NASA Southeast Spec Miata descended upon Roebling Road Raceway in March for a weekend defined by blistering pace and door-to-door dicing. Known for its high-speed, flowing layout, the nearly 2-mile-long circuit saw a deep field of cars testing the limits of the new spec tire and the courage of the drivers.
The event featured a mix of seasoned Spec Miata veterans and rising stars, with 17-year-old Clay Bowman making waves and Julian Pollard fighting through illness to maintain his standing at the front of the pack. “Just sending it,” Pollard said when asked about the secret to a fast lap at Roebling. “A lot of the corners are really flowy, so you really got to send it through the corners and just hope the car sticks.”
Saturday Race One
The opening day of competition set a high bar for the rest of the weekend, with the top of the grid separated by thousandths of a second. Dean Dybdahl secured pole with a 1:22.3, but Javier Laurnaga and Agustin Garcia Flores followed within 0.1 seconds, signaling that the afternoon race would be a draft-heavy chess match.
As the green flag dropped for the race one, a four-car lead pack including Dybdahl, Pollard, Laurnaga and Garcia Flores broke away from the field. Pollard initially led, but a mistake allowed the pack to swarm.
“I think I was leading for a good minute there, and then eventually around Turn 7 I just messed up,” Pollard said. “I messed up and slid out and they were able to just get ahead of me, but we built up enough of a lead from everyone else that it wasn’t that bad. I was able to keep fourth.”
The finish was one for the highlight reels. Garcia Flores executed a masterful draft on a Spec E30 car on the final straight to snatch the win from Dybdahl by just 0.143 seconds.
For race one, it was Garcia Flores with the win, Dybdahl in second and Laurnaga in third, with Pollard in fourth and Don Elvington rounding out the top five.
Sunday Race Two
Sunday morning’s “money race” featured a grid determined by the fastest laps from Saturday. Garcia Flores started on the pole, but the competition remained tight. Dybdahl and Laurnaga had posted identical lap times of 1:22.707 the previous day, placing them side-by-side in the hunt.
The race saw high drama when Pollard and Bowman made contact. Pollard had dipped two wheels into the grass near Turn 5, and upon re-entry, he and Bowman collided. The contact bent a rear lower control arm bolt on Pollard’s car, leading to significant toe-out and a difficult drive to the finish.
Despite the mechanical setback, the paddock’s sportsmanship was on full display. Jasper, Pollard’s father, noted that Laurnaga provided a spare bolt to help get Julian’s car back on track for the final race of the weekend.
Dybdahl took the victory in race two, breaking the draft and pulling a 1.22-second gap over Garcia Flores by the checkered flag. “I don’t know what tires Dean was on,” Garcia Flores said. “Without the draft, he would have pulled away from me. He was probably a couple of tenths a lap faster than me.”
Sunday Race Three
The final sprint of the weekend turned into a tactical battle between Dybdahl and Pollard. While Dybdahl led most of the way, a double-yellow flag bunched the field for a late-race restart.
Laurnaga attempted a bold move by starting in second gear rather than the traditional third to get a better jump. “It’s uncomfortable because usually when the green flag drops you just hit the gas and you immediately have to shift into third,” Laurnaga said.
On the restart, Laurnaga gave Pollard a bump-draft to help them both clear Dybdahl, but the track’s geometry proved challenging. “The track starts to taper off and it goes into the grass,” Pollard said of the pit exit area. “By the time that I was side-by-side with him, I was already in the grass.” Dybdahl eventually reclaimed the lead on the outside of Turn 1 and held it to the finish.
At the checkers it was Dybdahl in first, Pollard in second and Laurnaga in third, with Bowman in fourth and Elvington fifth.
Key Driver Perspectives: The Hoosier Shift
A major talking point was the transition to the new Hoosier RCES racing tires. For many in the Southeast region, this weekend served as the ultimate litmus test for the new rubber’s longevity and feel.
Garcia Flores noted that the Hoosier offers a progressive breakaway, but it is less forgiving than the previous Toyo tires. “The Hoosier, once you overheat it, it’s gone and it’s never coming back that race until it just completely cools down,” he said.
Laurnaga echoed the sentiment regarding the tire’s initial grip. “Right out the gate it felt amazing,” Laurnaga said. “The slip angle that you can hold while honestly just going flat to the floor, it’s really confidence-inspiring.”
The weekend also highlighted the emergence of 17-year-old Bowman. Despite a ding to his “street cred” for running a mismatched white rim borrowed from the Pollard team after the race two incident, Bowman found significant speed. “I was able to brake later and throw it deeper into the corners,” Bowman said. “It was just rotating the car more.”
Conclusion
The March weekend at Roebling Road belonged to Dybdahl and Garcia Flores, who split the wins, but the full story was the incredible parity within the NASA Southeast Spec Miata field. With the top four cars often separated by less than a second after 30 minutes of racing, the technical proficiency of the region has never been higher.
NASA Southeast heads next to Carolina Motorsports Park the first weekend in May.
