Lime Rock Park Dodge Dealers 28/05/2001   Monday Morning   © Andrew S. Hartwell Well, the local fishing licenses have yet to expire for the Grand Am runners and that is a good thing, for Mother Nature likes rain and she likes to share. Sometimes it almost seems she views this racetrack in a valley much like a pool to be filled. The weatherman - one of her prodigy no doubt – has noted that the early day Memorial Day parades should be sunny and dry affairs, but the afternoon barbecue could be a coals-out event. Rain is expected again today and the empty spots in the paddock – made empty by the exodus of the GT / GTS / AGT racers who swam their laps on Saturday - seem somewhat eerie. Of course, all this new found space means you can park your swamp buggy anywhere you like. Don’t have a swamp buggy? Then park in the designated spots or find yourself returning later to a car that sits three inches lower than when you first parked it. Touring the quiet paddock this morning, I came across Brent Owens, a crewman on the Doran-Lista team, setting the air pressure on the tires that will spin the Ferrari-Judd around in today’s twin-sprint races. Owens: “Who knows what is going to happen today? I’m just trying to set the tire pressures to suit the temperatures and make adjustments to get us where we want to be.” Scott Halupke is seen setting up the bits and pieces on the #37 Intersport Lola-Judd of Jon and Joel Field. On the nose of the Lola and the Intersport Riley & Scott there is a marking that reads: “In memory of Adam Algeyer”. Adam was a friend of young Clint Field. Adam lost his life in a car accident a week ago, in Ohio, where the Field’s hail from. This makes Skip Barber’s decision to allow Clint Field to compete that much more poignant. We wish the Intersport cars the best of the day and our thoughts go out to Adam’s family. Jack Lewis (below) ran in the GT water festival on Saturday, finishing 3rd in class and fourth overall. And he did it in a Porsche that he will also race in today’s Speedvision GT race. Lewis sees running in both series as a logical use of resources and he wonders why more racers aren’t doing the same thing. He talks about his LRP experiences this weekend: “The race was awesome! We had a great time. Our car was in the top ten all day. We didn’t get a scratch on it. We had a good defrosting system so we could see where we were going. We led the race briefly during one of the cautions and we ran 2nd overall for quite a while.” “The BMW’s got by us near the end but those are great drivers that have a little bit more car than we do. We were the fastest Porsche (except the GT1) We were tickled pink to come in third! Our little cup car was on the skinnier tires and I think that made us better suited to run in the rain.” On his Speedvision race today: “We will be going out to qualify later. There is a pretty distinct difference between the Toyo and Dunlop tires. (Toyo tires are used in the Speedvision series.) The Dunlop is a purebred-racing tire, probably the best thing going for our series. The Toyo is a street tire, not a performance compound. We just didn’t have the luxury of developing tow set ups so we opted to set up for Grand Am.” “We really like the Speedvision organization and there are lots of great drivers in the series. For the fans, and on television, it is just so much fun to watch that race. From a competitors standpoint it is a little too much. I know they are trying to slow people down a bit, in terms of being too aggressive. A little rubbing is fine but don’t be punting each other. Hopefully it will smooth out and we will have great race. “You know, we are really fortunate (in North America) to have two excellent pro series that my car is eligible for!” As I wrap this up the Barber Dodge cars have come in from morning practice and the Speedvision GT cars are out at speed. If you haven’t watched a Speedvision race you are missing some great GT action. Check it out. Now, where did I put my umbrella? Copyright ©2000-©2023 TotalMotorSport