2005 Results
11.20.05 - WEBB, KANAVAS & LEUKHARDT TAKE 3rd AT CAL CLUB 4-HOUR
6.11.05 - KANAVAS/WEBB GRAB 2nd PLACE AT BUTTONWILLOW 3-HOUR
WEBB, KANAVAS & LEUKHARDT TAKE 3RD AT CAL CLUB 4-HOUR
Buttonwillow, CA (11.20.05): Scott Webb, Johnny Kanavas, Alan Leukhardt and the ALive Motorsports team finished 3rd at the 2005 Cal Club 4-hour Enduro.
The weekend started off a bit dismal as ALive Motorsports team principal, Alan Leukhardt, faced mechanical problems with the tow vehicle on his way to the track. After almost 5 hours of necessary repairs, the ALive Motorsports rig was back on its way, arriving at the track with only about 30 minutes of the final practice session left. The team quickly unloaded the trio of cars and headed out on track for what would be a simple shakedown of the green #65 machine prior to the race. Because the team missed most of the Saturday sessions, the #65 would start from the very back of the pack for Sunday’s 4-hour race.
To make things interesting, Cal Club implemented a modified Le Mans-style start for the race. Each team lined its car up against the front-straight pit-wall, and at the drop of the green flag, one of the team drivers had to run from across the track to tap the hand of the starting driver. Once the tap was complete, the belted-in driver started the car and sped off towards turn one. At the green flag, Johnny Kanavas sprinted across the track to tag teammate Scott Webb, and the ALive Motorsports/eprodius.com Mazda Miata took off, fighting to stay on track as the entire field headed towards turn-1.
Webb made quick work of the traffic in front, and moved the ALive Motorsports team from last up into the 4th spot in the E3 class, and right behind the San Dimas Auto, Ragged Edge Motorsports and CF Racing entries. A pit stop for fuel and driver change put Alan Leukhardt back out on track and in the 5th spot. During Alan’s stint, the #49 San Dimas Auto entry retired with terminal problems, handing the lead to the Ragged Edge team. At the end of Leukhardt’s stint, the ALive Motorsports crew made another quick stop for fuel and driver, Johnny Kanavas. Kanavas went out in 4th place in the E3 class. “Our car was just not as fast as the lead cars. We began to have handling issues during Alan’s [Leukhardt] stint..” commented crew chief, Brian Mezger. “We knew we'd have to make up spots in the pits.” Passing the San Dimas entry twice while they took on fuel and a new driver, Kanavas moved the #65 machine into 3rd place, while putting the #52 one lap down. The Alive Motorsports/eprodius.com team brought home 3rd place and another podium finish for the 2nd year in a row for this team, after starting from the back of the field.Other Webb Racing News
While Webb hasn't spent as much time behind the wheel this season as in recent years, he has remained busy participating in other competitive events. His summer included cross-country races (runnning), time trials (cycling) and duathlons (run/bike/run), culminating in a 3rd place finish at the Imperial Beach Duathlon in late August. Webb plans to add triathlon (swim/bike/run) to the schedule in 2006.
KANAVAS/WEBB GRAB 2nd PLACE AT BUTTONWILLOW 3-HOUR - (6.11.05)
The KanavasKompetition.com team finished 2nd this weekend at the Buttonwillow 3-hour enduro put on by the National Auto Sport Association (NASA). Teaming up with WebbRacing.com, drivers Scott Webb and Johnny Kanavas struggled with an ill-handling car to bring home yet another podium finish.
Qualifying went well for the team as Johnny Kanavas managed to put together a decent lap during the very short, 6.5-minute session, netting the team the pole-position for the E2 class.
Unfortunately, a poor call by the officials resulted in the #37 car being held back as the cars were sent out for the pace lap, prior to the green flag, causing the team to drop 7 spots right away. This proved to be no problem for Scott Webb, who immediately made up the lost positions within the first 2 laps after the start. Webb was off on a strong pace, staying with the leaders of the E2 class straight away. The #37 Circuit City/eprodius.com Miata would see 2nd, 3rd and 4th place during the first 90 minutes of competition. Dealing with a car that he described as "evil", Webb was able to run consistent lap times, keeping the #37 machine in the fight for the lead. After a brutal stint fighting the car in the heat, Webb finished his stint in 4th place, ready to turn it over to Kanavas for the final 1.5 hours. Brian Mezger and John Kanavas Sr. immediately went to work fueling the car, while Scott and Johnny worked on the driver change. The KK team's endurance experience shined as the team made a quick and flawless pit stop sending Johnny back out onto the track to do battle. Kanavas went back out in 3rd place and immediately found the car to be very unpredictable and difficult to handle. "The car was a mess," explained Kanavas. "Oversteer, understeer, vibrations, you name it, we had it. It was just a matter of finding a balance where you could drive the car quickly without fighting it too much. We used up those Toyo tires for sure." Johnny also faced another problem with the lighting on the front of the car. "The headlights were not pointed properly and Johnny kept radioing in, telling me he couldn't see once the sun dropped," reported KK Crew Chief, Brian Mezger. The additional loss of radio communication during the final 40 minutes made for an interesting race.
Kanavas caught the 2nd place #00 Nissan right as it ducked into the pits for their final stop. Knowing this was the chance to make up some time and get a solid lead on the Nissan, Kanavas began to click off the fastest laps of the night for the team, despite the lack of visibility. Trying to remain in front of 3rd place, Johnny chased down a Mustang GT, only to be held up for 2 laps as the Mustang was slow through the tight stuff, but would power away on the straights. Making a late-braking move on the black Ford, Kanavas slid by and watched the Mustang's lights diminish in his mirrors. With the 1st place car well ahead of the #37 machine, the KanavasKompetition.com team brought home 2nd place and another podium finish in an endurance race for the team. "It was a tough race. It was hot, the car was handling poorly and I couldn't see very well. We are very happy to get a podium finish with a car that shouldn't really be there." said Johnny Kanavas. Scott Webb concurred, and added "Battling the car, the fumes and the heat was a great challenge, but running with Johnny and Kanavas Kompetition is always a pleasure."
Kanavas Kompetition and Webb Racing wish to thank Circuit City, Team Protomotive, eprodius.com, Star Shield Armor, and Sampson Communications for all of their support.
Home | Racing Resume | Racing Photo Galleries | Aftermarket Project Vehicles | Sponsors & Links
