NASA Southeast Time Trial returned for round two of three 2023 events at Roebling Road Raceway in Bloomingdale, Ga., located in the suburban footprint of Savannah, Ga., for the NASA Southeast Spring Brake, April 1-2. This marked the fourth race weekend of the young 2023 NASA Southeast schedule.
Saturday’s competition began as 30 total competitors rolled off the grid to tackle Roebling Road’s always challenging nine sweeping turns, covering exactly 2.02 miles. The close competition set two new track records by the time the weekend was complete.
With eight drivers and their cars, the TTU class had the largest number of entries as well as some of the closest competition, with Brian Rosati in his No. 24 C7 Corvette setting a blistering pace for the weekend, with a fast lap of 1:12.383 during Saturday’s competition and taking the P1 spot. With less than 0.4 seconds separating them, the P2 spot went to the #13 C5 Corvette of Gerry Hansen with a fast lap of 1:15.551, followed in P3 by the #531 Mustang Sampling C5 Corvette of Team Drivinhard Racing, which consists of long time TT veterans, Mark Nunnally and Tal Isbell.
Sunday’s competition in TTU saw an inversion of P2 and P3 from Saturday’s results, with P1-P3 all finding even more speed over Saturday’s times. The No. 24 Corvette of Rosati maintained the P1 position with a fastest lap time of 1:11.915 for the day. Nunnally and Isbell with Team Drivinhard Racing made some very effective adjustments from Saturday to their No. 31 Mustang Sampling Corvette, setting a fast lap for Sunday of 1:11.994, less than 0.10 seconds back from Rosati in P1. The P3 spot went to the No. 13 Corvette of Gerry Hanson, who shaved another half-second off his Saturday time, with a fast lap of 1:15.069.
The TT4 class started Saturday with seven competitors, but following a couple of DQs, the day ended with five drivers putting down a lap time. In P1 was the No. 83X Honda S2000 of NASA Florida regular, David Farrar, with a fast lap of 1:15.593. Farrar went on to set the TT4 track record on Sunday, with a fast lap of 1:14.197. In P2 and P3 respectively were the No. 062 K-Swap Miata of Scott Johnston, with a fast lap of 1:17.422, and the No. 126 Subaru BRZ of rookie driver, Nicholas Dugdale, less than 0.30 seconds behind P2, with a fast lap of 1:17.422. Sunday’s competition saw the afore mentioned P1 of Farrar, with P2 scooped up by the No. 8 USLCI Ford Legends car of Brad Miller, with a fast lap of 1:21.209, and P3 taken by the No. 14X Roush Mustang of Eddie Jackson, with a time of 1:23.369
The TT3 class had five competitors put down lap times on Saturday, with P1 going to the No. 182 BMW M3 of rookie, Alex Miller, with a time of 1:17.798. The P2 spot went to the No. 849 C5 Corvette of Tim Spittle, turning a fast lap of 1:18.462, and P3 going to the No. 733 Ford Mustang of Michael Tomany, with a quick lap of 1:20.189. Sunday’s TT3 competition saw a repeat of P1-P3, with all three spots improving their lap times over Saturday’s competition.
With four entries, the TT6 class competition saw three Mazda Miatas and one Nissan Sentra battle it out, with the No. 10 Mazda Miata of Tim Wilson taking the P1 spot with a fast time of 1:21.910, the No. 124 Nissan Sentra of David Escobar taking P2 with a fast time of 1:24.847, and the No. 149 Mazda Miata of Ernie Johnson rounding out the podium in P3, with a fast time of 1:27.745. Sunday’s competition saw all competitors maintaining their finishing spots from Saturday, with the No. 10 Miata of Tim Wilson finding enough additional speed to set a new TT6 track record, turning a single lap time of 1:21.008.
The three entries in the TT2 class for the weekend saw Saturday’s P1 spot go to rookie driver, Frank Pinon in his No. 57 Porsche GT3, with a fast lap time of 1:17.332, followed closely by the No. 32X C7 Corvette of veteran TT driver Jerry Digges with a fast time of 1:18.076. P3 went to the No. 440 Ford Mustang of Mark Hill, with a fast lap of 1:19.789. Sunday’s results saw a repeat of all three podium positions.
The finishes of Saturday’s competition in TT1 ended with the No. 58 BMW M4 of Jeffrey Bankston taking the top spot with a lap time of 1:17.672 in P1. Right on his heels in P2 was the supercharged No. 192 BMW M3 of Rob Turczany with a fast lap of 1:18.559, followed closely by the No. 418 Prochallenge Mustang of Ron Richey, with a fastest lap of 1:21.001 to take the P3 spot.
The finishing order of Sunday’s competition remained the same, but with each driver improving on their Saturday lap times and finishing within mere 0.50 seconds of one another for the closest competition of the weekend.
