9/19/06 Gateway-SCSS Street Car Shootout RESULTS!

Bret Kepner

New Member
Joined
Apr 1, 2004
These results reflect the record holders, qualifiers, and final round contestants at each of the
SX Performance Street Car Shootout Series events held each Tuesday at Gateway
International Raceway in Madison, Illinois.

Tuesday SCSS Track Records can be set during official qualifying or championship rounds. The
official qualifying period begins at 6:30 PM and concludes at 9:00 PM, barring unforeseen
circumstances. At 9:30 PM, the two quickest qualifers meet in a no-handicap championship round for
trophies. Each of the Top 16 qualifiers receives a "Fastest Street Car Qualifier" decal. The SCSS
trophies and decals are presented by SX Performance Fuel Systems in St. Louis, MO (6
Sunnen Drive, 314-644-3000, http://www.sx-performance.com ). Additionally, the two
quickest Sport Tuner drivers, (open to all passenger cars except Rear-Wheel-Drive vehicles with
engines of six cylinders or more), also meet in a no-handicap championship round for trophies
presented by St. Louis Street Racing.com (http://www.stlsr.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 http://www.GatewayRaceway.com .


GATEWAY INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY, MADISON, ILLINOIS

2006 SX PERFORMANCE STREET CAR SHOOTOUT TRACK RECORDS

Class Name Hometown ST Vehicle Engine ET MPH Date
RWD Brett Heidgerken, Decatur, IL 67 Chevelle 505 Chevy 8.871 10/11/2005
RWD Sam Moore, East Alton, IL 93 Mustang 352 Ford 161.25 7/18/2006

TRK Kevin Autenrietch, Bethalto, IL 84 S-10 355 Chevy 9.772 9/28/2004
TRK Kevin Autenrietch, Bethalto, IL 84 S-10 355 Chevy 135.39 9/28/2004

RTY Eric Cheatham, Belleville, IL 93 RX-7 79 Mazda 10.363 9/5/2006
RTY Eric Cheatham, Belleville, IL 93 RX-7 79 Mazda 136.02 9/5/2006

4CYL Joe Laramee, Decatur, IL 77 Pinto 147 Ford 10.544 4/11/2006
4CYL Joe Laramee, Decatur, IL 77 Pinto 147 Ford 129.87 4/18/2006

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 122 Volks 11.473 9/5/2006
FWD Adam Corbitt, St. Charles, MO 85 Golf 122 Volks 126.95 5/30/2006

DSL Phillip Blackburn, Springfield, IL 03 2500 HD 403 Chevy 11.835 8/2/2005
DSL Phillip Blackburn, Springfield, IL 03 2500 HD 403 Chevy 114.29 8/2/2005

SEPTEMBER 19th, 2006 SX PERFORMANCE STREET CAR SHOOTOUT QUALIFIERS
Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle Engine ET MPH Date

EVENT 22 9/19/2006

1 Tony Huff Collinsville IL 68 Nova 468 Chevy 9.418 141.77
2 Paul Schoelich Owensville MO 90 Mustang 408 Ford 10.370 132.31
3 Gary Tripp Imperial MO 69 Camaro 406 Chevy 10.377 134.06
4 Michael Faller Springfield IL 98 Camaro 346 Chevy 10.598 127.13
5 Sam Moore E. Alton IL 92 S-10 406 Chevy 10.620 128.97
6 Tony Buhl Lebanon IL 89 Mustang 331 Ford 10.641 127.38
7 Orson Johnson House Springs MO 99 Mustang 281 Ford 10.711 127.47
8 Hal Marshall Collinsville IL 86 S-10 383 Chevy 11.044 122.64
9 Robert Obermoeller Imperial MO 87 Camaro 350 Chevy 11.073 120.43
10 Raymond Arthur Edwardsville IL 67 Camaro 427 Chevy 11.236 121.87
11 Jack Nungester Arnold MO 71 Camaro 454 Chevy 11.248 122.61
12 Randy Wickenhauser Godfrey IL 03 Mustang 281 Ford 11.322 124.86
13 James Barrow Troy MO 80 Malibu 383 Chevy 11.405 116.95
14 Steve Thomas St. Charles MO 05 GT 330 Ford 11.450 128.29
15 Brian Jones Farmersville IL 92 Mustang 302 Ford 11.623 126.65
16 Adam Corbitt St. Charles MO 85 Golf 122 Volks 11.737 124.68


