For the 2019 Board of Directors elections two incumbents informed the club of a desire to rerun. In addition to this, nominations were received for four additional members. If you are a member of CCR in good standing, please read below to learn a little bit about each person and click the link at the bottom to vote. Voting ends at 11:59 PM on 12/31/19.
Brian Gause (incumbent)
My membership and participation with the Central Carolinas Region of the Sports Car Club of America goes back many years, beginning with Autocross participation and working as a volunteer in the Region’s other venues such as Club Racing and Hillclimbs. Later on, I became more involved in the administration aspect by chairing the Autocross program and creating Time Trial events at road courses and new Hillclimb event development. In 2006, I joined the board of directors eventually serving as an Assistant Regional Director and later the Regional Director in which position I have served since 2015. My goal for the Region has been to further develop each program to allow participating member staff to function as an unique component of the club, backed by the synergy of the board of directors and the general membership. The SCCA has evolved immensely in recent years and the leadership of the region has been required to adapt administration activities to remain in synchronization with that evolution. Should I remain as a member of the CCR board, my efforts will be directed toward continuing improvement of the Region’s sustainable programs and clarification of the duties of each respective board member.
Chris Graham (incumbent)
My name is Chris Graham and I am running in this election to continue my role on the Board of Directors. As a member since 1995, I have spent the last 24 years as a competitor in both Solo and Road Racing, a sponsor for many races, a series sponsor, a volunteer in tech, a flagger, an instructor, a leader behind the scenes, and a mentor to other racers. I have been an advocate for several regions and have supported all of our great programs. For the past 3 years I have served on the board for Central Carolinas Region. I would like to continue to serve the SCCA, this board, and continue the legacy of serving as my Father did as the Regional Executive for the Chattanooga Region before I was born. Between all of my family members, we have supported and competed in the SCCA within the Southeast Division for a combined total of 60+ years. If re-elected I will continue to bridge the gap between all of the racing disciplines as we are all racers within the same family.
Joshua Elks
Hello everyone, my name is Joshua. You more than likely know me as Frodo and as the guy who always yells about Miata tops being down. Yes, I’m that guy. A little about me; I’m 30 years seasoned, or young. I am a Senior Certified Mazda Dealer Technician with aspirations of moving into motorsports work, ideally with Mazda. I’ve been a CCR member for nearly 10, predominantly participating in our rather outstanding Solo/Autocross program. I started out in a 1995 Integra, then a 2006 Mazda3, and now a 2006 MX-5 and a 1988 Scirocco. I have done some F&C as well as crewing for the Road Race crowd and currently in the process of making my Miata a X-Prepared Solo/Hillclimb car. I love autocrosses, but also want to see more of our club’s other areas. Which is part of the reason for me running for the Board of Directors again. I also feel that while I may be younger than a lot of our other members and BoD personnel, I can bring fresh ideas and insight into keeping CCR as awesome as it is. As well wanting to further make sure that you, our members, continue to keep coming to our events and making us, in my opinion, the best SCCA club in the country. Thank you and I hope to be serving you all as future Board member.
Lexie Murray
My name is Lexie Murray and I have been a member of CCR since 2015. I participate in autocross locally, with other regions, nationally…just about anywhere. I also work in road racing as a crew member whenever I can. Most of my weekends are full of racecar in one form or another, and during the week, I work as a test engineer at Freightliner Custom Chassis in order to support my racecar addiction. If elected, I would bring a fresh perspective to the board in order to help grow our programs, and to keep our region thriving. I have a unique position, as a participant of both autocross and road racing, at both a local and national level, which I believe I can use to help bridge the gap between the different disciplines within our club, and help us to work as a team to put on the best events for you, our members. I know that I’m relatively new here, but I’ve seen and done a lot, and I want to bring that experience back to CCR to ensure that we’re running our club as effectively and efficiently as possible. I love racing, I love racing people, and more than anything, I am passionate about this club and this region. I want to share that passion by inviting new faces to have fun with us, welcoming new and visiting members to our events, and doing my part to keep this club the same vibrant group that I fell in love with when I first started racing.
Ross Pendergast Pedersen
I started running with CCR in 2009 and became a member in 2010. I have participated in most of CCR’s autocross events since joining as well as attending numerous national events and events hosted by other clubs in the state. Although I have only run autocross events, I am interested in becoming more involved in the road race program since I think it is an important part of the history of the club. I have spent the last year helping to get the solo program back on a strong financial footing. I would like to apply this effort to the other programs to ensure the long-term success of the club. As I have become more involved in running the autocross program, I have noticed a lack of communication between the board and the general membership. If elected, I will work to create more transparency between the board and our members. I believe the club has potential to continue to grow the success of each program and as a whole.
Devon Bain
Autocrossing for close to ten years, Devon is committed to making the CCR region better. He has volunteered to be a Solo Safety Steward after the call was put out that the club needed more. Now, he’s looking to help at a higher level; the board of directors. Interested in multiple disciplines, he wants to expand the program offerings to RallyCross and is working with sites to see what is available for a trial run. Quick to lend a hand or turn a wrench, he will happily lend you his shop if you need it. If you’re interested in making CCR the region to beat, try a new discipline, or just enjoy the current offerings, please consider voting for Devon.