The Midwest Musclecar Challenge is a quickly growing event for our autocrossing friends in, where else, the midwest! Open to all makes, models and generations of American musclecars, it’s an event that caters to those who prefer to put their vehicles to the test; not only in a straight line, but through the twisties of various tracks all over Indiana.
One particular standout for the late-model GM category was Camaro collector, racer and all-around good guy, Ken Thwaits, of Showtime Motorsports. He brought out his 5th-gen Z/28 to take part of the competition, and even shot a little on-board video that he shared with us.
We asked Ken a little bit more about the contents of the video, as well as what his best hot lap time was. We let him put it in his own words, summing it up, “It was at Putnam Park [last] Friday at the Midwest Musclecar Challenge. The first hot lap on the video was a 1:16.4, the second hot lap was actually a better lap, line-wise, but we were slowed by a caution [flag] – but still [managed] a 1:16.5.”
There’s no denying that Ken is a great driver, and that the modern Z/28 is simply the perfect car for him to be in around a track. With a few custom tweaks and a lot of skill, the 5th-gen Z/28 is more than enough of a challenge for those behind the wheel of more antiquated, and highly-modifed, musclecars. With more late-model guys attending events like this, it will only be a matter of time where we’ll truly see an old-vs.-new competition at the event.
Rick Seitz is the owner and founder of GMEFI Magazine, and has a true love and passion for all vehicles. When he isn’t tuning, testing, or competing with the brand’s current crop of project vehicles, he’s busy tinkering and planning the next modifications for his own cars.