SEPTEMBER 19th, 2006 SX PERFORMANCE STREET CAR SHOOTOUT FINAL
ROUND


Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle R.T. ET MPH

W Gary Tripp, Imperial, MO 1969 406 Camaro 0.185 12.978 68.80
RU Paul Schoelich, Owensville, MO 1990 408 Mustang -0.053 (foul) 10.577 132.59

Although Gary Tripp was making his fourth final round appearance in twenty-eight days, the Chevy
racer from Imperial, Missouri, finally scored his first victory in the 2006 SX Performance Street Car
Shootout Series. Despite a variety of problems which kept him from qualifying for the championship
run-off, Tripp was called into the trophy dash as an alternate and used the last-minute reprieve to his
advantage by winning over first-time finalist Paul Schoelich’s Mustang.

Astounding atmospheric conditions drew the season’s largest field of entries and the weather made it
worth the trip; no less than fifty cars ran quicker than 13.00 seconds and an incredible one hundred
fifty machines ran quicker than 15.00 seconds! Spectators made an equally impressive turnout to
witness the third-quickest SCSS program yet with the “Super Sixteen” qualifiers all under 11.74
seconds with a record average speed for the field of 126.75 miles per hour. Of the top 150 qualifiers,
109 drivers recorded career-best performances...usually by more than a tenth of a second. The
corrected elevation was 509 feet above sea level when timed trials began and dropped to 292 feet
by 8:00 PM. When the final rounds closed out the show in nippy 50-degree air, the altitude had
plummeted to 267 feet below sea level for the best conditions since the May 3rd, 2005, SCSS
event! Initially, the track surface remained above 80 degrees and traction was potent enough for
NHRA Pro Stock racer Dave Howard’s 500 cubic-inch ‘06 Chevy Cobalt to clock a 6.68-second run
at a track record 206.54 miles per hour during testing at the start of the SCSS program.

The race featured two wild rides. Only thirty minutes into the official qualifying period, Dave Ramsey
left the starting on a single run in his gorgeous blue 2005 Mustang. Spinning the tires hard, Ramsey
held on as the Ford performed a 270-degree spin three hundred feet downtrack without making wall
contact. Late in the meet, Mike Young, Jr., launched his ‘90 355 Malibu hard enough to spit out the
left rear wheel and axle; sliding from the left to the right lane, Young barely missed his opponent
while spinning in a trail of sparks!

August 8th SCSS champion Ben Nungester returned with his beautiful ghost-flamed ‘69 Camaro
Rallye Sport but suffered the same maladies as his first outing with his new MSD progressive timing
system box two weeks ago. After one launch, Nungester shut down the 10-second Chevy, retired the
car and spent the remainder of the evening assisting friend Tripp who had installed a similar unit
after last week’s runner-up. Using Nungester’s knowledge of the electronics, Tripp’s 406-inch ‘69
Camaro was the first to break into the ten-second zone with a 10.377/134.06 only twenty-five
minutes into the qualifying period but was making strange sounds thoughout the run. “We’re new at
this”, said Nungester as he watched Tripp’s pass, “but we’ll figure it out”.

Only current SCSS Season Championship point leader Tony Buhl threatened Tripp; the Illinoisan’s
Vortech-blown 331-inch ‘89 Mustang hit a 10.69/126.41 to move in the second qualifying position
while Tripp ran a 10.40/129.38 with the odd noises still eminating from the smallblock Chevy. Only a
few minutes later, however, Tony Huff appeared for his first run. After receiving assistance from Sam
Moore and Bill Silva of the SCSS Speed Record-holding Silva Bullet Ford team en route to a win last
week, Huff’s 468-inch ‘68 Nova thundered to a 9.418 at 141.77 mph, only three thousandths of a
second slower than his career-best recorded seven days ago. In a surprising twist, Moore was also
piloting the S-10 owned by Dale Huff which Tony debuted at the September 5th event.

Mike Faller and Lambert Fleck of the FastRides.net team
showed with their Springfield, Illinois-based ‘98 Camaro and charged to a best-ever 10.59/127.13 to
move into the third spot while Buhl struggled to improve and Tripp slowed to a 10.92/126.22 as the
electronics problems began to get out of hand. Then, with only eighteen minutes remaining in the
qualifying session, unheralded Paul Schoelich staged his nondescript ‘90 Mustang. The black Ford
had clocked an impressive 10.77/130.34 earlier in qualifying to become the 50th member of the
SCSS 10-Second Club and the 26th member of the SCSS 130 MPH Club. Schoelich, (pronounced
“SHELL-lick”), banged the four-speed in his naturally-aspirated 408-inch ‘Stang to a 10.370 at
132.31 mph and, by seven thousandths of a second, bumped his way past Tripp and into the
final round with Huff!

