Yep, and some cars had to be shut off to be put into reverse and then restarted..

Every year the rules change a bit and the racers read the rules to see what they can get away with.. just like any racing.

Fun to watch and one of the best events out there. And thanks for coming out to volunteer.. the event couldn't happen without you guys (yes, even Greg) ;)

Hard fought competition between friends controlled by a stopwatch. The variety of cars was nice to see. A lot of great points discussed.

The event has really evolved over the years. It's great to see some of the same cars getting faster from year to year. To me that is what this is all about. Competing within yourself to get better and see where you stand among peers. We all know there is no such thing as the Ultimate car.

Congrats to all that participated, without you the event doesn't happen. I'm hopeful the pro touring community keeps being represented and people don't start passing on the event because they feel they can't compete.

Thanks to all the optima crew and volunteers even Greg.

I couldn't agree more! I love this car. :thumbsup:

Of the responses I've read for this thread, this is one of the best. A build can take many twists and turns but in the end, it should be what's envisioned by the owner. Owners and builders look to competition and performance of parts to get their ideas and OUSCI provides that venue very nicely. It's easy to fall into that trap of building something event-specific and once you start down that path, it's a long, long road to the finish.

Regarding "race" vs "Street," this year's OUSCI definitely had "track/race" cars in the field that were extremely well driven and very well prepared. Did they comply with OUSCI rules and could they be driven on public roadways? Yes and as such, were allowed to compete. That said, were some of these cars ones I'd like to drive as confirmed and compliant "street" rides? Uhh ... no and the reason is they're not built with that as a key focal point. It's a personal observation ...

Contrary to hopes and dreams, OUSCI isn't for the Average Joe. Your "Joe built" car isn't going to win OUSCI or even place high and no matter how good you are on the jungle bars, that top bar's going to be just out of reach. I can almost guarantee you that Danny and Co. will get that Z06 a bit prettier, a tad less "race car," and get as many of those Style & Design points as possible for next year's rodeo. Danny Popp did an outstanding job and set a new "OUSCI Fast Lap" never having driven that track before last Saturday and took us all to school on the Autocross course. He's a worthy Champion!!

Chris ... build your car your way as you want to enjoy it for years to come!!

Mary Pozzi

Well said Mary.And Congrat's on your sucsess at SEMA/Optima.:thumbsup: Scott M.

Yep, you nailed it Mary. No wonder you are making the big bucks writing for Camaro Performers. :D

After finally returning home home after the 11 day treck to the OUSCI and back. I have had plenty of time to reflect on the event and what it takes to get there and what it means to compete in this event. Was it worth the 12 days away from family and work, several thousands of dollars in fuel and expenses, driving through the rockies in a blizzard and everything else...HELL YES!! This event is the pinnacle of what we all do. It is very well run (thanks Jimi and all the volunteers) and as with any event it will continue to evolve. Being a participant in the event I realized very early on that I need to focus on individual accomplishments like building an 1100 hp real street car that survived over an hour on Las Vegas Blvd in a friday night traffic jamb and then driving over 100 miles to pahrump in freezing weather, rather than how to compete with more purpose built cars and professional drivers. With only 3 autocross laps and under 10 laps on a road course prior to OUSCI I had a better change of hitting the jackpot at MGM than beating the legends like Mary, Mark, Kyle and now Danny. Like I explained to my wife it is like an average guy getting to play in the Super Bowl! There is absolutely nothing wrong with it and it is awesome just to be one of the 55 that gets that opportunity. I think if everyone wants to change this event with more rules and fully prepped race cars it will loose some of its luster. We already have SCCA, Formula One, Nascar and many more full of rules and usually won by the team with the best funding (so they can bring heaters and tire warmers of course!) This event needs to continue to let the average Joe have the opportunity to run street cars at a competitive event, even on a limited budget. By the way I would drive Brian's car and many others on the street and love every minute of it! I never drive a car like this in the snow or with the windows up and the A/C on! They are all weekend toys and should be built and driven exactly how the owner wants them to. I do agree that an overall winner is needed, but it would be great to have other awards without getting carried away like import, modern, and pro-touring. You could also run a professional and amatuer driver class because it comes down more to this than the cars. All the cars at this years event were capable of at least being competitive, all the drivers were not. Congratulations to everyone that had the opportunity to compete in this event and remember you are at the top of your game just for being there. Remember all of these events were put together for us weekend warriors to go out and beat on our cars and drive on a real track and learn from the pros! Other than that it is about showcasing what these average cars can do with talented builders and awesome aftermarket parts. This is really what its all about, building awareness for the industry and putting the real muscle in musclecars! If you want 100% real street cars maybe a Prius should run next year it gets great fuel milage and is totally reliable!:lol: What fun would that be???

Two cents from North of the Boarder LOL....

First off personally I have to say "Brian" you built a way cool car... It meets your needs (and this event) in my opinion,, really sweet car bud...

Now as for the rules, Jimi and the gang at Optima are doing there best.. They have constantly created a fun and exciting event to showcase our rides and the up coming builds (along with some here that are being changed during mid-build) as a testament to just that... Helping to organize and being around a few events we all find areas for improvement in anyone's event,,, but that's because the perfect event left on the last train to Hell a week prior to any individual event LOL....

These people spend a lot of time & money trying to make the best Dam event possible happen so lets celebrate their efforts even more than we do currently as a possible area for improvement....

Safety matters, Heck we're all three times seven gang,,,, a rule shouldn't be the motivating factor here... If your car needs it, if the event warrants it,, you should know already because things happen way fast in the game we all playing in.... Some organizers won't and can't respond or set rules because it immediately opens the doors to personal legal liability and no one trying to create fun for you and I should have to be put in that position (Insert Dam lawyers joke here LOL)...

Personally I was reluctant to place cages in my street cars because it's next to impossible to get insurance up here in Ontario if they see it in the appraisal photos of the car.... Now here is the common sense side,,, I bent the rules (like everyone's talking about and decided to hide it as a blind cage).... It's not perfect, but sure makes a lot of sense given the events we are enjoying... I had Kevin drive my car in the Optima and I wanted to make sure he had extra safety measures that included a fire system on board,,,, I sure didn't need a rule to tell me that....

The 2011 Optima was AWESOME!!! and these threads are great as we share the experience together too....

Danny Congrats,,, well done indeed bud.

All the participants (and board members) can thankfully say wow we just, yet again, experienced one of the most exciting car guys dream events.... A special thanks Cam, Jimi, Bill and all the great people that make this happen.

Love you Albert! LOL


Well said.... very well said.

There seems to be alot of people thinking that Danny Popp won becuase the Z06 is a "racecar with license plates". The car in question is 2006 Z06 with a camshaft and headers, stock heads and bottom end. I has different leaf springs, shocks and bushings. Nothing custom just a bunch of off the shelf parts that Danny has put on other customers cars and knows that the "system" works. This car still has AC, power windows, NAV, etc. It's far from a racecar than most think. This car still uses the stock suspension mounting points, stock tranny and rear end.

Sure it has some aero pieces (splitter and wing) but that alone does not make it a racecar.

This car was just put together and did well, becuase of the guy driving. He could of done the same thing in many of the other cars that were there.

In my mind a true racecar is a car that is build from a pile of tube steel and carbon fiber (think GT1 type cars), not a mass produced street car like the white Z06 that he drove.