Bret Kepner
New Member
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2004
These results reflect the record holders, qualifiers, and final round contestants at each of the
Street Car Shootout Series events held each Tuesday at Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Illinois.
All vehicles compete utilizing Department of Transportation (D.O.T.) approved tires. All other modifications are permitted. Tuesday SCSS Track Records can be set during official qualifying or championship rounds. The Official Street Car Shootout qualifying period begins at 6:30 PM and concludes at 9:00 PM, (barring unforeseen circumstances). At 9:20 PM, the four quickest qualifiers meet in no-handicap eliminations with the championship final round held at 9:45 PM. Each of the Top 16 qualifiers receives a "Fastest Street Car Qualifier" decal. The SCSS trophies and decals are presented by Gateway Raceway.com. Additionally, the two quickest Sport Tuner drivers, (open to all passenger cars except Rear-Wheel-Drive vehicles with engines of eight cylinders or more), also meet in a no-handicap championship round for trophies presented by St. Louis Street Racers.com and the two quickest Super Truck drivers, (open to all trucks and utility vehicles), meet in a no-handicap championship round for trophies presented by Gateway Raceway.com. All finalists in all categories also receive free digital images from the event courtesy of Bret Kepner Photos.com and one free entry to a future SCSS event.
GATEWAY INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY, MADISON, ILLINOIS
2008 STREET CAR SHOOTOUT SERIES TRACK RECORDS
Class Name Hometown ST Vehicle Engine ET MPH Date
RWD Tony Tobnick, Cedar Hill, MO 91 Mustang 359 Ford 8.341 10/16/2007
RWD Tony Tobnick, Cedar Hill, MO 91 Mustang 359 Ford 166.11 10/16/2007
4CYL Jon Huber, St. Louis, MO 79 Mustang 178 Ford 9.160 10/16/2007
4CYL Jon Huber, St. Louis, MO 79 Mustang 178 Ford 152.16 10/16/2007
TRK Larry Richards, Hillsboro, MO 52 3100 427 Chevy 9.278 9/4/2007
TRK Larry Richards, Hillsboro, MO 52 3100 427 Chevy 149.07 9/4/2007
DSL Chris Calkins, Union, MO 70 C-10 403 Chevy 9.875 9/25/2007
DSL Chris Calkins, Union, MO 70 C-10 403 Chevy 139.41 9/25/2007
RTY Eric Cheatham, Belleville, IL 93 RX-7 79 Mazda 10.048 9/26/2006
RTY Eric Cheatham, Belleville, IL 93 RX-7 79 Mazda 137.95 9/26/2006
AWD Adnan Omerovic, St. Louis, MO 95 Talon 122 Eagle 10.234 9/11/2007
AWD Adnan Omerovic, St. Louis, MO 95 Talon 122 Eagle 140.52 9/11/2007
6CYL Rob Nolan, Granite City, IL 87 Regal 231 Buick 11.041 10/11/2005
6CYL Rob Nolan, Granite City, IL 87 Regal 231 Buick 124.56 4/11/2006
FWD Adam Corbitt, St. Charles, MO 85 Golf 123 Volks 11.057 10/16/2007
FWD Adam Corbitt, St. Charles, MO 85 Golf 123 Volks 131.91 10/16/2007
APRIL 1st, 2008 STREET CAR SHOOTOUT SERIES QUALIFIERS
Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle Engine ET MPH Date
EVENT 01 04/01/2008
1 Tony Huff Collinsville IL 66 Chevelle 510 Chevy 8.607 153.93
2 Tim Mallicoat Collinsville IL 68 Camaro 565 Chevy 9.287 134.03
3 Dan Schell High Ridge MO 85 Monte Carlo 438 Chevy 9.478 148.07
4 Kevin Autenrieth Bethalto IL 91 S-10 434 Chevy 9.612 134.67
