DANVILLE, Va. - Qualifying went pretty well. Got down to 1:54.2 on low fuel. We are still drastically overweight, but it's encouraging that we picked up so much time with just a little weight loss.
It's hard not being in contention at the front of the pack, but we knew this was a learning weekend coming into it. The team has really done a fantastic job just getting the car here and we already know where to make improvements. I just have to tell myself not to overdrive looking for speed that isn't there yet. (Submitted at 6:49 p.m. ET on April 23, 2010
-- We just finished our second practice session and are slowly learning our way around. The balance of the car is pretty close, but we are mostly focused on making the car easy to drive, fully legal, and reliable. We are a bit off the pace since we are carrying more weight than is required, but that will be addressed before future events.
Lots of our testing so far has been concerning fuel mileage and range. We are a bit concerned about the number of stops that we will need to make the full distance.
As we approach qualifying this afternoon, we are watching the weather with some concern about the likelihood of rain. Since this car is new to us, we don't know much about a proper wet setup, so we will have to throw our best guess at it. (Submitted at 3:50 p.m. ET on April 23, 2010)
Michael Skeen began racing karts at the age of 10 and gained experience across many platforms. He has had success on ovals and road courses, driving everything from shifter karts and formula cars, to GT and touring cars of all types. In 2008, he starred in Season 2 of the SPEED Channel’s hit television show Setup, where host Tommy Kendall referred to Skeen as "the front runner."
Skeen went on to win the 2008 SpecE30 National Championship as well as two regional series championships with a 70% win ratio. Grassroots Motorsports Magazine named him a 2008 Editor’s Choice Award Winner and his success has continued in 2009.
Skeen’s debut in the SCCA Pro Racing Muscle Milk Trans-Am series was record-setting, with a last-to-second drive that stunned series regulars, won him the Hard Charger and Star of the Race Awards, and eclipsed the former Road Atlanta lap record set by Boris Said. He also placed Second Overall to Marc Goosens and the Riley Technologies Track Day Car at the 2009 Grassroots Motorsports Ultimate Track Car Challenge.
