2008
2 Histroric Racing Titans united in one Cockpit
Well we have an exciting Group C / GTP season ahead of us. Not only are we part of the support races ahead of the modern 24 heurs at Le Mans, but sporting code changes of the series will equalize the available power between atmo and turbo cars. Also, Charlie Agg, the new series organizer thought that these cars have to run the way they were built.... as endurance cars. So the race format in 2008 includes a Saturday sprint race of 30' and a Sunday 90' race with pitstop and driver change.
Driver change?
Well when you are in need of a great historic racecar driver not many names pop up. Having one already in the car we had to call Martin Stretton.... and he agreed to race with Fredy in the Spice. Are we serious about Group C / GTP racing? You bet! Do we have a chance to win? We will see. Do we believe that we are prepared to win? You can bet your grandma on this!
Spice SE90 GTP
Historic Grand Prix Monaco 2008
MONACO 'Historic' GRAND PRIX 2008
The Historic Grand Prix of Monaco exists since 1997.
It takes place on the same circuit as the Formula 1 Grand Prix with the charming old cars that propose a travel back in time.
Organised every two years by the Automobile Club of Monaco, the 2004 edition was a success for the spectators that come more and more each year.
Here are the main modifications for the 2006 edition :
The circuit, as for the Formula 1 Grand-Prix, has been modified from the swimming pool to the curve of the Rascasse. The total distance is now 3,340 km. The exit of the stands goes now up to the curve of Sainte-Devote,
The 3 series (before 1934, before 1952 and before 1961) are merged into 2 series : before 1947 (C & D period from the FIA) and before 1961 (period E).
Sports car race will be only for cars from before 1953 (no more from before 1959), because the Monaco Grand-Prix for sports cars had only one edition in 1952.
F1 Race for cars from before 1966 (period F) doesn't accept cars from series Tasman and Intercontinentales,
F1 race, 3 liters, is reserved for cars that participated to a Grand-Prix before 1979 (period G & H).
Sunday 11 May
1 Race per Group (10 laps or max 30 mins) except Groups F & G (15 laps or max 45 mins)
15h30-16h15 Group F 1966-1974 'Formula 1' cars
16h45-17h30 Group G 1975-1978 'Formula 1' cars
Kumschick Racing's new Trailer Design
Kumschick Racing's new Trailer Design
Pole, Fastest Lap and Win for Joaquin Folch at Spa
Joaquin did it again. A very convicing performance at Monaco charged him to a even more convincing victory at Spa. It can't be better than pole, fastest lap and a top spot on the podium.
Check in soon for the podium pictures.
Yes we got the pace but not a podium, yet!
The Group C Racing Series had its first two races of the 2008 season at Spa-Francorchamps this weekend. On the 7 kilometer long circuit one 45-minute free practice session and a 40-minute qualifying session were followed by two races. On Saturday afternoon a 30-minute sprintrace took place followed by a 90-minute enduro race on Sunday afternoon.
During the free practice session on Friday it was British driver Mark Sumpter in a Porsche 962 who set the fastest time of 21 cars that set a time. A 2:13.067 was the fastest time set in the session. Sumpter was quickest again in the qualifying session on Sunday morning. Twenty-seven cars entered the qualifying session and when the chequered flag came out Sumpter had lapped the Belgian track in 2:19.443, over 7.5 seconds quicker than the second fastest driver, Andy Purdie in the Nissan R90-CK.
Sumpter and Purdie did not play an important role during the first race. After three laps both drivers were already out of the race and the battle for victory as fought out by other drivers. Quickest car out on the track was the number 11 Spice SE GTP of Fredy Kumschick and Martin Stretton, but a pit stop prevented them from winning the race. After completing 12 laps the number 3 Jaguar XJR12 of Justin Law and Andy Wallace took the win. 48 seconds behind Law and Wallace it was David Hart who took second place on his Group C debut, with Peter Sowerby and Calum Lockie taking third, one minute away from the winning Jaguar.
On Sunday the expected rain stayed away and as the race progressed the sun started to shine. Unfortunately Mark Sumpter’s Porsche did not take the start after the retirement during Saturday’s race and the car stayed in the box. Purdie’s Nissan led the Law/Wallace Silk Cut Jaguar at the start of the second race, but unfortunately both cars were unable to retain their positions throughout the race. Fredy Kumschick in the Spice took the lead on the second lap and was able to hang on to it till the end of his stint. Purdie managed to set the fastest lap time of the race, but eventually finished in eleventh place, while the number 3 Jaguar’s race came to an end after 26 laps. By then the Sauber Mercedes of Rob Sherrard and Wayne Park had already taken the lead and the ‘Silver Arrow’ was in a league of its own. As it crossed the chequered flag after 38 laps the gap to nearest rivals Sowerby and Lockie was more than one lap! David Hart in the Porsche 962 was a minute and a half behind the British Nissan drivers and finished third.
