THE UPS AND DOWNS OF MOTOR RACING – The Mustang Challenge

Well, I started this weekend off on a huge high; I had won three straight races and was slowly crawling closer to the championship points lead. However, as I alluded to in the title of this event’s blog, the downs in racing can come just as quickly as the ups.

Also in my pre-race blog I said I had high hopes for the facility at New Jersey Motorsports Park, and they were met and exceeded! Where there was dirt, now there is grass. Where there was a sharp drop-off, now there are apex and exit curbs. The track layout was altered slightly, placing a right-left-right chicane instead of the old turn three (which I found gives the track much more of a rhythm).

Race #5 of the 2009 Ford Racing Mustang Challenge began well for me. In two days of testing and practice, I was the fastest car in each of the four sessions! In my last note, I had a few goals laid out for the weekend. The first was to get the setup nailed. The TC Motorsports crew and I did that, and we knew we had a fast car for the weekend. While we were hard at work, Andrew Caddell and his crew were also hard at work, and had found some speed since the last race; he nipped at my heels on the time sheets all of Friday and Saturday.

Saturday morning brings us to qualifying, and we are first on track at 8:00AM. My first lap is sloppy (I’m still having problems getting enough heat into my tires to run fast on lap 1). Lap two is better, but I am dropped to second position by .008 of a second! Of course my goal was to qualify first, but getting nipped by that small of a margin was just brutal! I wasn’t worried for the race though. I knew I had a fast car and have shown that I could take the win even starting from second position (like the second race at Barber).

Sunday morning however brought another set of downs. We arrived at the track to see the rain steadily falling, with no reprieve in sight. Now, I grew up in the Seattle-area, and have always loved driving and racing in the rain. It’s always been calming to me and I love the smoothness with which one needs to drive to win. The other side to that point of view is I have very little testing time in the Mustang FR500S in the rain (which means we have no setup data for wet conditions). I resolved to stay clean at the start and see how things unfolded.

The rain-soaked start:


I got a decent start, and I slotted in right behind Andrew. After a few laps, it was apparent that my car was definitely not optimized for the wet conditions, and Andrew proceeded to pull a large gap on me. I was OK with this, and tried to stay smooth and maintain second place. All was going well, until the third and fourth place cars began to get larger in my mirrors. I called on the radio, “How much time remaining?” The response was, “25 minutes.” Ouch. I made my red and blue #9 Mustang as wide as I could for as long as I could, but with 4 laps to go, Jason von Kluge and Dan Aweida both got by me. I had nothing for them; their fastest laps were each 1.5 seconds faster than mine, and believe me, I was working my car for all it was worth!

At the end of the day, I finished fourth. It was a pretty tough pill to swallow, especially because Caddell likely increased his points lead by half (with a pole and a win). But as I stated earlier, with racing there are ups and downs. The team performed great: we led all the practice sessions and I did all I could do with the car I had. My resolve: See you in Monterey, CA for Race #6 of the Mustang Challenge at Laguna Seca!!

This Pony Train keeps rollin' - all the way to New Jersey!

As I write this, I am flying high over Washington State, heading east. I am also personally flying high after an amazing weekend at Barber Motorsports Park, and the 45th Anniversary of the Mustang celebration. Racing twice and winning twice is thumbs up in my book! I also got to meet a ton of Mustang fans! Round #5 of the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge represents the halfway point of our sophomore season, and it also brings us to the sophomore season of New Jersey Motorsports Park.

Last year, the Mustang Challenge was fortunate enough to be a part of NJMP’s inaugural race weekend, and to be honest, the track showed its youth. Things weren’t quite buttoned up yet, and there were some details that needed addressing for future events. If you follow Grand-Am road racing, you’ll know that the folks in New Jersey have been hard at work preparing their facility for this weekend, and as a racer I have high hopes! The place has the infrastructure and the potential to be a great venue; it just needed a little polishing.

