My 2nd sesaon in the Star Mazda series has come to end and it's been a good season but not great. At the start of the season I had two goals:
- Finish in the top 50 overall
- Win my Division (4)
I led Division 4 from round 4 until the final round. Only on the last day of racing of the entire season did I lose my number spot and finish number 2. Still, number two isn't bad, but I did want to finish at the top.
I've made some progress...
In the end, a poor result at a track I love, Watkins Glen, did me in. Looking at the race results between Robert Orton and myself, he raced only the once - with success (a 2nd place and 120 points). I had 14 races with varying success including two 133 point finishes and a few other finishes about 110. I also had a 8 DNF's and that is what broke me.
Congratulations to Robert Orton though. I've raced him a few times throughout the season and it has always been very close. Unfortunately we rarely raced head-to-head. Scott McIntyre was the same. He raced strongly the few times I raced him (always at Motegi if I recall correctly).
I did score a win at 7 of the 12 rounds though, so that was a big plus. I also saw my iRating increase from in the 1500's to nearly 2800. It's now down just below 2700 after the disaster of Watkins Glen. I've also now been promoted to Division 2. That will be very tough and I don't think I stand a chance. I was generally competing against Mike Quayle, David Buda, Nathan Gowden and a few others, and we had a great time racing cleanly and fairly. Really enjoyed it.
Oh yeah, I finished 54th overall, not quit enough. Again that darn Watkins Glen let me down :(
I think I'll do another season in the Star Mazda, although I want to race the Lotus 49, and prep for next years assault on the V8 Supercar.
