Getting to race at home is always a thrill, and the whole family was looking forward to racing at our home track, Mid Ohio, this past weekend. The track is located just 90 minutes away from home, and the track is one of the most enjoyable tracks to drive in America.

The race was a late addition to the Grand Am Cup schedule, and because we were running with the CART FedEx Champ Car Series, our track time was limited. A promoter's test day on Thursday gave us two hours to sort out our cars and get ready for the upcoming 2.5 hour race.

We tested all three Sports Touring Acura Integras LSs and the Corvette. Except for one oil leak on the #41 Integra, the Acuras ran great the whole test day. The Corvette worked its way through minor issues, including ABS issues. The times we were seeing in the Integras were very close to what we expected, but we weren't exactly sure if they would be on pace once the official practice started. The STII class has changed so much since last year. We have less horsepower than we did last year when we visited Mid Ohio, and it is hard to judge how much that reduction in horsepower will effect our cars from track to track.

In the first practice session, we got to see what the competition had in store for us. Our main competition all year this year has been the #27 Acura Integra from Fenton Motorsports. In practice one, they got down to a 45.251 and we got down to a 45.791. We were on a full load of fuel and had older tires on, so we weren't too concerned.

In qualifying, I got to qualify the #41 (the starting driver always has to qualify the car in the Cup series). On my lap out of the pits, I waited until I got a really clear track in front of me, and as it worked out, I was able to drive three laps before I encountered traffic. Those three laps were enough free track time to claim the pole. The pole time I set, a 1:46.0, surprised me a bit as I thought we would be in the low 45's in qualifying, but the track was a little more slick than it was in the morning session. Our teammates, Tony Nuzzo and Don Velcio, qualified fourth and fifth respectively.

My dad Joe was qualifying the Corvette and he had issues with the ABS coming and going. Apparently, an ABS system that comes and goes as it pleases is a real thrill in a 450++ horsepower car. After watching some of his film from the weekend, I can understand his trepidation of standings on the brakes late in the corner, and hoping that the ABS decides it wants to work. The car has a real tendency to swap ends when the ABS fails. Needless to say, due to the ABS coming and going, the Corvette's qualifying performance wasn't quite what we had hoped for, and we sat in tenth.

We had one more practice before the race, but since it was a fifteen minute practice the morning of the race, it was more an opportunity to test to see if the car was working fine, more so than anything else. The Corvette still had an ABS problem, and after the practice, we re-wired more of the car in hopes of solving the problem for the race.

On the warmup lap, Joe radioed in that the ABS once again went out on him. Our hopes that re-wiring the car would solve the problem were dashed. Back in Sports Touring II, I had a bad start in the #41, and got about five seconds behind the #27. Normally I have pretty good starts, but I got bogged down coming on to the straight to start, and by the time I got the Integra to spool back up into its power band, the field had already taken off.

After ten minutes, I had caught back up to the #27 Integra. I had several opportunities to pass, but decided instead to sit on his bumper, and let Will and Bob Beede decide this thing at the end of the race.

Coming up to turn ten one lap, I saw our Corvette spun in the middle of the track. Several cars missed the Corvette before a Porsche slammed into the side of the car. I