Me at Barber just after taking the lead in Race #4:


Speaking of polishing, my performance at New Jersey’s Thunderbolt circuit in 2008 could’ve used some. Our car setup was not ideal, and I made a few mistakes early in the race, finishing 8th (two positions down from where I started). So I’m going into this weekend on a mission:

Goal #1 is to find a better setup than we had last year. I think we’ve already got most of that work done, so I’ll be feeling the car out on the test day to verify and make small adjustments if necessary.

Goal #2 is to qualify well. If we can accomplish goal #1, then goal #2 should be attainable. Since Andrew Caddell has 19 points on me in the championship hunt, I need to do everything I can to get points at every opportunity. This starts in qualifying, where 1st through 5th are awarded points based on their qualifying position (5 to 1, respectively).

Goal #3 is to win the race. I know the TC Motorsports crew will do everything in their power to help me get goals #1 and #2 done, and if we as a team can do that, then #3 will be all up to me. I’ll just need to do what I’ve done all year so far: be fast, consistent, and easy on my tires.

Racing in the Mustang Challenge is all about consistency. Being able to turn fast laps is one thing, but being able to turn a fast lap every lap while at the same time conserving your tires is the true challenge. So far I’ve been able to do that, and hopefully with the preparation the team has done and a little bit of racing luck, I’ll be able to keep winning races and chipping away at Caddell’s championship lead!

Another important piece to successful racing is building relationships; from your crew, to series officials, to potential sponsors and marketing partners. It’s to this end that I’m excited to announce my partnership with Go Pro Cameras. Go Pro sponsors the series by providing cameras for each car that create all that awesome footage you see at www.MustangChallenge.com (you are visiting there, right?!). The folks at Go Pro were generous enough to provide me with a couple Motorsports HERO cameras (a wide angle and a standard lens), so you can count on more awesome racing footage throughout the 2009 Mustang Challenge season. Check out www.TedAnthonyJr.com for photos and videos of my racing!

45th Anniversary of the Ford Mustang Celebration

Rounds #3 and #4 of the 2009 Ford Racing Mustang Challenge bring us to beautiful Barber Motorsports Park, along with several thousand Ford Mustang fanatics for the 45th Anniversary of the Ford Mustang celebration!

THURSDAY
Dad and I arrived in Birmingham on the same flight as Carlo and Jon around 5:00PM local time. We got our rental cars and decided to go to the track to check things out. When we got to the track entrance road I was utterly blown away by the sight: over 700 Mustangs of every vintage you could imagine lining both sides of the road! I had never seen so many Mustangs in one place! It turns out they were all gathering to go for a cruise. After dropping our stuff, Dad and I grabbed some dinner and got an early night.

FRIDAY
Every day of this trip was an early call, as we were scheduled to be on track at 8:00AM Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I was a little nervous heading into the track today, as I had never been to Barber Motorsports Park before, AND we didn't get a test day, so our first session was official practice. The only time I had on the track was the hours I'd spent at home on iRacing.com's online simulator. I guess the folks at iRacing did their homework, because I turned the fastest time of the morning practice session! We opted to put a new set of tires on, to make sure the setup changes we made were translating properly to the new BF Goodrich R1's. Turns out they all did, and I ran the fastest time in the second practice as well!

A special highlight of the weekend for me was when Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally visited all the Mustang Challenge teams Friday afternoon. It was a treat and an honor to meet him and chat briefly about racing and the future of Ford Motor Company. Below is the TC Motorsports team with Mr. Mulally:



SATURDAY
A common saying in our pits is "Too bad you don't win anything for winning practice." It's with this in mind that we arrive for Saturday morning qualifying. The TC Motorsports team is as diligent as ever, and by the time I arrive my #9 FR500S is ready to go. I'm a bit concerned with my starting position of 5th (in the Mustang Challenge we arrange the qualifying order based on championship points, and I'm 5th due to my 12th place finish in Race #1 at Miami). I hang back on my out lap to find some space, and coming to the Start/Finish line I'm on it heavy. My first lap is SLOW because I was a bit too easy on the tires and didn't get them hot enough. My second lap is marred a bit as I pass a slower car on the outside of turn 2, but it's still pretty quick and I slot into P1. The BF Goodrich tires are pretty darn good over the long haul, but the first two laps they are so fast it's like cheating! I pull in the pits with my fast laps under me and manage to hold onto the pole position!