5 Jim Williams House Springs MO 80 Malibu 496 Chevy 10.200 125.30
6 Brett Marshall Collinsville IL 86 S-10 406 Chevy 10.206 132.10
7 Derrick Roeslein High Ridge MO 02 Camaro 383 Chevy 10.418 127.45
8 Hal Marshall Collinsville IL 86 S-10 383 Chevy 10.950 136.08
9 Asmir Catic St. Louis MO 03 Mustang 281 Ford 11.136 127.38
10 Denny Christman Arnold MO 91 Talon 122 Eagle 11.358 118.87
11 Ken Keeven Florissant MO 89 Mustang 302 Ford 11.633 109.16
12 John Brawley Granite City IL 93 S-10 355 Chevy 11.753 114.02
13 Richard Cochran St. Louis MO 81 Camaro 355 Chevy 11.926 112.30
14 Rodney Singleton Brighton IL 78 Firebird 400 Pont 12.008 112.62
15 Nicholas Berkel Troy IL 03 Mustang 281 Ford 12.047 119.88
16 James Fetters Belleville IL 99 Viper 488 Dodge 12.162 119.80
APRIL 1st, 2008 STREET CAR SHOOTOUT SERIES FINAL ROUND
Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle R.T. ET MPH
W Tony Huff, Collinsville, IL 1966 510 Chevelle 0.259 8.651 153.47
RU Asmir Catic, St. Louis, MO 2003 281 Mustang 0.260 11.183 117.75
Tony Huff, the Collinsville, Illinois veteran whose disastrous 2007 season was marked by a single victory, opened the fifth year of Street Car Shootout Series competition at Gateway International Raceway with a dominating win. In a night of near-record atmospheric conditions, Huff’s Bill Silva-tuned ’66 Chevelle set new marks of its own while producing flawless runs which were clearly the best in the field. Although the event was filled with carnage, racers enjoyed exceptional traction courtesy of the GIR Track Crew and the facility’s newest improvement, extended concrete launch pads in both lanes.
While the ambient temperature remained within a narrow range of forty-seven to forty-two degrees, the racing surface retained enough heat to stay above fifty degrees for most of the event. The corrected elevation ranged from a worst of 560 feet below sea level to a best of 872 feet below sea level prior to the final rounds to just miss the all-time SCSS “record air” of 998 feet below sea level from April 13th, 2004. A large field of competitors eager to kick off the new season presented a “bump spot” for the Super Sixteen field of 12.16 seconds and provided plenty of new machinery for the fans on hand. .
While the quickest run of early timed trials was a 10.58-second, 127.38 mph effort by Derrick Roeslien’s naturally-aspirated LS7-powered pewter ‘92 Camaro, spectators knew qualifying had officially begun when 2007 SCSS Champion Tim “Moose” Mallicoat pulled his black “Hellraiser” ‘68 Camaro to the starting line. The car which won an unprecedented sixteen events en route to last season’s title looked untouched but underneath the body panels was a completely different chassis configuration. Mallicoat’s naturally-aspirated bigblock Chevy covered the first sixty feet in an exceptional 1.280 seconds. Just past the 330-feet mark, however, the Camaro darted to the right and “Moose” feathered the throttle to a 5.70/112.39 eighth-mile. In the final four hundred feet, however, the Camaro again “moved around” enough that Mallicoat ended the run early and coasted to a 9.28 at only 134.03 mph.
