Piston Foundation Presents Annual Technician Award

The Piston Foundation recently presented Chris Kvaka of Vintage Racing Services of Stratford, Connecticut, with the Piston Technician Award at the Lime Rock Park Historic Festival 41, the foundation announced.

The award, now in its second year, recognizes the contribution auto technicians make to the collector car community, the foundation said.

The presentation was made by racing driver Joe Colasacco, alongside Dicky Riegel, president and CEO of Lime Rock Park, and Jeff Mason, president and COO of The Piston Foundation.

Kvaka, of Monroe, Connecticut, has worked with VRS for five years, and supports the No. 18 1963 Triumph Spitfire driven by Tom Brown, the current points leader in SVRA’s Group 3 National Championship.

“Receiving the Piston Technician Award means a lot,” said Kvaka. “All of us mechanics work really hard. It really goes out to all the crew guys, all the mechanics and drivers that keep us in this business. I really appreciate all of that and I appreciate The Piston Foundation for its efforts to keep this car culture alive.”

The inaugural winner in 2022 was Mike Marra of Automobile Associates of Canton, Connecticut. Marra received the award for his race prep and maintenance of the No. 310 1972 Porsche 911 RSR driven by Dave Hutchings.

“These technicians at the historic races at Lime Rock Park on Labor Day weekend are the unsung heroes,” said Robert Minnick, The Piston Foundation founder. “The Piston Technician Award acknowledges the hard work and commitment of technicians to keep a car running at peak performance.”

Race teams, drivers, and car owners during the VSCCA-sanctioned races at the Historic Festival 41 nominated technicians for the award, which is a hand-crafted trophy created by noted auto restorer Kent Bain, the foundation said.

The theme of this year’s trophy is the car-craft skills employed in the wide range of fabrication skill sets that go into race and road vehicle creation, restoration and repair. It displays materials, tools and techniques in a sculptural format standing about three feet tall.

Piston Technician Award Honorable mentions for 2023:

• Payton Teddick of Automobile Associate
• Bob Gett of KTR Racing
• Eric Langbein of Eric Langbein Racing
• Tom McCarthy of DAS Sport
• Dean Hutchinson of GMT Racing
• Breck Halladay of Squire Moors
• Nathan Thompson of Regogo Racing
• Edward Rich of Fratelli Auriana Inc.
• Payton Teddick of Automobile Associate
• Bob Gett of KTR Racing
• Eric Langbein of Eric Langbein Racing
• Tom McCarthy of DAS Sport
• Dean Hutchinson of GMT Racing
• Breck Halladay of Squire Moors
• Nathan Thompson of Regogo Racing
• Edward Rich of Fratelli Auriana
• John Brundage, race tech inspector
• R. Mitchell of GMT Racing
• Scott Buriak
• Alex Thompson
• Eral Tucker
• Ken Nixon of Zapata Racing
• Jim Spurgeon
• Peter Borman of Quality Coaches
• Mark Lefferts of Vintage Racing Services