The race comes a little before noon, and Andrew Caddell is to my right for the start. My teammate Rick Edwards would've been right behind me (he ran 3rd fastest in quali, a personal best for him!), but he had an incident at the end of qualifying and had to start from the back after changing to his backup car. Caddell gets a rockin' start and passes me on the outside going into Turn 1. I tuck in behind and we are off to the races! I find out he's quicker in some spots, so I make the necessary adjustments and find the speed. The gap between us goes back and forth over the course of the first 20 minutes of racing, and entering the kink on the back straight I'm right under his bumper. He goes in with a little too much speed and goes 4-wheels off coming out, losing just enough speed for me to sneak by going into the next corner. After that I just managed my tires and turned steady, mistake-free laps, taking the checkered flag just under 7 seconds ahead of 2nd place Caddell! I guess practicing how you race pays off!

After Saturday's race the Mustang Challenge drivers held an autograph session for all the fans, and it was definitely one of the coolest things I've experienced so far! The line stretched 3/4ths of the way down our paddock and we all signed autographs for over an hour! Not to mention that I got to sit next to Scott Pruett and Tommy Kendall for the whole session (nothing like sitting next to a couple of pro's to make you feel fast!).

SUNDAY
As we had been fearing all weekend, Sunday morning was marked by precipitation and moisture on the race track. Our morning practice session was wet and our dry setup was not good at all in the rain. Caddell ran times roughly 5 seconds a lap faster, and that had me concerned for qualifying and the race. I was feeling a little tired after practice, so I took a quick nap in the toterhome, and when I got up, it was sunny! The track dried out and I was lucky enough to have a dry qualifying session and race! Qualifying for race #2 didn't go as well as Saturday's, but I still managed to get P2, so I'd be on the front row for the start. Once again, Andrew got a great start (aided a bit by Tony Buffomante getting under his rear bumper), and I got slotted back to 3rd after turn 1. I stayed close and a few laps in I squeezed past Buffomante and started to reel in Caddell. Again, my main focus was turning fast, mistake-free laps while taking care of my tires. I did all of this and on lap #8 (about 15 minutes into the 45 minute race) I got under Caddell in turn 5 and made the pass stick. I was beginning to pull away, when the full course caution came out due to two separate incidents on the track. I was sorry for both cars that got banged up, and sorry to see Caddell close the gap under caution. I didn't have to worry though, as my restart was clean and fast, and I managed to bring the #9 TC Motorsports Ford Mustang FR500S to the top spot of the podium again!

One of my favorite images from the weekend, courtesy Wes Duenkel and the Mustang Challenge (check out the scoring tower :) :


Overall Thoughts
While this was my 5th weekend competing in the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge, it was my first time at Barber Motorsports Park, and definitely my first time at a large Mustang-focused event. I can only sum it up in one word: AMAZING! I knew the Ford Mustang was an iconic car, and the original "Pony car," but I had no idea there were so many fans spread so diversely across the world! I took pictures and signed autographs with people from France, Belgium, Norway, New Zealand, Holland, Columbia, and Brazil! The Ford Mustang is truly a legend and an incredible unifying force on a worldwide level. I am so thankful that I got to be a part of it's 45th Anniversary Celebration, and that we at the Mustang Challenge could put on a show for the thousands of fans that came to see it.

FRMC Races #1 and #2 - Homestead-Miami Speedway

Welcome to the 2009 Ford Racing Mustang Challenge season opener!!