The drama didn’t end there, however. Huff made one last attempt to take advantage of the amazing
air but the Nova came crashing down from mid-wheelstand when the transmission converter fried just
off the line. Bob Morrill, the first driver over 150 mph in SCSS competition and a member of the Silva
Bullet team, turned as Huff coasted to the finish line and said, “Well, THAT one ain’t comin’
back!”.

Indeed, the damage to Huff’s Nova was terminal; the winningest SCSS driver quickly sent word that
he would not appear for the final round. That meant Schoelich assumed the pole position and Tripp,
who’d been knocked out of the final by less than a hundredth of a second, was back in as first
alternate. Interestingly, both Schoelich and Tripp made test runs during the late timed trial period
only minutes before the championship race. The Ford ran 10.49/132.49 but Tripp, with the engine
sounding nearly normal, hit a 10.15 at 138.34 mph. “I fixed it!”, yelled a grinning Nungester as
the numbers appeared on the scoreboards, “Now we can race!”.

Sensing the Camaro was on the road to recovery, Schoelich pushed the Christmas Tree as hard as
he dared in the season’s twelfth Ford-versus-Chevy trophy match and the Mustang pilot drew a
redlight start by fifty-three thousandths of a second. To add insult, Tripp’s Camaro launched even
harder than it had on the 10.15 pass but failed to shift into second gear and Schoelich’s
10.57/132.59 was for naught. “It actually had a problem shifting on the 10.15”, said a relieved Tripp
during trophy presentations in front of the main grandstands, “and I wondered if it would hold in the
final. After three runner-ups, I’m just happy to finally win one of the big trophies. I think we’re
getting a handle on the progressive controller thanks to Ben”. Nungester added, “At least Gary won
even though I didn’t get down the track. This is what I get for working on his car all month
instead of my own!”.

It should be mentioned that Schoelich’s appearance at the event was nearly a miracle in itself. After
a devastating street motorcycle crash earlier in the year which severely damaged his right leg, the
Owensville, Missouri, racer has undergone major surgery to regain the use of his “gas pedal leg”.
“It’s the one I keep to the floor all the time”, said Schoelich, “so it’s not as bad as you’d think. I
haven’t been out that much since I wrecked my Ducati. We’ve basically only run this car at Midnight
Madness events. I built the chassis and McClain Machine Shop in Cuba, Missouri, did the motor. I
think we can get it into the nines with the right air this season. I’ll be out here trying, for sure!”.





NOTES FROM THE SCSS: With four events remaining in the SCSS season, Tony Buhl
still leads the 2006 Season Championship point standings with his Vortech-blown ‘89 331 Mustang.
The point championship is determined by the number of Qualifier stickers earned with the date on
which the driver’s point total is earned, followed by each driver’s best ET of the season, used as
tie-breakers. The pressure is still on the Ford pilot, however. If Buhl fails to qualify at any event in
which Tony Huff makes the field, Huff would assume the lead based on his season-best 9.41
elapsed time even though both would be tied for number of decals earned...Ben Nungester’s
father, Jack,
once again qualified his black ‘71 Z28 with a best-ever 11.24/122...Orson “O.J.”
Johnson
qualified his modular-motored ‘99 Mustang ragtop with a career-best 10.71/127.47 then
hit a 10.63/128.43 in late timed trials...Randy Wickenhauser’s supercharged ‘03 Cobra made
its first appearance in almost a year to clock a best-ever 11.32/124.86...Robert Obermoeller’s
11.07/120.43 qualifier made the ‘87 Camaro pilot the 100th member of the SCSS 120 MPH
Club!
...The most expensive car in competition was also the most watched; Steve Thomas
wheeled his $177,000 550-horsepower 2005 Ford GT to a best of 11.45 at a ****ping 128.29
mph...Charlie Sciuto’s white 2001 Firebird ran 12.01/112.32 but “Shoe-Toe” squeezed out a
career-best 11.980 in late timed trials...Jesse Zirkelbach pushed his ‘06 Mustang to its first
11-second pass with an 11.92/115.86...Paul Rosner is probably still celebrating the
11.84/118.03 he got out of his NMRA Project Car 2001 Mustang after spending most of the year
chasing an “eleven”...The event’s quickest six-cylinder run came from the slick blue-on-silver ‘99
Lexus GS300 of Ben Stock; the inline 183-incher hit a 12.69/113.94 best...Speaking of
six-bangers, Rick Poepping of the St. Louis Club Grand
Prix
team not only got a career-best 13.57/101.80 from his blown 231-inch ‘04 Grand Prix
but drew plenty of crowd response when he dusted two different late model Corvettes in the
process...With six days to go, the question remains: Who will be the number eight qualifier on
September 26th???




