Last week I had the opportunity to join Reg Williams for the International GT Series event at Watkins Glen. This series pairs with not only Trans-Am but also SVRA, which turns out to be quite a large event when you put all of these cars and series together in one weekend!
Reg has been competing in the IGT Series this season, and he has had some great success. He was excited to combine his momentum and all of his sim training at Watkins Glen.
The week started off quite rainy, but the forecast for qualifying and racing was sunny and dry. This is always so difficult because you’re excited to get on track, but the temporary bad weather doesn’t make driving worth it.
By the time everything dried out and we were on track practicing, Reg was able to get right up to speed in his Porsche GT3R. It was a fun couple of days through qualifying and the opening pair of sprint races, and we continued fine-tuning on the finer points of mastering Watkins Glen.
On the final day of the event, we competed in an enduro, so Reg and I actually got to share diving duties in the car. It’s common for coaches to co-drive with their clients in the enduro, and it’s always fun because I get to race against a lot of my friends from the IMSA paddock!
The one catch was that due to all the rain earlier in the week, my first laps in the car would be during the race! Reg had a great start, and at the pit stop, we changed drivers. It was truly an excellent opportunity for me to get up to speed right away! It was exhilarating to drive such a fine-tuned, purpose-built racecar at that track, especially when my first laps out of pit lane were both flat-out and my first of the weekend!
The race was a lot of fun, and the car ran great. Goldcrest Motorsports did an outstanding job prepping the car and maintaining it all weekend, and Reg and I came away with the win! We were both ecstatic about the opportunity to co-drive and to share some success together.
