Caitlin Johnston: June Driver Blog
Getting geared up for The Glen has been both challenging and exciting. It has now been two weeks since the High Octane Weekend at Mosport in which I experienced what every racer does at some point during their career, a miss weekend. But, while the weekend had both ups and downs for sure, I learned a lot about myself as a driver. Also, I know quite a bit more of what I am capable of as a racer.
While I was unable to race on Saturday due to an incident in qualifying, I showed myself and others that through Friday's practice sessions that I can really pace an F2000 car. After sitting P1 and P3 respectively during Friday, it definitely gave me more confidence in my skills.
The team was absolutely amazing in getting the car back together and ready to race. I will fully admit though, that at first it was very difficult coming to grips with getting back into the car. It definitely made me nervous even just looking at it in the pits. However, I knew that the best thing for me was to get back in the car and face the nerves. Once I had a few laps under my belt, the speed quickly came back to me.
The High Octane Weekend was my third weekend racing my Formula Ford. Qualifying on Sunday went quite well, considering that I had no testing on the Friday, and was unable to contest the race on the Saturday. I would start fourth on the grid. The race was a close one; I finished fifth, with the front five cars staying tight the whole race.
Looking towards Watkins Glen, I am very excited not only to have the opportunity to race there, but to be a part of such a huge weekend. Watkins Glen, like Mosport in my eyes, is a premier track and it is on my list of must-drive courses. Just being present at such an important weekend is very exciting because you get to interact with all of the people from the other series there while also getting to meet with spectators and fans.
For me Watkins Glen will be like any other race weekend, trying my hardest, doing what I love and just having a ton of fun. I don't see my weekend at Mosport as a bad experience at all. I see it as just one of those lows that all racers experience. To me the most important thing is being able to shake it off, see the value in the experience, and move on to the next weekend. You take what you have learned from it, and use it as a building block in terms of skills and put it in the past.
Caitlin