Click
here to see all the photos from this Lime Rock Park Race
Weekend.
Chris
"Will Win Soon" Weldon
G2R1 (Sportsman)
Ari
Gatoff loves Lime Rock Park, and it shows. He took pole and although
Chris Brassard took the lead going into T1, three laps into the race
Gatoff was back in front. Then a major battle for second place
developed between Brassard, Michael Kratz and Adrian Dixon, each
taking a turn at the front of this tight group. If the spectators
thought the fight for second was radical, the struggle for fifth was
even more so! Peter Olsen, Nick Spencer and Leland Englebardt went
back and forth and back and forth and… Eventually Spencer spun
himself back to 10th trying to pass Olsen for fifth, then Olsen took
himself back a few spots with a spin of his own and so it went on
the whole race. Sixteen drivers started the race, and there was
great dicing even at the back as Bob Gogerty and Michael Breault
went back and forth until Breault got the upper hand. At the flag
Gatoff took the win from Dixon, Kratz making the podium in third.
Brassard finished fourth, with Englebardt and Rick Johnson next,
Spencer recovering to seventh. Olsen, Bill Oliver and Christopher
Gaydos rounded out the top 10.
Crew
Chief Eric Ives, with Mechanic of the Race Josh
Steeves.
G2R2 (Sportsman)
The
green flag flew and almost immediately Brassard unfortunately
coasted to a stop at the exit of Two. The pace car came out whilst
his car was rescued. On the restart Kratz tapped Spencer in Turn Two
and on the same lap Gaydos spun in Big Bend. Up front the race was
heating up between Gatoff and Dixon, hunting for a way around.
Behind these two Johnson battled mightily with Spencer (who is
unaware that he has to pit for contact). The awful truth finally
dawns on Spencer and he reluctantly gives up his third place and
heads for the pits, leaving the hard-charging Steve Mayer in P3. Up
front Adrian is desperate to find a way round Ari; he finally makes
it stick at half distance, but three laps later Gatoff takes the
lead back and almost simultaneously Bob Gogerty hits the Downhill
wall, bringing out a second FCY. On the restart Dixon squeezes back
around Gatoff while Mayer hopes they might touch and hand him the
lead. But the tussling two-some pass and re-pass as gracefully as
ballet dancers and never put a foot wrong. At the line Dixon takes
the win by a miniscule five hundredth’s of a second! Mayer is third,
Olsen a fine fourth after his tussle with Johnson. Sixth was
Spencer, recovering nicely, followed by Englebardt, Amos Givol,
Gaydos and Bill Oliver.
Here's
the hyperlink to the current Eastern and Midwestern Triple Crown
Points standings.
If
you want to see the schedule of the upcoming Eastern and Midwest
Series schedules, click here.
Click
here to take a look at the Eastern Series points
standings.
And just to let you know, we're going to be
posting very soon the 2005-2006 Southern and Western Series
schedules! Check back soon...
One final note: We want
to commend the exceptional effort on the part of the mechanics
during this weekend. The temperatures were stifling and difficult
(the drivers sure tore off some corners this weekend!), but they
never lost their motivation or enthusiasm. Thanks, guys, for being
so good. Todd