We were fortunate enough to get the season rolling near beautiful Miami, FL. The weather was 80 degrees and mostly sunny with a lovely breeze (far better than that of ~40 degrees and blustery in my home state of Washington).

We get the weekend rolling Thursday morning with the promoter test day. I had a pretty good idea of the layout, as I had been practicing on iRacing . The test sessions went smoothly and I started getting a feel for the #9 TC Motorsports FR500S on the track. Homestead is a track with lots of straight-aways connected by sharp turns, so the corner exit speed is critical.


Friday morning brings official Ford Racing Mustang Challenge practice. At this point I've had about an hour's worth of laps on the track, so I'm getting pretty familiar with the facility. In the morning practice session we put on new tires to see what the car would feel like and it was gooooood. I ran the quickest time of the session and the weekend at that point at a 1:38.849. It felt really good to be atop the charts (even though it was just practice). In the afternoon practice session, I ran 5th, as we were testing some things out, and adjusting the setup (we made a change and it transformed the car!).

Our final session for Friday was qualifying (for Saturday's race). I go out, leaving myself plenty of room to run a flyer and my times just aren't what I'm expecting (best lap was a 1:39.522). I do three laps (all feel like they should be fast, but just aren't), and park it. I'm left with 8th position on the grid (what the heck!?!?). It turns out the engine had a small problem, and I was down about 20 horsepower!

Unfortunately the problem was a slippery one, and wasn't exactly straightforward to fix. This meant that although the crew had replaced some parts and done testing, I was left with the problem for Saturday's race. I had a great start and moved my way up to 5th briefly, then fell back to 6th after turn 3. A couple of straighaways later I was back to 9th, then 10th (man this is frustrating!). We got a caution when three cars got together in T10, and I thought it might be an opportunity to get some positions back, but it was not to be. At one point I was down to 2nd to last! It's really easy to let that kind of situation affect your confidence, so I just put my head down and tried to gain back as many positions as I could. By the end of the race I had worked my way back to 12th place (out of 18 cars), which wasn't too bad.

The TC boys really dug into the car to find the issue, and had it figured out by early Saturday evening. Woohoo! I got full power back for Sunday morning practice. I only ran a handful of laps, because qualifying for race #2 was directly after practice. The guys put on some new BF Goodrich g-force R1's, and I lined up for qualifying. I gave myself plenty of room and got a flyer in on my first lap. One of my favorite moments of the weekend was Clint (my crewman for the weekend) calling to me after the first lap, "Nice lap, that just put you into P1." I had got the pole! The only trick was holding onto it...

Fortunately for me, no one else ran faster, so I retained my pole position!!! For the race, my main concerns were:
1) Maintain the lead through the first few corners.
2) Be kind to my tires.
3) Make as few mistakes as possible.

I figured if I could do that, I'd have a good shot at the win.

Well, I wish I could tell you a grand story about how Andrew (Caddell) and I went back and forth and fought it out, but I can't. I put a gap on him on the first lap, and managed to keep it fairly steady throughout the whole 45 minutes. He was always lurking in the background, so it wasn't easy by any means, but he never got quite close enough to make a pass. I ran a fast, consistent pace and I accomplished all of my goals, which resulted in a race victory!!

Another cool note, Pro racer (and someone I really look up to) Andy Lally was asked to drive the #00 "Media Car" for the second race, and he did a great job, finishing 4th (pretty impressive for so little time in the car!). How cool is that? Getting to race against a pro like him was a very cool experience, and made me feel really good about my performance.

Mustang Challenge Race #7 & #8 - Miller Motorsports Park

The Ford Racing Mustang Challenge returns to its birthplace, Miller Motorsports Park, where the racers will compete to see who will come away with the Miller Cup trophy!

I had a fantastic week at Miller. It started off with Rick Edwards and I flying out to attend the school at the track on Monday. It was very productive, and he and I had a clear picture of the track in our minds by the time we hopped on the plane home Monday evening. The TC Motorsports team drove down towing the cars, and my dad, brother, John Robison and Duncan Newell flew in Wednesday afternoon.

