), and Regional Race (SARRC)
Hosted by: Atlanta SCCA Region
Track: Atlanta Motorsports Park (AMP)
Thursday Arrival
Our team headed out from Huntsville, AL, on a rainy Thursday morning and arrived at AMP by mid-day. While AMP has beautiful facilities and helpful staff, space is tight in the paddock due to the club-style layout.
After parking, we traveled to our VRBO in the Big Canoe Community. The house, located about 15 minutes into the mountain development, had plenty of room for 12 team members. Navigating the winding roads with two F350 dually trucks was a challenge, but the location gave us a central base for the weekend.
We grabbed dinner at Night Train Pizza, located just outside the Big Canoe gates. It was a quick and convenient stop to wrap up a long day of travel.
Friday Setup & Team Time
Rain kept us off track Friday morning, so the crew enjoyed some downtime with pool, foosball, and air hockey at the house. Once the weather cleared, Lindsey and the kids headed to the Big Canoe Beach Club while Todd, Wade, and Cliff drove to the track to unload trailers and set up canopies.
That evening, we welcomed Steve Conrad, Sterling Dement, and Clark Brittingham (with his son Bo) to the group. Dinner was on the patio at Fuego Mexican Restaurant, where the kids played in the field while the adults enjoyed a relaxed team meal.
Saturday: Packed Track Day
All four of our Spec Racer Fords were in action on Saturday, across all three run groups with six drivers:
- Wade White: CRE and SARRC
- Todd: Time Trial debut in car #59
- Sterling Dement & Clark Brittingham: sharing car #58
- Steve Conrad: CRE and SARRC in car #40
- Ryan Stark: CRE and SARRC in car #19
This was only the second event held at AMP by the Atlanta Region and the first to include the Club Racing Experience (CRE) format. While there were a few minor scheduling issues, everything ran smoothly and the atmosphere was positive.
Unfortunately, in the final CRE session, Sterling lost drive in car #58 due to stripped splines in the clutch. With guidance from Kevin and Matt at Comprent Motorsports, we diagnosed the issue and swapped the clutch that evening. In under four hours, Todd, Wade, Doug, and Cliff had the motor out, the new clutch installed, and the car ready for Sunday.
“Even though it was a long night and hard work, I really enjoyed working with Dad and Uncle Doug. Without the two of them, Todd and I wouldn’t know how to work on cars to begin with.”
Cliff
Ryan Stark’s Weekend Recap
“I’ve been looking forward to getting back to AMP since the first SARRC race there last year. AMP is a tight, technical, and demanding track perfect for learning car control and tire management. Blind apexes and crests are common and some of the turns become progressively less grippy as the day heats up. We didn’t have a dedicated test day ahead of qualifying and races this year so my focus was on getting up to pace in just a few practice and Club Racing Experience (CRE) sessions on Saturday.
The CRE sessions were perfect practice for me as they’re designed to offer a low-pressure racing experience for novices with or without a competition license. The debriefs and extra attention from the CRE coaches makes the sport more welcoming to beginners. I wish I had the CRE option when I started two years ago! I notched my first SCCA race win in the CRE and also won a second CRE race on Sunday.
The SARRC race on Sunday was the main event for me. I had a slow start behind a formula car and dropped from 2nd to 3rd early on. I quickly caught up to the SRF3 leaders and stayed close to them for a few laps while faster formula cars made their way past us. On lap four, I misjudged turn 1 while trying to close the gap to 2nd place (Cliff White) and spun mid-corner. I was able to get going again and stayed ahead of 4th, but the leaders were out of reach. I crossed the line in 3rd and snagged my first track record (1:29.984). I’ll be back again!”
Ryan Stark
Watch Ryan Stark’s in-car video from AMP
Sunday Highlights
- Ryan Stark set a track record in the SARRC race (1:29.984)
- Clark Brittingham took the win in the SARRC race
- Steve Conrad showed strong progress all weekend
- All six drivers praised the Club Racing Experience format as a valuable tool for newer racers
More from B2 Motorsports
Read more on the B2 Motorsports blog, see how an SRF3 weekend works on Race With Us, or learn about the Driver Development Program. Questions? Contact us, call or text 256-910-0658, or email info@b2motorsports.com.