Racing Lines: Keown, Chang win at West Virginia’s Summit Point

The Tire Rack BMW CCA Club Racing series returned to Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia for the second time this season to run four sprint races on a very hot July weekend in the annual New Jersey Chapter combined race and driving-school event. C-Modified E46 M3 racers took the overall wins; James Keown, coming off an overall win at CTMP in June, won the Friday sprint, and Robert Chang, who had scored two wins at Watkins Glen in May and one win each at Thunderbolt and Roebling Road in June, won the other three races.

Keown was challenged by Chang on Friday, but the latter’s decision to run on the tires that he had used at Roebling Road affected his car’s handling. He started from the pole, but was passed by Keown in a few laps. He regained the lead after a restart following a caution period, but could not hold off Keown. Chang, who has returned to BMW CCA Club Racing after a number of years away, said afterward, “Since I attended the previous BMW CCA event at Summit Point this year, the pressure to learn a new track wasn’t there, but for most of the weekend the pressure came from the very fast C-Mod car—and driver James Keown.”

Chang finished second overall in the Friday sprint, while M2 Spec winner Michael Kerner rounded out the podium in his F87 M2 CSR. Two additional class winners crossed the line behind Kerner in their E36 M3s; Sri Haputantri was fourth, winning PWR4, and Emrich Stellar was fifth, winning PWR3. Other Friday class winners were Ryan Agnew in I-Prepared (E36 M3), Jesse Clark in the eleven-car Spec E46 class in his 330Ci, Justin Pizzulo in PWR2 (E36 M3), Michael Saul in I-Sport (E36 M3), and race chair Ross Karlin, who scored a solo E-Modified win in his E21 320i.

New tires gave Chang the edge he needed on Saturday morning, when he was first of three C-Mod E46 M3 racers to finish on the podium, with Keown second and Jared Randall third. Kerner finished fourth, winning M2 Spec again. Four additional class winners followed: Andrew Palumbo in PWR4 (E46 M3); Stellar, winning again in PWR3; Agnew, scoring his second I-Prepared win; and Ben Hostetler, taking the Spec E46 victory in his 330i. Pizzulo (PWR2) and Saul (I-Sport) won again, and Karlin took another solo win in E-Mod.

Chang, Keown, and Randall once again graced the podium in the Saturday-afternoon feature sprint, with Chang finishing with a 21-second edge over Keown. Repeat class winners Palumbo (PWR4), Kerner (M2 Spec), and Stellar were next to take the checker. Agnew (I-Prepared), Hostetler (Spec E46), Pizzulo (PWR2), and Saul (I-Sport) all won again, and Karlin once again took a solo win in E-Modified.

In the final sprint race, run on Sunday morning, Chang won again, with C-Mod runner-up Randall second and M2 Spec winner Kerner third.

Keown did not start the race. Stellar finished fourth, completing his sweep of PWR3, and Agnew (I-Prepared), Pizzulo (PWR2), and Saul (I-Sport) also completed sweeps of their respective classes. Hostetler took his third Spec E46 win, and Karlin—driving the E21 320i that has run in the series since the beginning of Club Racing time—scored his fourth solo win in E-Modified.

The Tire Rack Series honored the long-time sponsorship of Tony Salloum’s VAC Motorsports at the event. VAC supplied the pace car, and Salloum was given a trophy recognizing his 25 years of sponsorship; he was also presented with the Spirit of Club Racing award for his many contributions to the series.

Martin Bullen and Mark Connolly served as competition stewards; Tim Bradford, Warren Brown, Ben Greisler, and Jeff Mohan served as the tech and grid stewards, and Larry Fletcher served as the timing-and-scoring steward.—Brian Morgan, Roundel motorsports editor, with input from racers

Lead photo of race winners Robert Chang and James Keown by etechphoto