Thursday was the first time I was able to jump into the #9 TC Motorsports Mustang and go out for my first session with any first hand experience of the race track, and it payed big dividends! I ran well in practice and the crew worked very hard to get the setup right for me. I had a good qualifying (my best to date) Friday morning, and ended up 5th place on the grid. As the race unfolded, Jamie Slone, Dan Aweida and I ended up in a 3-way battle for 5th place. Toward the end of the race, Jamie and I tangled in a corner that slowed both of us and allowed Dan to sneak by (drat!). On the final lap, Jamie attempted a pass on Dan into T21 (23 turns at Miller, crazyness!) and ended up having a huge slide which allowed me by and gave me the 6th place finishing position. WooHoo!!!! My best finish yet in the Mustang Challenge!

We had all of Saturday off, which was great, as the crew needed to perform some "adjustments" to all three cars. It also allowed everyone else to be fans and watch the Rolex SunRichGourmet.com 1000KM race

Sunday morning comes early as we were scheduled to practice at 8:30AM. At this point we are still refining the setup on the car. My first hot lap in the morning pops up on the dash and it's the quickest I've run all weekend (Yup! That change worked!), and I have the best practice session in my short Mustang Challenge career, ending up 3rd on the time sheets (behind Terry Borcheller and Andrew Caddell, no less). Qualifying is a couple hours later, and goes fairly well. The time is a little off the morning's practice time, but still ends up being good enough for 4th.

Unfortunately for them, Terry, Andrew C. and a couple other drivers neglected to appear at the 2:00PM driver's meeting, and were thereby granted direct access to the back of the starting grid! I hear the news, and my heart rate increases dramatically.

I decide to go back to the motor home (which Rick was generous enough to provide for the team for the weekend) and just relax. Rick and I had a good pep-talk, and JR came in and made sure he and I were on the same page, and then it was time!!

I had a good start and P1 and I ran side by side for the first 5 turns, at which point he ran wide (with me on the outside), and allowed Jamie Slone to sneak by, but also allowed me to get around. After everyone got into a single-file line, I opted to stay behind Jamie to try to allow he and I to break away from the pack. This worked to a certain extent as he and I created a small gap that allowed me to focus ahead.

I watched, and waited, and found where he was faster, and found where I was faster, until finally I got a run out of T3 (actually it started all the way back at T1), and managed to get underneath him in T5 (a hairpin left-hander). I managed to make it stick, narrowly avoiding getting passed by P3. At that point, I just had to manage my exponentially growing excitement and drive mistake-free to the finish. Lemme tell ya, taking that checkered flag was the coolest feeling ever!!!

The FRMC has given me new challenges, experiences and knowledge I would not have found anywhere else. I initially underestimated the level of competition this series provided. I showed up to Lime Rock thinking I could run close to the Top 5, and was immediately humbled by the steepness of the learning curve, as well as the quality of driving in the series. It forced me to study like never before, and bring my driving to a whole new level.

First, I've got to thank my Dad. Without him, this would not have happened. Second, I have to thank Taryn and Carlo Sparacio, Rick Edwards, and the whole TC Motorsports crew (Jon A., John Z., Rob C., Clint, and Giulia too!) for the fantastic support and fabulous effort they put on. They really showed what professionalism and enthusiasm combined can make happen. I also need to thank my personal team of John Robison (acting in more roles than I can name here) and Duncan Newell. They had my back the entire way back and forth across the country (and that intense drive from D.C. to C.T....). I also want to thank Kevin York for not only staying to watch the last race, but providing a great example for me to follow as I make steps to forge my own career.

I do have some in-car video that I will edit and upload to YouTube for viewing. Thank you so much, again, to everyone who's had my back, rooted for me, taught me, and congratulated me from the beginning. Can you believe that 8 years ago I did my first HPDE at a BMW Puget Sound HPDE?!?

Neither can I :)

My favorite pic of the weekend: