By Night, Funk’s Passion Turns to Speed!

By Larry Funk

October 5, 2009

Each fall, the roar of engines can be heard for miles as 600 of this country’s best amateur road racing drivers make a dramatic push to achieve first in their class on the nation’s finest road circuit, Road America. Throughout the season, drivers race in 70 events across the country to qualify for one last, winner-take-all event in September … the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) National Championship Runoffs. Some of the most famous American racers have won at the Runoffs, including Bobby Rahal, Paul Newman, and Mark Donahue. There is a strong possibility that the next great American racing driver may be racing at the Runoffs this year. The SCCA Runoffs will be held at Wisconsin’s Road America, a 4.048-mile, 14-turn road course located in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. Participants for the Runoffs are by invitation and only 10% of all the eligible drivers qualify for the competition.
By day Funk manages a wide variety of commercial and residential properties in the Oberlin area; but by night his passion turns to speed as he works to prepare his Honda CRX si for competition. A 33-year veteran to road racing, Funk got the racing fever during the Can Am Series in the mid 60’s to early 70’s. In 2009, after 2 blown motors at Nelson Ledges, Garrettsville, OH and Gingerman, South Haven, MI; Funk obtained the necessary 4 starts and 4 finishes to qualify as an entrant in the Runoffs. The season included breaking the lap record at 1:12.95 at Nelson Ledges 4th of July Weekend and a third place finish at Grattan, Belding, MI in the backup car. GoRacingTV.com will broadcast a daily news show at 8PM EST from September 22-27 during the Runoffs. Funk’s FP Race will air live on SpeedcastTV.com Friday, September 25th at 3:30PM CST. “I choose a Honda CRX si because of its sporting heritage. While I have some concerns about keeping up with the 1800 cc cars, I hope to be competitive!” says Funk. For more information, go to www.scca.com, www.roadamerica.com, www.speedcastTV.com and www.GoRacingTV.com.