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NASA Western States Championships presented by Toyo Tires Garnering Strong Competitors

Author: NASA-GL/Sunday, October 2, 2016/Categories: National News

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NASA Western States Championships presented by Toyo Tires Garnering Strong Competitors

Top regional racers ready to converge on Buttonwillow

NAPA, Calif., (Oct. 1, 2016) - The third annual NASA Western States Championships presented by Toyo Tires is receiving entries from across the country that will assure strong competition October14-16 at Buttonwillow.

Buttonwillow Raceway Park, with its 3.1-mile and 12-turns, will play host to the NASA Championship competitors in two weeks. The track is a favorite among the local racers and will be challenging to those traveling from across the country.  NASA is adding a unique flair to the event by using two different track configurations over the three-day event.

Chad Plavan is running his first NASA Championships in the all-new NASA NP01 powered by Mazda.

"Since I live in Clovis, California, Buttonwillow is considered my home track being under two hours from my house," Plavan said. "I have been racing at Buttonwillow since 1997. In fact, I received my racing license there. The Championships configurations are a little different. I have raced my vintage Porsche 911 there. However, that is a totally different beast from the NP01. I'm still adjusting/learning the set-up of the NP01.  I believe Tom Hope and Andy Lee will have the advantage at Buttonwillow. They are great drivers, and Tom has been great in helping me understand the NP01's set-up."  

Thomas Atteberry will compete with his No. 19 Porsche 944 Spec at Buttonwillow, a track he knows well.

"I have been racing at Buttonwillow since 2008 when I started in club racing," Atteberry said. "Each year one to three racers show up that prove to be challenging competition. Of the southern California racers, six come to mind who are great competitors: Chuck Sharp, Everett DeLano, Simon Peck, Marcelo Vine, John Niedernhofer, and Jim Hicks. Each of them has the potential to win the event. Buttonwillow is a great track for a momentum race car like a Porsche 944. It is not a horsepower track, so any error in car placement can be costly. Several turns like Phil Hill and the Bus Stop are turns that require speed and accuracy if you want a great lap time. This is the perfect track for the 944 Championship because it lets the balance and handling of the car shine."

Adrian Wlostowski is doing the bi-coastal NASA Championships coming off of the Watkins Glen Eastern States Championships and heading right to Buttonwillow. He will be running his No. 619 Corvette in the ST2 Class.

"Watkins Glen was a very tough weekend for us, we had a spindle break on the last lap during the championship race causing me to go into the wall at slow speed at the very end," Wlostowski said. "We finished P3. We are repairing it now to head west. I am happy for John George winning our class at the east. We have always been in tight competition. We seem to always have bad luck at the Championships. Last year, the clutch blew in Saturday's qualifying race. This year, I had problems with spindles and the front right went due to stress on the last lap. The curbs are brutal at The Glen and I love going over the curbs! We are going to Buttonwillow with all new parts all around which we think we're due, hopefully we have better luck!

A first time visitor to the southern California track, Wlostowski is in student mode.
"We are going out there to have fun," he continued. "We want to experience the west coast and the competition. For now, we will have our practice day Thursday, study videos, and walk the track. This will also be our test for logistics and new parts for the 25 Hours of Thunderhill race later this year."

NASA Western States Championships schedule: 

For additional information, please contact NASA Championships Media Director, Kyle Chura at kyle@kcapr.com or (248) 821-0468.  More detail can be found at nasaproracing.com or nasachampionships.com.

To qualify for the NASA National Championships presented by Toyo Tires, NASA competitors must compete in and score points in five regional races around the country.

Established in 1966, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. represents the innovation, quality, performance, and excellent service that Toyo Tires has delivered worldwide for more than 70 years.





About Toyo Tires
Toyo offers a complete selection of premium replacement tires for nearly every make and model including light trucks, SUVs, high performance cars, and luxury vehicles, as well as commercial trucks. Many of these tires are built here in the United States at our state-of-the-art factory in Bartow County, Georgia.

About NASA
The National Auto Sport Association (NASA) was formed in 1991 with the premise of delivering high-quality motorsports events to enthusiasts at major racing venues throughout the nation. NASA has created programs that allow owners of both racecars and high-performance street-driven vehicles to enjoy the full performance capabilities of their cars in a controlled professionally managed environment. NASA offers many different programs that will allow you to enjoy motorsports on a number of different levels, including our High Performance Driving Events (HPDE), Rally Sport, Time Trial, NASA-X and Competition Racing programs.
 
NASA Membership
NASA members are entitled to enter and participate in any NASA event across the country, and membership includes an array of benefits, including vendor discounts and a subscription to the organizations online newsletter the NASA Speed News. Members will also receive a colorful membership hard card that will identify them as part of the organization and a welcome packet that includes more information on the many benefits and programs available to NASA members. While participating at events, all NASA members are covered by an extensive insurance policy, which includes General Liability, Accidental Death and Dismemberment, and Excess Medical coverage. Best of all, membership is only $45. Refer to www.nasaproracing.com for member information.

NASA Thanks Our Partners
NASA would like to thank its National sponsors for their continued support:  Toyo Tires, Mazda, Hawk Performance, Winding Road Racing, Millers Oils, and GoPro.  We also want to thank MAZDASPEED, Honda Performance Development (HPD), Nissan, and Ford Motor Company for supporting our members.  We greatly appreciate those companies that offer our racers contingency support, including Toyo Tires, AIM Sports, AST Suspension, BFGoodrich, Ford Racing, Maxxis Tires, Traqmate, Hawk Performance, Honda Performance Development (HPD), Hoosier Racing Tire, Injector Pulse, MAZDASPEED, Nissan, Frozen Rotors, Rossini Race Engines, Spec Clutches, Sampson Racing Communications, Winding Road Racing, and Yokohama.  NASA competitors can also get discounts from Millers Oils, Mazda, Honda Performance Development, FR.Sport, Jongbloed Racing Wheels, Promotive, Racing Fire Systems, Ford Performance Racing School, Tire Stickers, Fuel Safe, Avis, Konig, Winding Road Racing.
 
NASA at a Glance
* NASA was founded in 1991 on the premise of providing motorsport competition programs that allow owners of both racecars and high-performance street-driven vehicles to enjoy the full-performance capabilities of their cars in a safe and controlled environment.
 
* NASA has over 14,000 members in 15 regions.
 
* Key events include the Eastern States Championships at Watkins Glen International Sept. 23-25;  NASA Western States Championships at Buttonwillow Raceway Park, Oct. 13-16, 2016 and the season culminating NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill, Dec. 3-4 presented by Hawk Performance.
 
* The NASA National Championships will run 31 race classes and nine Time-Trial classes during the event.
 
* NASA runs over 150 events each year encompassing over 250 races, including the association's Rally Sport and Time-Trial program.
 
* Manufacturer partners include MAZDASPEED, Honda Performance Development (HPD), Nissan and Ford Racing.
 
* NASA Management: Jerry Kunzman, Executive Director; Ryan Flaherty, National Chairman; Jeremy Croiset, Director of Business Development; Dave Ho, Business Operations Manager.
 
Follow NASA
Internet:         nasaproracing.com
Facebook:     National Auto Sport Association
Twitter:          nasaproracing
Instagram:     nasaproracing


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