The next round of the Group C Racing Series will take place at the legendary Le Mans circuit. Instead of a regular weekend the cars will run one 40-minute race on Saturday morning. So far 40 cars have been confirmed to take part in France.
For images of the Spa-Francorchamps Group C Racing weekend take a look at ourgallery.
Group C Race
Joaquin finish 2nd at Monaco
Group F: Formula 1 Grand Prix cars (1966 – 1974)
Duncan Dayton and Joaquin Folch-Rusinol met once more on the track. The American led most of the race in his Brabham, until the Spaniard passed him during a questionably tight cut across the chicane and crossed the line first in his McLaren. Folch-Rusinol didn’t however complain when he was bumped down to second in the official result. The weekend’s two victories combined with those in the previous four editions make Dayton the most successful historic racer at Monaco. Well back in the pack finishing thirteenth, the unique Amon F101 was driven to its first-ever race finish in the hands of Ron Maydon. The problems causing Chris Amon to abandon the project in 1974 seem to have been solved by Maydon’s present-day team. There were also many non-finishers in this class, most of whom fell victim to the track’s unbendable Armco barriers. One of the weekend’s biggest accidents occurred in Group F’s second qualifying session when Jacques Nicolet in the BRM P201 and Andrea Burani in his McLaren M19 collided in the run up the hill towards the casino. The entire left hand side of the McLaren was ripped off as the car got pushed along the barrier. Both drivers fortunately managed to escape unharmed. Further adding to the complexity of the Monaco track was Judy Lyons in her Surtees; she had trouble keeping up with the safety car and served mainly as a rolling chicane.
Temporary Calendar 2008
Calendar 2008
Fredy misses Podium finish at Le Mans
After an absence of many years, Group C sportscars came back to Le Mans and they did so in style! Providing the spectacle were 30 fantastic Group C machines that took to the grid in glorious sunshine to compete in the historic support race organized by Motor Racing Legends. The 10-lap sprint race makes up one of the four-round Group C Racing series for 2008.
Fittingly, it was the Jaguar XJR V12 driven by Justin Law that took victory, exactly twenty years on from the famous Jaguar v Porsche duel that ended in the win for Jaguar and a marked a shift in the balance of Group C power.
Law rolled back the years and led from lights to flag after securing pole position in qualifying on Thursday. In an impressive display he never looked threatened, although second placed Mark Sumpter in his Porsche 962, only back backed off when it was clear that a win wasn’t going to be possible.
An ecstatic Justin said: “It’s awesome, I never expected this, I’m over the moon! I could see Mark in my mirrors all the time, so I just kept pushing as hard as I could.”
Commenting on a fine second place, Mark added: “Justin had an advantage as he’s been here before, but as the race went on I was getting progressively quicker.”
It was less controlled behind the pair as an exciting battle unfolded between Fredy Kumschick (Spice SE GTP), Gary Pearson (Jaguar XJR 11) and Oliver Mathai (Porsche 962).
After running in a solid third place, it was Fredy who lost out in the final corners as a fast charging Gary, who started from 15th on the grid. Making a desperate last-lap-lunge, Gary just tagged Fredy, sending him wide and two-places down the order. The chief beneficiary of the coming together was Oliver, who had qualified ninth and enjoyed a superb race-long battle with Gary that was only settled in the final metres when Gary and Fredy touched.
The first four across the line accounted for first and second places in classes 1 & 2 (C1: Justin Law, Jaguar XJR 12 and Mark Sumpter, Porsche 962C. C2: Oliver Mathai, Porsche 962C and Gary Pearson, Jaguar XJR 11).
The Class 3 & 4 winners were Peter Schleifer, March 84G and Christopher Catt, Spice GTP Light.
It is obvious that even after the best part of two decades, Group C cars are engraved on the heart of the motorsport enthusiast, because the Le Mans spectators just couldn’t get enough of these iconic racers.
