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1999 was the sixth year for the Sports Car Club of America's Pro Spec Racer championship.
The car used in the series was the very popular Spec Racer Ford.
This affordable, low maintenance, purpose-built vehicle is the popular category at Sports Car Club of
America club racing events and attracts large fields with close racing.
The Pro Spec Racer division receives support from BF Goodrich Tires and the Ford Motor Company.
The 1999 season consists of nine races at eight different venues. Each contest is approximately fifty-miles in length. The year opens in May at Mosport International Raceway. The series visits the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course during the first weekend of June. Next on the calendar is a race at Pikes Peak International Raceway. Following the event in Colorado, teams stop at Road Atlanta for the series only doubleheader weekend. Then Pro Spec Racer competitors travel to Grand Rapids, Michigan, for the West Michigan Grand Prix. Round seven, a month after Michigan is held at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The penultimate event is in early October at Watkins Glen International. The season ends at Sebring International Raceway. The Spec Racer Ford is a single-seat, open-cockpit tube-frame chassis sports racer manufactured by SCCA Enterprises in Colorado. The cars are identical and powered by a sealed four-cylinder, SOHC, 1.9-liter Ford engine with a five-speed transmission. This combination produces 105-horsepower and a top speed of 135-mph. The suspension uses a rocker arm design (front and rear) with coil-over shocks on each corner and adjustable front and rear sway bars. All series cars use a spec BF Goodrich tire. The penultimate round of the 1999 SCCA Pro Spec Racer series was held at Watkins Glen International. Competitors would race for eighteen laps around the eleven-turn 3.337-mile road course.
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Leading the field of thirty-three SCCA Pro Spec Racer competitors through Watkins Glen International's turn eleven is the pole-sitter, James Goughary, Jr., in the No. 29 Speedcom Communications Spec Racer Ford. Behind Goughary is the third-place qualifier and title contender, Jack Willes, driving the No. 49 Spec Racer Ford. Trailing Willes are Bobby Sak, Warren Stilwell, Neil Tibor, John Black and Keith Scharf. |
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The leader's Jack Willes in the No. 49 Spec Racer Ford and Warren Stilwell driving the No. 28 car, exit the final corner at Watkins Glen International on the last lap. Willes qualified third fastest and Stilwell started on the outside of the front row. With three laps remaining, Willes passed Stilwell for first place. Despite repeated attempts, Stilwell was unable to move to the front. The win moved Willes to the points lead. |
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James Goughary, Jr. drove the No. 29 Speedcom Communications sponsored Spec Racer Ford. Goughary had collected five podium results to date, one of which was a victory in the season opener at Mosport International Raceway. With this record, he led the championship. At Watkins Glen International, Goughary qualified on the pole and led early. Unfortunately, an off-course excursion resulted in a third-place finish. |
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Series veteran Neil Tibor captured his first victory of 1999 at the West Michigan Grand Prix when the leaders, Jack Willes and Keith Scharf, crashed on the final lap. His season also included six top-five finishes, of which four were podium results. Tibor qualified fifth at Watkins Glen International, driving the No. 8 Tibor Marketing Spec Racer Ford. He lost positions to John Black and Keith Scharf during the race and finished sixth. |
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John Meriggi piloted the No. 77 Spec Racer Ford with backing from Great Expectations. In round two at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Meriggi qualified second and finished 0.799-seconds behind the winner, Warren Stilwell. The differential established a new series record for the closest margin of victory. At Watkins Glen International, Meriggi was off the pace and finished thirteenth after starting fourteenth. |
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In addition to competing in the Pro Spec Racer Ford division, Keith Scharf also participated in the SCCA's National Club Racing program. Scharf had an impressive Runoff's resume, which included seven visits to the podium, one of which was a victory. This season, the No. 82 Hyper-V Spec Racer Ford driver had a win in round seven at Homestead-Miami. At Watkins Glen International, he started sixth and finished fifth. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | SPONSOR / CAR | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Jack Willes | Willes Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 2 | 2 | Warren Stilwell | Stilwell Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 3 | 1 | Jim Goughary Jr. | Speedcom / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 4 | 7 | John Black | Ascent Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 5 | 6 | Keith Scharf | Hunt Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 6 | 5 | Neil Tibor | Tibor Marketing & Development / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 7 | 12 | John Steinmetz | Steinmetz Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 8 | 15 | Darren Pritt | Hasteltis Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 9 | 10 | Bob Boudinot | Computer Discount Center / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 10 | 19 | Mick Robinson | Robinson Motorsports / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 11 | 8 | L.J. Shumosic | Shumosic Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 12 | 18 | Steve Rehkemper | John Bowden Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 13 | 14 | Ian Prout | Automotive Services / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 14 | 13 | John Meriggi | Great Expectations / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 15 | 20 | Kelly Toombs | Travelodge / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 16 | 27 | Jeff Futrelle | MECO Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 17 | 21 | Doug Farrar | Elite Auto Sports / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 18 | 17 | Doug Garrison | Garrison Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 19 | 23 | Greg Farrar | Elite Auto Sports / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 20 | 22 | John Bowden | Blue Sky Graphics / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 21 | 24 | Kim Knapp | LaRue Motorsports / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 22 | 25 | Peter Pope | Standard Furniture / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 23 | 26 | Richard Doty | Fast Cat Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 24 | 28 | Bob Devol | Creative Firepower / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 25 | 29 | Tony Pio Costa | Junction Car Wash / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 26 | 31 | Bill Robinson | Infra Therm / Spec Racer Ford | 18 | - |
| 27 | 32 | Thomas Hunt | Hunt Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 17 | - |
| 28 | 33 | John Carroll | Carroll Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 17 | - |
| 29 | 4 | Bobby Sak | Don Sak Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 13 | Accident |
| 30 | 11 | Andy Bentinck-Smith | Motion Dynamics / Spec Racer Ford | 10 | Mechanical |
| 31 | 16 | Joe Willenpart | East Anglia Motorsports / Spec Racer Ford | 10 | Mechanical |
| 32 | 9 | Chris Funk | Hunt Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 7 | Mechanical |
| 33 | 30 | Michael Jacobs | Jacobs Racing / Spec Racer Ford | 0 | Accident |
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