SX PERFORMANCE STREET CAR SHOOTOUT SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP POINT
STANDINGS (as of SEPTEMBER 20th, 2006)


Pos Points Name Hometown ST Vehicle Engine

1 (17) Tony Buhl Lebanon IL 89 Mustang 331 Ford
2 (16) Tony Huff Collinsville IL 68 Nova 468 Chevy
3 (14) Hal Marshall Collinsville IL 86 S-10 383 Chevy
4 (12) Jim Harris O'Fallon MO 03 Corvette 346 Chevy
5 (9) Raymond Arthur Edwardsville IL 67 Camaro 427 Chevy
6 (8) Joe Williams Maryville IL 68 Nova 468 Chevy
7 (5) Gary Tripp Imperial MO 69 Camaro 406 Chevy
8 (5) Adam Corbitt St. Charles MO 85 Golf 122 Volks
9 (4) Matt Crittendon St. Louis MO 89 Mustang 306 Ford
10 (4) Rusty Schneider Owensville MO 99 Mustang 281 Ford




SEPTEMBER 19th, 2006 STLSR.COM SPORT TUNER SHOWDOWN FINAL ROUND

Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle R.T. ET MPH

W Adam Corbitt, St. Charles, MO 1985 122 Golf 0.135 11.876 123.25
RU Adnan Omerovic, St. Louis, MO 1995 122 Talon 0.494 11.899 124.20

Without question, the September 19th edition of the St. Louis Street
Racing.com
Sport Tuner Showdown Series will be go down in the thirty-seven event history
of the program as the most impressive yet. Virtually every one of the area’s toughest “hitters” were
on hand for a performance-fest which saw personal bests reset with nearly every run. In the end,
Adam Corbitt moved into a tie with Patrick Jacobsmeyer for the most STSS career wins but just
qualifying for the final round was a chore for the Polk Audio/Wheels America Volkswagen Golf.

From their first qualifying run, the Corbitt Brothers were in trouble. A 12.15 at 124.68 mph was well
off their recent 11.47 SCSS Front-Wheel-Drive record and, as it turned out, it was nearly the only run
in which the turbocharged VW got to the finish line under power. A series of shut-off runs showed
near-record numbers to the eighth-mile but the two-litre powerplant soon went ragged and forced
driver Adam to lift. “It’s running way lean”, said crewchief/publicity director Dave Corbitt, “and we
know the air is really good but we’re giving it more and more fuel and it’s just not enough”.
Eventually, the duo managed an 11.73 at a coasting 111 mph but, in light of the assemblage of talent
in the staging lanes, it didn’t appear to even be enough to qualify for the final round.

It was Adnan “Otto” Omerovic who first dropped jaws during qualifying. The two-time and most recent
winner opened with a subpar 12.42/117.60 timed trial from his 4G63T-powered ‘95 Eagle Talon but
then unleashed an 11.77 at an ungodly 129.00 miles per hour, just missing Joe Laramee’s
129.87 mph SCSS Four-Cylinder Speed Record. It was the fastest All-Wheel-Drive STSS pass by
almost seven miles per hour and was assumed to be due to the nitrous oxide injection Omerovic had
wanted to use “when the air got better”. Shockingly, that wasn’t the case. “I didn’t spray it!”,
exclaimed Omerovic after the run. “I shimmed the wastegate and I tested it up to 30 pounds of boost.
I’m really surprised it held but...it held!”.

The qualified field contained the tighest group of STSS racers ever. Behind Corbitt, (11.73/124.68),
and Omerovic, (11.777/129.00), were Brian Orsborn’s brutally quick “Boosted” red ‘04 Dodge Neon
SRT-4, (an 11.800 at a best-ever 124.51 mph), “PJ” Jacobsmeyer’s infamous white ‘91 Talon, (a
best-ever 11.86/119.74), and Eric Cheatham’s blue Mazda RX7, (nonstop problems and a best of
11.87/99.36), putting the top five within fourteen hundredths of a second!