The depth and quality of the Group C field is emphasized by the fact that the series runs examples of Le Mans winning marques such as Porsche, Jaguar, Mazda, Spice and Mercedes, as well as cars from Aston Martin, Nissan, Argo and Tiga.
The Group C experience doesn’t stop at Le Mans. Motorsport fans can see and hear these marvelous machines at Silverstone next month as they again take a central role in the Silverstone Classic meeting, which takes place over the 25th, 26th & 27th July.
At Silverstone there are two races, a 30-minute sprint on Saturday and a 90-minute endurance, which includes driver changes and refueling on Sunday.
The endurance race is the David Leslie Memorial Trophy, dedicated to the memory of sportscar legend David Leslie and a fitting way to bring the racing programme at Silverstone to a close.
Fredy & mechanics inject new life into Mexican GTP
Over a period of two years, Fredy, Wisu, Martin and the rest of the Kumschick Sports Car garage team rebuild a 1993 sports prototype.
The car, officially a Nissan Tame TA-120, was run between 1993 and 1996 in the Mexican Copa Tecate a "one Make" sports prototype series. The series was born in 1992 after Nissan stopped the US GTP program and to promote the brand "NISSAN" in Mexico and it's new Mexican car production plant.
Nissan approached Alfredo Tame Sr. who has a long experience in motorsport, first as a mechanic for guys like Shelby and latter as Mexicos race series promoter. His own race car preparation and operation is Escuderia TAME Racing. Tame Racing build the cars for NISSAN Sport prototipo series Copa Tecate. The cars itself were based on the KA24e engine that was widely used in US GTO racing series.
Stay tuned to see how we progress with this car.
Win for Martin in the Spice & 2 x 2nds for Joaquin
Silverstone Classic was quite a good weekend for Kumschick Racing. After an inital setback with an engine failure in Joaquin's Brabham, the weekend was saved with the engines out of Joaquin's FW08 Williams.
HFO Race 1
Peter Sowerby won the first FIA Historic Formula One race of the weekend in a lights to flag victory in front of a large crowd enjoying the glorious summer sunshine and entertainment at the 2008 Silverstone Classic. Sowerby took the flag in the ex-Carlos Reutemann Williams FW07C ten seconds ahead of Joaquin Folch in the Brabham BT49C-10 and the ex-Keke Rosberg Championship winning Williams FW08 of Richard Eyre.
HFO Race 2
The final day of the 2008 Silverstone Classic exceeded all expectations with visitors streaming through the gate to push the total visitor number to 57,000, 40% up on the 2007 event and well above the target of 49,000. A packed programme of 10 races and other off track activities kept everyone entertained in the glorious summer sunshine.
In the second FIA Historic Formula One encounter of the weekend Joachin Folch crossed the line in first place ahead of Saturday race winner Peter Sowerby only to be handed a penalty for a yellow flag infringement which reversed their finishing positions.
GTP Race 1
Martin Stretton took the win in the first Group C race after a red flag caused the race to be shortened to 20 minutes. Stretton crossed the line in the Spice SE GTP just 1.1 seconds ahead of Justin Law’s Jaguar XJR8 and Andy Purdie’s Nissan R90-CK. The Group C cars will be providing the finale on Sunday with a 90-minute race for the David Leslie Memorial Trophy.
GTP Race 2
The final 90-minute Group C race was full of incident providing a cracking finale to the 2008 Silverstone Classic. Peter Sowerby took his third winners trophy home to Lincoln as he and Calum Lockie crossed the line in the Nissan RC90-CK a lap ahead of their nearest rival David Hart in the Porsche 962. Justin Law and Andy Wallace were third in their Jaguar XJR8 after a puncture forced Wallace to make an unscheduled pitstop while leading the race. Martin Stretton had to retire the previous day winning Spice due to a water leak.
See pictures in the gallery
Joaquin Folch finishes 2nd and 1st at Nurburgring
Joaquin raced hard to win at Nurburgring
Fredy waiting to see Joaquin win
Season is over and it's time to rebuild the Cars
For Kumschick Racing it's going to be a busy winter season.
Not one but 3 Formula 1 cars await their usual winter maintenance and build up. Along the Formula 1 cars, a new challenge is waiting: the restoration and buildup of a Mercedes Sauber C11 Group C car. Sometimes it's hard to understand how much time, effort, detective work and reverse engineering goes into the buildup of a historic race car. The short video below illustrates (in a time condensed version) what is needed to restore a Spice GTP car. Have fun and when you have time visit us at the workshop.
(C) 2004 - All rights reserved