With the exception of a phenomenal 9.85/136.08 career-best by the returning King of Tuesday Night, Hal Marshall, at the helm of his brand-new red ‘86 smallblock S-10, Mallicoat’s shut-off pass remained unthreatened for the first forty-five minutes of qualifying. At that point, however, Tony Huff prepared to begin his fifth consecutive season of SCSS racing at the wheel of brother Dale’s show-quality Chevelle. Having stunned fans during GIR’s final testing event of the ‘07 season when the 510-cubic inch, nitrous oxide-fed Chevy unleashed a 1.20-second sixty-feet elapsed time and a career-best 8.40/157.45, all eyes were on the purple Chevy as it staged. True to form, Huff broke Mallicoat’s SCSS sixty-feet record with a phenomenal 1.232 on D.O.T. tires and reset the 330-feet ET mark at 3.513 seconds. After a 5.45/125.89 eighth-mile, the big-bodied Chevelle blasted on to an 8.60 at 153.93 miles per hour! “We actually detuned it a bit over the winter”, said a smiling Bill Silva after the run, “because we felt it was pretty close to the edge on both the launch and concerning cylinder temperatures at the finish line. After all we went through last year, we want to make sure it stays together this season”.
Only three pairs later, chassis builder Dan Schell staged up his newest ride, a black ‘85 Monte Carlo powered by an RCE Engines 434-inch small block which had debuted at GIR’s season-opening Icebreaker event. The Jim Evans Carburetion-sponsored Chevy carried the front wheels high on its way to a 9.47/148.07 to qualify third. Mallicoat returned but, despite a brilliant 0.008 RT and a 1.30 sixty-feet ET, once again found his Camaro to be more than a handful and was forced to shut down to an 11.06 at only 77.94 mph. The reigning champ made one final attempt with five minutes remaining in the official qualifying period but held on as the black Chevy got really crossed up just past the eighth-mile mark forcing another aborted attempt of 11.32/76.99.
When the four quickest qualifiers were called in front of the main grandstands for the semi-final round of eliminations, it quickly became apparent that Mallicoat wasn’t the only driver experiencing problems. Having made only his pole-qualifying pass, Huff reported ready to run. Mallicoat, however, declined the invitation. “There’s obviously something very wrong with the new setup”, said Mallicoat from the fence, “and we have no idea what the problem is. It would be pretty foolish to keep running it until we get it sorted out and, since we have no test runs on it yet, I wouldn’t even know where to begin to look for the problem”. Third qualifier Schell also found a few adjustments to be made on his new Monte Carlo and elected to sit out eliminations. Fourth qualifier Kevin Autenreith, whose orange Lowe Performance ‘91 S-10 pickup had clocked a decent 9.61/134.67, also had reason to park it for the night. “I think I may have hurt a head gasket”, said the four-time Super Truck Showdown winner.
In fact, the next four alternates had equal concerns; Jim Williams’ Malibu and Derrick Roeslein’s Camaro were already off the property and Hal Marshall and his son, Brett, elected to race only in the Super Truck Showdown. Eventually, the only driver who appeared for a shot at Huff’s Chevelle was one of the original racers in the Street Car Shootout Series, St. Louisan Asmir Catic and his blue 2003 Cobra. Although he had not qualified for an SCSS event since September 27th, 2005, the original “World’s Fastest Bosnian” had amassed an amazing seventeen “Fastest Street Car” qualifier decals in the first two seasons of the series before accepting a job as an over-the-road truck driver which kept him out of town on Tuesdays for the past several years. “I haven’t worked in two weeks”, said Catic, “so I finally have a chance to race again with my daily driver”. After qualifying ninth at a strong 11.13/127.38, Catic suddenly found himself in a final round with the highest-qualified entry since “Wild Bill” Eberhart’s tenth-qualifying ‘64 Nova raced for the trophy on April 25th, 2005!
Of course, Catic’s only chance for an event victory relied on Huff suffering a problem. When both drivers left the line together in the first Ford-versus-Chevy championship battle since September 4th, 2007, Huff streaked to a 1.241-second sixty-feet ET and walloped Catic’s 11.38/117.75 with a brutal 8.65/153.47. “This season’s already better than all of 2007 for me!”, laughed Huff as he accepted his ninth trophy in twenty-three career final rounds, the most of any SCSS driver. “We had absolutely no problems tonight. My shoulder has healed real well (after rotator cuff and muscle surgery in mid-2007) so I feel good, too. I sure hope we can continue this kind of luck. We had way too much bad stuff happen last year”. Catic was just happy to get a few good runs on his Cobra, “This really is just a ’pulley car’ Cobra”, said the “Z-Eater” during trophy presentations. “I added a different pulley and took the six-speed out of it and made it an automatic so it’s a little easier to drive on the street. I also added a solid rearend to keep the breakage factor down a bit. I honestly think it can run in the tens and, for now, I’ll be able to race a bit more to get it there”.
NOTES FROM THE SCSS: Interestingly, Asmir Catic’s ninth-qualifying Cobra was the quickest Ford of the event. The top eight positions were all held by Chevrolet entries, a feat never before accomplished in eighty-seven previous SCSS events. Only twice had one brand locked up just the top five positions, once by Fords and once by Chevys…Jim Williams’ 496-inch bigblock Malibu could easily have been the fifth qualifier under ten seconds; his best of 10.20 was an early shut-off run at only 125.30 mph…The biggest surprise among nonqualifiers was Ray Arthur’s “Suspicion” ‘67 Camaro which last year became the first vehicle to qualify for every event in a SCSS season. Arthur proved the worth of the GIR starting line by shelling a rearend on his only qualifying attempt. The red Camaro, which has raced in the bi-state area since 1971, clocked a career-best 9.01/149.65 at the final GIR test event of 2007...Dan Schell’s new Monte Carlo and Derrick Roeslein’s pewter ‘02 Camaro tied for “Highest Wheelstand” honors…James Fetters’ V10 Dodge Viper was the first of its kind to qualify in the Super Sixteen since September 12th, 2006...Nathan DePew’s slick 302-powered silver ‘63 Falcon didn’t qualify with a best of 12.34/110.56 but certainly got lots of notice from announcer “Radical Rich” Tivitt, especially when it improved to a 12.21/111.62 in late timed trials…Richard Cochran’s ‘81 Camaro was easily one of the most consistent entries; after qualifying with an 11.926/112.30, the black Chevy ran 11.926/112.85 in late timed trials!…Mark Stirnemann’s primered all-steel ‘34 Ford coupe used small block Chevy power to run a best of 13.31/103.05 but had more folks around it in the pits than most late-model entries…A huge field of twenty competitors opened the season for High School Eliminator. After five rounds of racing, the ‘99 Camaro of Melville (MO) High School’s Drew Skyles defeated the Roxana (IL) HS ‘95 Silverado of Tyler McEven. Sixteen bi-state area High Schools were represented.
STREET CAR SHOOTOUT SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP POINT STANDINGS (as of APRIL 2nd, 2008)
Pos Points Name Hometown ST Vehicle Engine
1 (2) Tony Huff Collinsville IL 66 Chevelle 510 Chevy
2 (2) Tim Mallicoat Collinsville IL 68 Camaro 565 Chevy
3 (2) Dan Schell High Ridge MO 85 Monte Carlo 438 Chevy
4 (2) Kevin Autenrieth Bethalto IL 91 S-10 434 Chevy
5 (1) Jim Williams House Springs MO 80 Malibu 496 Chevy
6 (1) Brett Marshall Collinsville IL 86 S-10 406 Chevy
7 (1) Derrick Roeslein High Ridge MO 02 Camaro 383 Chevy
8 (1) Hal Marshall Collinsville IL 86 S-10 383 Chevy
9 (1) Asmir Catic St. Louis MO 03 Mustang 281 Ford
10 (1) Denny Christman Arnold MO 91 Talon 122 Eagle
NOTE: Points toward the 2007 Street Car Shootout Series Season Championship are awarded on the basis of one (1) point for qualifying in the Super Sixteen field with one (1) bonus point awarded for qualifying in the top four positions. Ties are broken by (1) the earliest date upon which the final point total is earned, (2) quickest elapsed time recorded during the current SCSS season and (3) fastest speed recorded during the current SCSS season.
APRIL 1st, 2008 STLSR.COM SPORT TUNER SHOWDOWN FINAL ROUND
Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle R.T. ET MPH
W Mike Bobelak, Ballwin, MO 1996 172 Golf Gti 0.726 12.872 110.91
RU Christopher Dell, St. Louis, MO 2005 122 Ion 0.125 14.860 93.41
Mike Bobelak’s black ‘96 Volkwagen Golf Gti VR6 had been relegated to “second car” status on the Polk Audio team after the success of the record-holding Front-Wheel-Drive VW of Dave and Adam Corbitt but the Ballwin, Missouri, driver finally scored his first victory in the St. Louis Street Racing.com Sport Tuner Showdown Series. In fact, the Corbitts weren‘t on hand after damaging a transmission while recording a career-best series of 132 mph speeds at the season-opening Icebreaker event only two weeks earlier but Bobelak countered with his own best performances with his unusual FWD turbocharged six-cylinder.
SCSS All-Wheel-Drive Record Holder Adnan “Otto” Omerovic was at the track but only as support for the new ‘91 Eagle Talon of Denny Christman. Similar to Omerovic’s mount, Christman’s Talon utilizes a turbocharged 4G63T powerplant and is also sponsored by HillCo Axles where Christman is an employee. As Omerovic explained that his black ‘95 Talon “will be out in a few weeks”, Christman stole the limelight in the Tuner Showdown in the first three minutes of early timed trials when the blue Talon got sideways and still clocked an 11.66 at 115.28 mph! Multiple squirrelly runs followed but the new AWD mount hit a best of 11.35/118.87 during qualifying to secure the tenth slot in the Super Sixteen line-up. Unfortunately, drive train problems eventually parked the Eagle before the final round was ever called.
Bobelak began his season with the quickest and fastest run ever for his Polk Audio Volkswagen with a strong 12.12/123.29 on its very first timed trial. On his first qualifying attempt, however, Bobelak ran into problems with the gearbox. “It went straight from second to fourth”, said Bobelak”, and it zinged the engine enough that I think it nailed the head gasket since my overflow tank is filling up pretty quickly”. He managed a best of 12.61/120.36 during the official qualifying period and, when Christman withdrew from competition, inherited the favorite’s role.
Behind Bobelak were Glen Johnson’s strong Missouri-based ‘05 Subaru Impreza WRX Sti, (13.01/107.03), Steven Hopper’s Missouri ‘98 Eclipse GSX, (13.071/107.44), John Gerger’s stout black ‘88 Mazda RX7 rotary, (13.078/108.74), Carey Geiger’s ‘05 Mitsubishi Evo VIII, (13.45/102.53), Mike Killian’s ‘06 WRX, (13.58/100.01), and Shawn Stoll’s 91-cubic inch ‘90 Honda CRX, (a best of 13.71/106.67 although he eventually clocked 13.41 and 107.31 mph in late timed trials).
Like the Street Car Shootout, the Tuner Showdown suffered from an empty pit area when chilly temperatures sent many racers home before the 9:45 PM final round. Not only was Bobelak the sole driver of the top eight qualifiers to report in front of the main grandstands for the championship bout but announcer “Radical Rich Tivitt” eventually had to call eighteenth qualifier Christopher Dell to the lanes as the sixteenth alternate for a final-round berth! Although Dennis Pape still holds the all-time SCSS record by making the Sport Tuner Showdown final round as the twentieth qualifier on August 30th, 2005, Dell was dumbstruck that he was able to stage up for a trophy with his bone-stock ‘05 Saturn Ion Redline. “It’s got a different airbox and some low restriction mufflers”, said Dell, “but other than that it’s as it came from the factory. Heck, I‘ll race the VW. What‘ve I got to lose?”.
Bobelak was still concerned about the potential wounds carried by his 172-inch six cylinder. “This thing’s still hurt”, he noted before pulling out for the trophy dash, “so I still can’t get on it too hard. It’s not like I have the race won yet”. While Dell had qualified his Ion at 14.98/96.41, he improved substantially to a 14.86/93.41 but Bobelak was able to coax a 12.87/110.91 from his BFGoodrich-shod Golf to earn his first win in his second final round appearance.
APRIL 1st, 2008 GATEWAYRACEWAY.COM SUPER TRUCK SHOWDOWN FINAL ROUND
Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle R.T. ET MPH
W Brett Marshall, Collinsville, IL 1986 406 S-10 -0.080 10.284 132.04
W Hal Marshall, Collinsville, IL 1986 406 S-10 -0.361 (foul) 10.903 110.83
Breakage also played a role in the season’s first GatewayRaceway.com Super Truck Showdown Series event but the race marked what may be a new era in the career of the series‘ most dominant driver. Hal Marshall, whose twenty-four event wins in thirty-one final rounds is, by far, the most of any driver in the history of the series, added a runner-up to his amazing list of accomplishments but the event victory stayed in the family. In his first event ever, Hal’s son, Brett, scored the win by beating his father in the final round.
Kevin Autenreith looked toward the first Truck Showdown event with high hopes after his orange Lowe Performance ‘91 S-10 pickup had streaked to a best-ever 9.21 during the recent Icebreaker season-opener, quicker than Larry Richards’ current 9.27-second Truck Showdown elapsed time record. However, a 9.61/134.67 qualifying effort led the field but took its toll on the nitrous-aided 434-inch smallblock powerplant and forced the four-time winner to withdraw before the final round.
Hal Marshall had also clocked a best-ever during the Icebreaker; driving a brand-new red-and-white ‘86 S-10 recently purchased in Kentucky, the Collinsville, Illinois, kingpin hit 9.83/136 on the truck’s first full run two weeks earlier. A 9.85/136.08 moved within striking distance of Autenreith during qualifying but Hal asked that the time be disallowed after admitting he was not yet licensed for nine-second competition. After qualifying later at 10.95/126.17, the elder Marshall was bumped down to third place by his thirty-five year-old son’s 10.20/132.10! At the wheel of Hal’s infamous white ‘86 S-10 which had earned no fewer than thirty event victories and forty final round appearances since May 10th, 2005, Brett Marshall made several runs without the aid of nitrous oxide injection before using the “squeeze” on his final qualifying effort. With only John Brawley, at the wheel of Ray Arthur’s newly painted “S-10 Revenge” ‘91 355 Chevy was close to the Marshall family at 11.75/114.02, it appeared that the two Marshalls would battle for the first title of the season.
Both drivers were eligible to compete in both (or either) the Street Car Shootout and the Super Truck Showdown but Hal made the decision to stick to the Truck wars. “Both pickups have new 406 small blocks and everything is fresh. We probably should do what we can to keep ‘em that way for a little while this year!”. When the two staged up for what should have been a tight battle, Hal knew he was at a disadvantage running without nitrous oxide injection. His only hope was a starting line advantage and his attempt was far too early; a redlight handed his son a victory and, possibly, the start of a new dynasty. “I knew this old truck was tough”, said Brett as he accepted his first trophy, “but I didn’t think we’d do this well this quickly. It really is a dream to drive dad’s old S-10 but I think his new one’s gonna be a lot tougher real soon”. Meanwhile, Hal played the part of proud father to the hilt. He didn’t say much but he sure smiled a lot.
Photos of the April 1st Street Car Shootout Series event are now available for viewing at Bret Kepner Photos.com.
Tony Huff, Collinsville, IL 1966 510 Chevelle
Asmir Catic, St. Louis, MO 2003 281 Mustang
Mike Bobelak, Ballwin, MO 1996 172 Golf GTi
Christopher Dell, St. Louis, MO 2005 122 Ion Redline
Brett Marshall, Collinsville, IL 1986 406 S-10
Hal Marshall, Collinsville, IL 1986 406 S-10
