Little did we know
There were 34 drivers entered, 29 veterans of many Crossflow races and 5 new drivers. New to the series are Kelly Heil in his spectacular Crossle restoration (courtesy of his brother Chris), Mark Leonard, in a beautiful Merlyn MK 20, returning to competition after 5 years out of a race car and 25 out of a formula Ford. And Jim Lynn (Crossle 35) and Dave Sandlin (Titan Mk 6) both veterans of the class returning after many years away. And finally Kris Matheson, another of our class of father-son teams joining in the family Titan Mk 6. Everyone did a fantastic job of getting through their “trial by fire”.
Race 1 of the 2020 Crossflow season really started the week before, with 34 drivers and crews obsessively staring at weather apps and worrying or praying for rain. Contingency plans were made, setups discussed, hands wrung, but ultimately, thanks to Cris Vandagriff’s special relationship with the forces of heaven and nature, it was a mostly dry weekend. It was also epic on every level, from “Spin and Win” stories by Danny Sullivan (not to be missed if you EVER have the chance to hear him) at the amazing Revival Road party to incredible racing on both days, the Laguna weekend was a classic.
Whether a premonition or just the way it is with this group, the weekend produced enough memories and stories to last for a while. Give how the world changed in a few short weeks, we would all need it.
(photos by Vince Puleo, Alan Dezanni, Dan Wise)
Qualifying
Combining the first on-track session of the season, in spotty rain, with qualifying, is always a challenge. For some like Kelly Heil and Jim Lynn, it was qualifying and a shakedown for a brand new car. It was a clean qualifying session, marred only by a spectator in a bright yellow jacket at the cork-screw causing what was clearly a very awake group of drivers to brake hard and put their hands up thinking it was a flag. But the final outcome was a tight, well-organized grid with Martin Lauber on pole, Bob Lesnett on his right, followed by Dan Cowdrey, Danny Baker, Steve Romak, Ed Lauber, Andrew Wait, Jay Streets, and a very rapid Brian Andrews. As is typical the next 11 cars were separated by just over a second, all part of an increasingly strong midfield. There were numerous personal best performances by Jeff Rothman, Mike Wirrick and a quickly improving Oliver Ramleth. In total the next group were over a second a lap faster, in more challenging circumstances, than their best back in August…. Paul Kitchen wore a much bigger smile than usual as did Rob Thull, Mike Mcdermott just a tenth back, and Chris Schoap. But the tightest racing in qualifying and this proved to be the case in the race itself came from a group headed by Jim Cody, George Jewett, Ed Van Tassel, and a returning Mitch Roth, and separated by less than a tenth were Andy Warburton, Tomas La Costa (trying and entirely new set up). Jonathan Kitchen was relegated to the back due to transponder problems but would add to the fun come the race.
The Race
Under the watchful eye of group steward, Dr Nic Colyvas, the field rolled out behind the pace car driven by Formula Ford pro, Courtney Crone. The exception was Michael Edick who had a mechanical and barely made the start, taking the green flag at the back of the grid. The start was reasonably well organized and by turn 6 Steve Romak, Ed Lauber, Dan Cowdrey had fallen back behind Andrew Wait, and the lead pack of Martin Lauber, Danny Baker and Bob Lesnett went into a furious dice with all of them trading places twice by the exit of turn 2. By the end of lap 2, Danny settled into a disciplined rhythm and capitalized on the sliding Titans of Bob and Martin to take the lead on lap 4.
Further back Steve Romak, Ed Lauber and Dan Cowdrey recover to catch and pass Andrew Wait on lap 5 and then give chase to the front three. Jay Streets (P9) turning his best ever laps at Laguna held off determined pressure from Mark Leonard, Brian Andrews, Bob Morrison, Mike Wirrick, all of whom circulated trading laps within a tenth of each other. A very tense, fight headed by Rob Thull found him going into turn 11, lap after lap, with Oliver Ramleth, Chris Schoap, Mike McDermott, Ed Van Tassell, Jonathan Kitchen, Michael Maros, Tom La Costa, George Jewett, Jim Roth and Jim Cody, all within inches of each other, with their exhausts all firing on the overrun like a firefight… thrilling stuff. Bushwhacking his way through all of this was hard charger Michael Edick, who gained 20+ places and Jonathan Kitchen who gained 12, and had a huge grin to show for it afterward
So just as things were settling down and looking predictable by lap 8, two things happened. First Martin Lauber went off the outside of turn 9, losing 6 places, but got back on right behind brother Ed Lauber, and the two worked a brief but furious paceline, ultimately with Martin back up to spectacular P3. And on lap 10, a rain shower sent cars scattering all over the exit of turn 6, allowing Andrew Wait to get past Ed Lauber and Dan Cowdrey a second time for P5.
In the end, an imperious drive by Danny Baker earned him P1 in Historic Ford, Bob Lesnett P2, Martin Lauber P3 and Steve Romak his best result so far, P4. Steve is extremely quick in a Formula 1 car, and a driver who does not lack for skill or courage found himself finally enjoying his Titan Formula Ford and bringing the fight to the fast guys. In club Ford Russ Werner got a well-deserved P1. He ran as high as P5 overall, and followed by Jeff Rothman in P2 and Jim Lynn in P3. Kelly Heil’s transponder did not fire for the points race, but he ran in the 1:39’s on Sunday, a phenomenal performance in a new car after a long time away from Formula Fords
The Shippert Racing Services Drive of the day went to Ed Lauber. A dramatic drive, recovering from a mistake at the start but bringing his game fully to the front of the grid.
Driving observations, Perseverance, a great Party and Thanks
For the first time in the history of the series, there were no major driving observations. Things at the front got a little hot, but a steward’s review of video and chatting with drivers suggested it was just that, tough racing. Rain showers and some oil on the track caused some real excitement, but everyone did an amazing job of avoiding problems. There will be follow up on some minor issues and there is some momentum behind the idea of requiring cameras in 2021, but on the whole, it was a clean, sporting weekend.
Throughout the weekend, Jim Lynn suffered the usual teething problems of a fresh restoration. Broken clutch arms, pedal pressure issues, and more. David Sandin also struggled with gremlins, but both persevered and finished the weekend’s Sunday races in style. And after doubling down on his beautiful Titan, Will Jackson, made it through a weekend with no issues and steady improvement from the driver!
A crowd of 70+ took in some great stories by Danny Sullivan
Saturday evening’s party and storytime by Danny Sullivan was a treat. Many thanks to Danny, the team at Car Week Concierge, Revival Road and Martin Lauber for putting on an amazing evening. Also a huge thanks to Dan Wise for manning the scales, Nic Colyvas for keeping the peace, Jim Cody for keeping score, and Jordan Slater for IndieMotorsports for wrangling and storing the scales. And not least, Cris Vandagriff and the HMSA crew for the beautiful trophies, a great event, and good weather.
And our sponsors… the beer, food, parties, medals, trophies, the fun, would not be possible without them. Please patronize, support and promote everyone that helps the series.
Ivey Engines, Car Week Concierge, Vehicles for Charity, Roger Kraus, Shippert Racing Services
So what is next?
As of this writing, the David Love Races have been pushed to May 29-31. The Thunderhill event is still on the calendar, but may not be far enough in the future given how things are in the world right now. We will keep you posted, and as soon as we can be back, we will be. In the meantime, we have great memories of a wonderful weekend to tide us over.
