This past weekend was the first IMSA race at Watkins Glen since 2019, and it felt great to be back! The fans were out in full force, and it was especially refreshing that although things were put on hold for the past year, it didn’t feel that way at Watkins Glen. To make it even better, everything seemed like it had been spruced up, from the track amenities to the surrounding town. It was a great welcome back for all of us!
The main reason I was at Watkins Glen was to work with Ashton in Lamborghini Super Trofeo. This was the third round of the season, and it was highly anticipated because of the momentum she has been gaining this year. Her performance has been increasing, and so has the size of the field! There’s so much good competition in the series.
Our goal was to start with a strong pace and develop the car throughout the event. That would enable us to begin on the right foot, qualify up front, and hopefully have race results to match.
For practice, we accomplished our goals. We hadn’t tested at the track in advance, so I was proud that Ashton was fast right from the start, setting the second-fastest time in practice. She also had a good car for qualifying and the race.
We didn’t wind up getting those race results we had hoped for, but Ashton did make a lot of personal gains. It was a breakthrough weekend from a performance standpoint for her. I’m excited for Ashton because she can take these forward strides to finish the last half of the season on a very strong note.
Ashton exuded specific attributes that really showed she’s developing into a next-level driver. She set some of the fastest laps in the second race of the weekend, and she made some big gains in her technique, too.
I’m excited for the rest of Ashton’s season, and I think she’s got a lot to look forward to this year!
