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MikeJohnson's Blog: Stevenson Motorsports
Created by:
MikeJohnson
Type:
Racer Blog
Blog Title:
Stevenson Motorsports
It's Friday afternoon and the car is still on the lift getting ready for Miller. The crew of Michael Hoffman, Chris Vallely and Grant Ford have been working non-stop to prepare the car for Miller. We all understand what's on the line and it's easy to get wrapped up in the point spread, but we need to focus on making sure our car is 100% for 7 hours. We are preparing the car the same as we would for a 24 hour race.
At Thunderbolt, we ran a cool suit and rear view camera for the first time, plus we completely redesigned our roll bar package so we have had to make modifiactions to those assemblies. We are also running a brand new exhaust package which has required some modifications to the chassis. Not necessarily what we wanted to do, but we can't afford to leave a few tenths on the table. Our finishing position by one place up or down could make the difference between 1st, 2nd or 3rd.
As a team, we have to treat Miller just like any other race. The way I look at it, if Banner wants to win the championship, all they have to do is finish on the podium. If they do that, there is nothing we can do to beat them. However, if they don't finish on the podium, our destiny will be in our hands. Of course, the Mazda poses a huge threat as their car is so fast in a straight line but to be honest I don't care much about finishing 2nd or 3rd if we don't win. My goal at the beginning of the year was to get John Stevenson on the Bellagio Championship podium and we would have to score no points and the 67 would have to win to push us to 4th, so that is not much of a concern.
A lot of people have asked me this year about the reason for the Stevenson turn around and what we did to make ourselves Championship Contenders almost overnight. Some people still consider us underdogs, or the "little team" since we are the only one-car team in the top 8 in points. I think the biggest difference from Stevenson Motorsports in years previous to now is direction. Before, the team was without a plan and a bit unorganized. Like most new teams, money was being spent in the wrong places and they were too busy trying to develop someone else's chassis. At the end of last year I felt buying a Pontiac was the only real option because the car had been sorted. All we had to do was keep it together and find some fast drivers to move it around the track. The car rolls off the truck fast almost every weekend, and our drivers have gotten the job done on track. We don't have the infrastructure, engineering or fabrication abbilities to develop a chassis. We need someone else's sorted product and the ability to properly execute on race weekends. And that is what we've done. Execute.
If we win, it will be amazing, and if we don't, it will still be an amazing year. We have proved to ourselves and others that we are a threat every weekend and we will only get better. We can look at some crashes and some mechanical failures to find the missing points at the end of the year, but it won't matter. We have learned, progressed and excelled this year as a team and that will only make us that much stronger in 2009.
Finally, I need to say a BIG thank you for everyone who has offered my sister support since her accident. July 20, she was completely paralyzed and yesterday she had enough strength to move from her chair to her bed. She is already planning on coming to the Rolex 24 in January on her own two feet. I can't wait. For those of you that want to check up on her progress, please visit www.caringbridge.org/visit/terrillestabrook.
Created by:
MikeJohnson
Type:
Racer Blog
Blog Title:
Stevenson Motorsports
With about 20 minutes left at Barber, life was great. We had a solid lead and were pulling away from our championship rivals. We were also looking at our 5th straight podium and our 7th of the season. Then the yellow came out. We knew we would be sitting ducks on the restart but never expected the Mazda to drive right by. We were able to maintain 2nd and thought that would still be a great result until the next yellow came. On that restart Robin accidentally hit the pit speed button allowing the 87 to go by and then drove wide in the museum to let he 67 go by. In a handful of minutes, we went from the top of the world to the bottom and we finished in 4th place.
After the race our team was in complete disbelief and felt nothing could be worse. Then I received a phone call from my wife who told me my sister was in an accident and was life flighted to a neck trauma center in Austin, TX. She was swimming with some friends when she dove into a lake and hit the bottom breaking her C1 and C5 vertebrae. Luckilly, the break to the C1 was minimal and her freinds did an amazing job keeping her neck straight and stable until the helicopter arrived. The doctors performed surgery on her neck upon arrival to Brackenridge hospital, and she was diagnosed as paralysed from the waist down.
I arrived in Austin on Tuesday morning to see my sister and help my mother who had been there since Monday morning. She was still on a breathing tube and was in the ICU. She could move her neck around and raise her arms, but they were restrained so she didn't hurt herself. The next day they removed her breathing tube and we could talk to her. She was in very good spirits and remembered the entire accident. Everyday she gained movement and was very alert and optimistic about her recovery.
I returned to St. Louis on Friday night and my stepather, wife and I visited rehab centers in St. Louis. We checked out the Barnes rehab center and St. John's and eventually went with Barnes. Terrill continued to make progess and they started planning her move home.
As I left for Montreal, my sister was on her way back home. She checked into the rehab center and got straight to work. While in Montreal, I continued to get updates and she was able to wiggle her toes on Thursday. Terrill has been to a handful of races this year, so many people know her and also know my family since about 10 people in the paddock lived in my house at one time. It was great being at the track and being able to talk about my sister with the many people who have grown to love her.
Friday was race day and what a day it was. Just like Barber where the yellows beat us, the lack of yellows enusred the victory. With about 10 minutes to go I was kicking myself for pitting on the second yellow when only us and the 70 came down pit lane. I knew we were short on fuel at the time so we made the risky decision. Once the first TRG car came down pit lane with a few laps to go, I knew something amazing was going to happen. Then the 69, and the other TRG car and the 07 all had problems. At the white flag, we were in 3rd place behind the two Farnbacher cars and Robin made the final pass for the lead coming on the front straight. It was one of the most amzing finishes I have ever been a part of and our team basically fell off the pit wall onto each other and began jumping around like a bunch of kids. When I called home to tell everyone the news my sister had already moved her leg. What an amazing day.
On Saturday morning I went straight to the hospital and all my sister could talk about was the race. My whole family wants to thank everyone for their support and you can visit her message board at www.caringbridge.org/visit/terrillestabrook