This past week was a pleasant change, as I got to spend some time at my home track of Virginia International Raceway for the Sprint Challenge weekend. I was coaching a good friend, Dan Bloom, who I’ve known for quite some time now. Dan has been involved in the motorsports scene for a long time hosting his Apex driving events, which are test days for race teams.
Despite Dan being at the track quite a bit already this year, he’s only spent a handful of days actually on the track, and this was his first race weekend of 2023.
The goals for the weekend were to have some fun and to do well. We wanted Dan to gain some more seat time and experience, and to bring home a clean car. And that he did! He improved on his personal best lap time from last year’s race at VIR, and he had two really clean, solid races. He got a chance to pass and mix it up with a lot of competitors, so it was invaluable experience for him.
It was rewarding to see Dan meeting his goals for the weekend, and he and I both felt really positive about the successful event. A lot of the team stayed together, too, so it was a weekend full of great company and a real team atmosphere. We had a lot of fun and enjoyed the camaraderie.