Life got in the way last week as I sent my 19 year old cat Gracie to the Rainbow Bridge. Two days later I left for Sebring and the 72nd running of the12 hour race. I needed this weekend badly.
Sebring was my first sports car endurance race, and it is my favorite. This feeling may be subject to change after Jaune.
I camped again with my friend George Butz and his crew. We had a great time. Thanks again, George.
Some random thoughts on the weekend:
My first impression upon arrival was that the place seemed rather crowded for Thursday. I had the same thought Friday and Saturday. I have never seen Sebring so packed. Theer was not room for another vehicle inside the track.
The track could use a couple of more video boards on the back side of the track.
9:40 am is awfully early to start a race. Not only does it make the morning rushed, it also deprives the fans of an hour of night racing. The early part of the race is fun, but when the sun goes down things get interesting.
It doesn’t seem to matter if someone is running away from the field, Sebring always seems to come through with a dramatic ending.
Derani Crash
The Pipo Derani crash was frightening. I was not in turn 9 at the time, but I went there later and talked to a couple of my friends who witnessed the accident. Tires were bouncing everywhere. Fortunately no spectators were injured. There is a walking path next to the track which fortunately was not busy at the time.
My friends said that track and IMSA officials appeared quickly and interviewed many fans about what they saw.
My friends are concerned that a catch fence may be erected at this spot, which would spoil a great view of one of the highest speed portions of the track.
My friend Shannon Roe took these photos of some the debris field left by the Cadillac. Thanks, Shannon.
The fan walking path is to the left of the fence on the bottom left.
The rest of the field did not seem to have anything for the 31 Cadillac. The Ganassi Cadillac was the only that could keep pace, and they ended up finishing second.
Another Great Day for Indycar Drivers
Colton Herta was a driver on the winning team from Wayne Taylor/Andretti Racing. Herta drove the penultimate shift, and put the car in position to win. Louis Delatraz finished the race with a brilliant drive.
Scott Dixon drove for the second place Cadillac team with teammate Sebastien Bourdais.
Kyle Kirkwood drove for the GTD Pro winning Vasser/Sullivan Lexus entry,
Romain Grosjean’s Lamborghini finished seventh overall in the team;s first IMSA race. Grosjean had a couple of nice stints for the team, who’s goal to just finish the race.
Tomorrow begins coverage of the Thermal Indycar event. I have a lot of mixed feelings about this, which I will talk about as the week goes on,.
The Pit Window by Mike Silver 