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.