When the white VW and the black Talon pulled to the line, each driver presumed the other would run
a career best number for the trophy. Although the two were separated by only two hundredths of a
second in the final battle, it was a massive holeshot of one third of a second by Corbitt which
determined the outcome. In order to have beaten Corbitt’s 11.87/123.25, Omerovic needed to run
11.51 or quicker! “I actually had problems with third gear”, said Omerovic after the final round, “but I
really can’t complain after the 129 mph run. I’m more anxious to spray it now than ever before. My
goal for the year was to run 130 mph with nitrous. Now, it’s almost that fast without it. How fast can it
go?”. Meanwhile, Adam Corbitt admitted that the class is only going to get tougher, adding, “With this
many cars so close together, everybody had better make sure their stuff is running right. I expected
him to come flying by me down there and it didn’t happen...this time.”



SEPTEMBER 19th, 2006 GATEWAYRACEWAY.COM SUPER TRUCK SHOWDOWN FINAL
ROUND


Pos Name Hometown ST Vehicle R.T. ET MPH

W Sam Moore, East Alton, IL 1992 406 S-10 0.625 10.625 123.98
RU Hal Marshall, Collinsville, IL 1986 383 S-10 0.276 11.013 123.47

At first glance, the numbers might seem like a total blowout in the final round of the
GatewayRaceway.com Super Truck Showdown.
However, don’t kid yourself; Hal Marshal may have lost a final round, but not by much. More
importantly for Hal, he broke his string of two consecuitve DNQs in SCSS competition and appears
to have solved his drivetrain problems, as well.

Hal’s rare loss, only his fourth in twenty-three final rounds, came at the hands of an unlikely team.
Sam Moore, the current SCSS speed record holder at over 161 mph in Bill Silva’s Silva Bullet
Mustang, took the wheel of Dale Huff’s red ‘92 S-10 pickup which, in its only previous appearance,
had lost to Hal in the September 5th Super Truck championship match. The red S-10 was also now
sporting a Silva Bullet Motorsports decal across the windshield and Bill Silva was actively thrashing
on the truck. “We’ve been fixing alot of things on it”, said Moore of the new truck, “and we’ve got
some plans for it in the future, too”. Silva added, “I said last week we’re going to have a serious team
next year and this will be a part of it”. The 406-inch smallblock truck managed a 10.62/128.97 to
become the second quickest truck of the season, qualifying ahead of Hal’s white S-10,
(11.04/122.64).

Hal’s truck was sporting new mufflers but Hal made sure folks knew they wouldn’t be on for long. “I
hate ‘em!”, said Hal, “I can’t hear the engine and I really don’t even like the way they look. I just threw
‘em on there after working on the transmission all week. The tranny was fried...I mean really cooked.
I had it in pieces all over the place”.

In the trophy match, Hal did exactly what he had to do, strapping a third-of-a-second holeshot on an
extremely tardy Moore. At the 330-feet mark, Hal’s white S-10 was in front by 14.66 feet. At
half-track, Hal was still ahead by 12.70 feet. At that point, the red S-10 began to move. At 1000 feet,
the difference was indistinguishable...0.000 seconds between the two trucks. At the stripe, Moore
and the red S-10 squeezed ahead by a mere 7.27 feet, inching forward at a rate of only a half
mile-per-hour. Still, Sam Moore became a member of an exclusive club the only other members of
which are James Johnson, Randy Christy, and Kevin Goss. Those are the only other racers to ever
beat Hal Marshall in a final round!




Photos of the September 19th SX Performance Street Car Shootout Series event are now available
for viewing at Bret Kepner Photos.com.


Tripp09-19-2006.jpg


Gary Tripp, Imperial, MO 1969 406 Camaro

Schoelich09-19-2006.jpg


Paul Schoelich, Owensville, MO 1990 408 Mustang

Corbitt09-19-2006.jpg


Adam Corbitt, St. Charles, MO 1985 122 Golf

Omerovic09-19-2006.jpg


Adnon Omerovic, St. Louis, MO 1995 122 Talon

Moore09-19-2006.jpg


Sam Moore, East Alton, IL 1992 406 S-10

Marshall09-19-2006.jpg


Hal Marshall, Collinsville, IL 1986 383 S-10
 
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