Episode 3 Bob and Patty Tunnell Driver of Eminence award winners and multi time autocross champions

Bob and Patty's BMW M3
Bob and Patty's BMW M3

Episode 3 features Bob and Patty Tunnell Driver of Eminence award winners and multi time autocross champions.  It was great to hear their history in the sport.

Their business is BimmerHaus.com and it was interesting hearing how apprehensive Patty was to buy that first BMW and now that is just about all they will drive.

Towards the end we get to hear about one of their passions of helping people in Afghanistan you can learn more and support the cause at http://www.barekaub.com/

I was surprised to learn that Patty does NOT like to ride along with Bob and don't invite her to a roller coaster.

We still don't know who was in the halfway house.  But we do know that Bob uses his left foot for braking and Patty her right.

Awards:

Bob Tunnell

  • Solo Cup, the sport's highest award 2007
  • Driver of Eminence award, 2002
  • Inducted into The Silver Circle (25 events), 2010
  • Keeper of the Old Fartz list
  • 2nd - Most Family Championships - 2nd - 19 (Bob 6, Patty 13)
  • 7 ProSolo Class National Championships (92, 95, 97, 98, 00, 03, 06)
  • ProSolo Street Tuner Challenge Championship (07)
  • Solo Nationals Sportsmanship Award (05)
  • Rocky Mtn. Division Ricky Peña Award (03)
  • Rocky Mtn. Division Driver Of The Year (04)

 

Patty Tunnell

  • Driver of Eminence award, 2002
  • Roger Johnson Spirit of the Sport Award, 2002
  • Inducted into The Silver Circle (25 events), 2010
  • Won the largest Street Prepared Ladies class ever (1 of 2) - 13 cars in BSPL in 2001
  • No. 1 Among Women in Who’s Who In Solo - 464 points (2nd overall)
  • 1st - Most Trophy Finishes, Women - 24
  • 1st - Trophy Streak, Ladies - trophied in 17 consecutive events
  • 2nd - Most Family Championships - 19 (Bob 6, Patty 13)
  • 3rd - Most Championships, Women - 13
  • 6th - Most Events Competed In, Women - 30
  • 2 ProSolo Class National Championships (00, 02)
  • 2 ProSolo Overall Ladies Championships (00, 02)

 

 

 

 

Episode 2 Julian Garfield a 5 time junior kart champion Autocrosser and one to watch

Julian Garfield and CSP miata
Julian Garfield and CSP miata

This episode is with Julian Garfield who has won 5 junior kart championships in autocross and has a 2nd in CSP and 3rd place finish in DSP at nationals.  And the third place was with his mom riding shot gun since he only had his drivers permit.

Julian has great insight on kart setup and driving which was all new to me.  If you are a parent of a junior kart driver take notes.

He talks about adding distance to keep the junior kart in the torque band rather than taking a tight line which would bog the kart.  Sounds like physics supports a wider line at times.

Julian was written up in my My SCCA Life - Click Here for the Julian Garfield article.

www.thestudentdriver.blogspot.com  - "Student Driver" Julian Garfield brings a fresh perspective to the automotive world.

His website with some videos (fast hands!)

You can catch Julian on Facebook Here

Episode 1 Brian Peters your SCCA 2015 Driver of Eminence winner and autocross champion many times over

This was a fun and insightful interview with Brian Peters who is a multi SCCA national champion and pro solo champion.  He is fast and shares his thoughts with us.

Brian was the 2015 Driver of Eminence award winner and multi time national champion in SOLO and Pro Solo in many different classes.

Brian started out in 1999 when he got invited to an event – had a great time and realized he was good at it, been doing it since.

His first car: Toyota Cressida AT ‘80 - Check out a photo here.

In the beginning Brian hit some local events and traveled a bit. The first few years was just really about having fun for him.

Brian's thoughts:

  • One of his tips: It’s really just a matter of coming with a baseline and testing – maximizing car strength.
  • There’s no one way to drive – each driver is different.
  • Brian likes a stable car but he’s more about responsive car.
  • He thinks: How quickly can you get the car through the element?
  • There’s complications that won’t allow the driver to focus in front of the car like they should.
  • How far ahead do you scan? It’s a matter of really knowing what’s coming up – it’s too late to make changes. It’s really a matter of being one feature ahead. Timing is vital.
  • It’s more of a challenge on the front-wheel drive to keep the balance.
  • The first walk is important – you have to put together a good mental plan on what to do. Timing is really important too.
  • On walking the course: One or two casual walks at bigger events – then one for myself to focus.
  • Are you picking all the elements? I walk through my exits. I make sure I have visuals on every exit. You don’t look at single cones – I draw mental lines off the corners.
  • I don’t think about car placements on entries, I don’t look at entrances.

If Brian could drive anybody’s car right now? Kiesel’s will be high on the list.

If Brian could build any car? A Mustang - I kinda pick the underdogs.  (I forgot to ask him then why a corvette...oh this was a question with unlimited budget 🙂

Awards - 2015 Driver of Eminence

National Championships

  • 2008 CSP Mazda MX5
  • 2010 DSP BMW 330i
  • 2012 FS Mustang
  • 2013 STR Nissan 350Z
  • 2014 STU Nissan 350Z
  • 2015 ESP Mustang

Pro Solo National Championships

  • 2010 DSP Class Championship
  • 2015 ESP Class Championship