I had the opportunity to re-enter Grand Am competition and co-drive with a friend of mine from Spec Miata, Skip Brock, during his first ever Grand Am race at his home track in AL. Skip and I partnered up with APR Motorsport to drive the ST #161 VW GTI in Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge.

Skip did a great job getting up to speed, in the process learning a lot about pro racing with front wheel drive, high pressure driver changes, autograph sessions, ABS braking systems, and the unique feel of FWD cars. I was able to go out in the first practice session and set the fastest time for the majority of the session, until we were bumped to second fastest by the eventual race winning Kia.

Our race ended early with a motor issue, but we had a lot of fun. It was nice to have the support of the Spec Miata racers from OPM Autosports, with many drivers in attendance to cheer us on. For me personally it was great to be back in Grand Am competition. I have a lot of discussions in the works with various teams to run the next race at VIR and other upcoming races this season. Things are looking promising!

Here is some in-car video from the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park:#161 Video

Photos from the weekend are here: Gallery

Special thanks to APR, Skip Brock, and Cobalt Friction for the opportunity to represent them for the weekend.

Posted by Todd on 04/15 at 05:12 PM



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