Well, somehow this event just didn't excite me too much after it was over, so I don't have a whole lot of commentary for it. I also don't have a course map up here this time because the map they gave us didn't look much like the track itself. It was a very nice track however, and everyone seems to really like the new surface at EFA.
The only problem with the day was that it started raining during the 5th of the 6 run groups. It just sprinkled though, so by the end of the 6th group, they were on a mostly dry track. Still, a few of the cars which would have really dominated had times about 1.5-2 seconds slower than they could have been able to do on a dry surface. Without further delay, let's take a look at HS Open, which is the group that I ran in.
HS Open Entries: 3. Total entries in event: 111
| Pos | Driver | Car | Fast Time | FT% | PAX Time | PAX% |
| 1 | Brandon Smith | Honda Civic HX | 46.533 | 885 | 36.528 | 902 |
| 2 | Mike Kmetz | 94 Saturn SL1 | 47.240 | 872 | 37.083 | 888 |
| 3 | Heidi Kmetz | 94 Saturn SL1 | 49.200 | 837 | 38.622 | 853 |
My closest competitor was much closer this time; only 0.7 second behind me! This was even more impressive after I learned from Mike that the 94 SL1 only makes 85hp. My Civic HX may be Honda's most fuel-efficient car available, but it still makes 115hp. My power advantage is probably the biggest factor in my beating out Team Kmetz on this day. There was a nice straightaway shortly beyond the start line where I probably was able to put the winning distance between my time and Mike's.
What Heidi's car lacks in pure power, however, it makes up in serious grip at the turns. Heidi's running with 205/50-15" BFG R1 racing radial tires. I recently spoke to car owner Heidi and although these tires have a good reputation, they don't seem to be the best tire for FWD cars in autocrossing, plus her tires have a pretty substantial amount of wear. Neither Mike nor Heidi is new to racing, and apparently Heidi's gotten a lot of 1st place trophies in that car in HS Open. Sometimes a power deficit that big just can't be overcome.
Still, I was able to get the track memorized well enough and plan my racing lines such that I was able to take the win on this day. Here's how my time stacked up against all the other HS cars which ran in other groups besides Open.
All HS entries regardless of class: 7
| Pos | Driver | Car | Fast Time | FT% | PAX Time | PAX% |
| 1 | Brandon Smith | Honda Civic HX | 46.533 | 885 | 36.528 | 902 |
| 2 | Mike Kmetz | 94 Saturn SL1 | 47.240 | 872 | 37.083 | 888 |
| 3 | Warren Schluter | Ford Taurus | 48.031 | 857 | 37.704 | 874 |
| 4 | Brian Dolan | 94 VW Jetta | 48.074 | 856 | 37.738 | 873 |
| 5 | Heidi Kmetz | 94 Saturn SL1 | 49.200 | 837 | 38.622 | 853 |
| 6 | Mike Conley | Honda Accord | 49.681 | 829 | 39.000 | 845 |
| 7 | Chris Oliver | Plymouth Laser | 50.306 | 818 | 39.490 | 834 |
One of the goals I set after the last race was to get at least 90% of the PAX time, and finish in the 50th percentile or higher against all the entries based upon PAX times. Well, with a PAX percent of 90.2, I met the one goal already. Due to the rain, direct comparisons against the whole feld aren't really possible, so I won't even bother mentioning how well I did against the whole field.
| Points standings after 2 of 4 events | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Driver | Feb | Mar | Total |
| 1 | Brandon Smith | 882 | 902 | 1784 |
| 2 | Heidi Kmetz | 856 | 853 | 1709 |
| 3 | Mike Kmetz | - | 888 | 888 |
| 4 | Greg Schupfer | 857 | - | 857 |
| 5 | Ginger Schupfer | 830 | - | 830 |
For the complete results, entry forms, rules, etc, see the Arizona Region SCCA web site.
Page last updated 4-15-99
This site maintained by Brandon Smith
Some text and information from results as posted by the Arizona Region SCCA.