Sportscar Racing through my eyes.

I was five years old when my dad took me to my very first sportscar race at Mosport. Yes, I will always call it Mosport, because that is what I grew up with. The sound of the Can-Am cars Chevy V8 engines booming and roaring in the paddock and my little body jumping every time I got startled. It was magic and I loved every minute of it. If I remember correctly, it was in 1983. Names like Bobby Rahal, Danny Sullivan, Teo Fabi and others were on the entry list.

Since then, I have watched and experienced so many evolutions of racing and sports car racing. Growing up watching the GTP category prototypes like the Silk cut Jag or the green and orange Mazda that is still one of the greatest sounding race cars I have ever heard and seen. I have been to Le Man once, which was the monsoon year of 2001 when Audi and Bentley battled. I went to Daytona the year the Daytona Prototypes debuted and again recently when the new GTP Hyper cars debuted. Most years I attend or camp at Road Atlanta for Petit Le Man. Thank you, Don Panoz for that, because it truly is one of my favorite races to attend. It has grown over the years, and I am happy to see that.

I mention Don Panoz because what he built and developed allowed sports car racing to grow. I would go to Mosport every year in the 80's with the excitement of not knowing who was racing or who would show up. That also created instability and disappointment at times. Smaller teams would have to balance risk versus reward. Over time the battle of ALMS versus Grand-Am developed and as a true sports car fan I enjoyed both. Honestly the battle to me opened people's eyes to where we are today. Bringing the high-tech racing together with a balance of cost-effective rules for an enjoyable balance of tech and competition. It has brought sports car racing to a new level and this weekend showed that in the WEC as Alpine won at Fuji.

I have attended races for over 40 years and experienced many memories for amazing stories. To see where sportscar racing is today makes me smile because I have had the chance to watch it grow. Endurance racing makes a difference to our everyday vehicles we use and we bond with that. I will continue to be a fan and moving forward hope to be a part of the sport in some way, as a writer and a sponsor. As I finish this post, I have one last thing to add from that first race I ever attended. We came across a young freckled faced teenager who happen to be debuting in the Can-Am series that weekend. We took pictures and got autographs. That young man won the race that weekend, and that young man was Al Unser Jr.

In two weeks, I will line up with everyone else on Monday or Tuesday at Road Atlanta, so I can get a prime location for this year's Petit Le Man.