Happy Easter, Race Fans!
We hope you are enjoying a beautiful spring day full of smiles and joy!
It's Spring, so it shouldn’t be a surprise to have found the Burkhards at a race track. This time, it's the SCCA U.S. Majors Tour event at our home track of Summit Point. Fortunately, the track is quite close by. This weekend, Morgan was in the black and red #02 Apple Motorsports SRF3 supported by the awesome Mike Amy and Dog Gone Racing.
SATURDAY NOTES:
Saturday brought us a rather chilly morning with temperatures rising quickly after lunchtime and a stout wind blew all day. Two morning qualifying sessions with cool, dense air made for quick times with three cars separating themselves from the remaining 17 competitors by about a second. Morgan qualified 3rd with Mac Harrison in the olive green #30 and Sam Schechter in the blue #55 in the top two spots respectively.
By the time the SRF3 race rolled around as the final session on the day, it was more than 10 degrees warmer than it was in Q1 and sunny. Times were never going to be as quick, and while the top three cars were still a second a lap ahead of the rest, they were also a second off their earlier qualifying times. We were treated to a fantastic 15-lap SRF3 race with those three in a beautiful contest for the lead all the way. We quickly lost count of the number of passes and lead changes because it seemed that every lap, the order was different as they rotated through the revolving door to the lead.
Working the event at Start/Finish, we could only see the section of track between Turn 10 and Turn 3, but a whole lot happens in that space. With a good exit from Turn 10 and a strong draft down the straight to Turn 1, great passing opportunities were presented and exploited nearly every time. Turn 1 is a hard braking zone for a hairpin with a widening radius into Turn 2 where the over/under pass was a common one. In the short run to Turn 3, a gentlemanly argument ensued on most laps as they tried to work out who would follow whom and on which side of the track. They were all jockeying for the best position coming out for the run down the hill and out of view toward the Carousel section of the track.
Not to give you any spoilers, but Morgan gets a lot of air time with his compatriots. Here’s the YouTube feed from Saturday.
SUNDAY NOTES:
If you enjoyed the Saturday race, you'll also like the Sunday race too. The same three guys were at the top of the grid again. This time it was a 25-lap race and it was almost as much fun to watch as Saturday's was. This time, it was only in the upper 60's and much less windy. The SRF3 race begins at this point in the YouTube feed and you can always rewind to watch the other races too.
This time, the field had two pace laps. The first one was a missing man lap to recognize Rich Lorenz, a long time SRF driver, steward, and member of the Washington D.C. Region. On a slow first lap with the inside line dropping back a row to leave the pole position vacant, all the stations waved their flags in tribute. During the second pace lap, the inside line moved back up into position and the drivers did their warm up and put on the race faces before coming to the green flag.
Again, the start looked a lot like the one the day before, with the cars leaping foward when the green flag flew and fanning out 3-wide as they attempted to make up a spot or two on the way to Turn 1. Sam, Mac, and Morgan were closely nose-to-tail again at the point heading toward Turn 3 where things got very exciting for a moment. Sam, in 2nd now, had a sudden loss of rear grip and snap-spun off to the right and through the gravel trap. Morgan managed to squeak by on the inside, tight to the apex as Mac's nose swept by mere inches from the side pod. It was a breathtaking moment to be sure, but there was no one else involved, no damage to Mac's car, and the race carried on uninterrupted. Mac managed to get back to the pits, correct the issue, and continue on the lead lap, but the gap was substantial.
The lead battle was down to two cars - Morgan and Sam. They went back and forth a lot during the ensuing 24 laps, each taking turns leading until lap 17. That's when an incident on the front straight occurred that eventually resulted in an early checkered flag for the race. The drivers involved were unhurt, but there was enough to pick up and tire wall to rebuild that the race was ended early.
I know I said no spoilers earlier, but I can't resist. Morgan won both days! From our spot on the bridge at Start/Finish, we get to see the best bits of the race - start and finish, obviously - and we get to cheer when Morgan sees us first!
Next up - IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge at Laguna Seca in Monterrey, California!