October 1. An odd thing about this race was that it was to be run on Memorial Day Monday. Because of an agreement with nearby residents who were concerned about noise levels back in 1957 when the track was built, there is no on-track activity at Lime Rock Park on Sundays. There's also a nearby church visible from turns 1, 2, and 3, and so they honor the Sabbath at the track. Because of that, even the racers have to keep their engines quiet if there's a Saturday wedding going on at that church. Most such events are held in the morning, so that track activities can take place in the afternoon. The race distance was scheduled for 150 laps around the 7 turn, 1.54 mile track. With turn 2 being the only left-hander on the whole track, the circuit was often compared to driving on a right-hand oval. GTP cars could easily lap this track in less than 50 seconds, so if the race went green flag all the way through, the race would take about two hours at the least to complete. A lap of Lime Rock Park began with the start/finish straight, which was also the track's longest straight. It ended at Big Bend, a long, sweeping right-hander. Almost immediately following it was turn 2, part of the Esses. Turn 3 marked the exit of the Esses and the start of the No Name Straight. This straight isn't exactly straight, as are some minor kinks along its length, but none of them require slowing down, even at the amazing speeds that GTP cars were capable of attaining. At the end of No Name Straight was Climbing Turn, so named because the cars gained elevation as they went through it. Immediately following climbing turn was the optional chicane that had been installed to keep cars from getting airborne as they went over the crest of the hill. Last year, John Morton got airborne in his Nissan and backflipped at this point on the track. He was nearly killed in the crash. Balto happened to be the first car behind John at the time of the accident, so he saw everything first hand. He remembered immediately getting on the radio to his crew, screaming "One of the Nissans just flipped right in front of me!" It did spook him a little bit, but not enough to make him stop racing. It could just as easily have been him involved in that horrifying accident. He did, however, have this to say about it: "I don't think I've ever seen a more violent accident in my time as a professional racer." Boat racers call such an event a "blowover," an apt description of what happens when an earth-bound object loses its grip on terra (or aqua) firma and acts like an airplane. This is not a new phenomenon in racing. Just ask Paul Hawkins and Hugh Dibley, who first proved it by launching their Lolas in the first ever practice session for the original SCCA Unlimited Canadian-American (Can-Am) Challenge Series at St. Jovite in Quebec in 1966. Denny Hulme proved it by looping his McLaren M20 in the 1972 Can-Am race at Road Atlanta. Five years earlier, again at St. Jovite, Brian Redman and Elliot Forbes-Robinson each performed similar feats in their Lola T33CS Can-Am cars. The late Stefan Bellof had a similar event happen to him at Germany's Nurburgring circuit, as did Jochim Winkelhock. All of them survived these respective accidents, although Bellof would be killed in a crash during the 1985 Spa 1000km race in Belgium at the wheel of the Porsche 962's predecessor, the Porsche 956. Following the chicane was a medium-length straight down to West Bend, which got its name being the westernmost point on the track. A downhill run under a bridge came next, followed by Diving Turn. This is the seventh and final turn of the lap, as it led onto the main straight. Balto usually excelled at Lime Rock, his worst finish being sixth in his first visit here in a GTP car. Last year, he placed third after having to start from the back of the pack in a backup car after wrecking his primary car at West Bend. He came with the intent of improving on that. On Saturday morning, the racers would end up having to keep their engines quiet, as there was indeed a wedding taking place at the nearby church. Later, Balto had found out that the newlyweds were both fans of his from nearby Lakeville, the closest town to Lime Rock Park. They had witnessed his incredible drive from the back to finish third here last year and were astounded at the achievement. Although he couldn't make it to their reception, Balto did sign a few Fox/Ridgemount Racing merchandise items that they had sent him. Among them was a 1/18th scale die-cast car, a poster, and an assortment of apparel. Kyle also took the liberty of signing them as well. Once the signings were done, the items were sent back along with best wishes from both drivers for the new couple. Back on the track, qualifying witnessed a fierce fight for the pole in the top GTP class. Between Balto Wolf and Kyle Fox, it was Kyle who set the fastest time in their Porsche 962, which put them third on the grid behind the two Electromotive Engineering Nissans. Less than four tenths of a second separated first from third. Race day dawned with clear skies and warm weather. It was the day after the Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The Memorial Day race weekend is not the only Lime Rock racing weekend to be run on a Monday. A vintage racing weekend featuring older cars held on Labor Day Weekend carries over into Labor Day Monday. After the pre-race ceremonies concluded and the command to start engines was given, the cars rolled off on their warmup lap. Kyle Fox was scheduled to be the first driver in the #35 Porsche 962 that he and Balto shared, with Balto taking over for the remainder of the race on the team's sole scheduled pit stop. Once the green flag dropped and the race started, Kyle was able to keep the two works Nissans in his sights, but he still couldn't quite match them on pace. This was largely due to the fact that he still faced pressure from behind, primarily from the works Jaguars. The gap did, inevitably, close up once the leaders began to encounter the slower GTP Lights prototypes. Once the tires began to wear off, Kyle was able to mount a charge for the lead, as he started lapping quicker than the two Nissans. Kyle wasn't being quite as hard on his tires, so they were in better shape toward the end of the run. Kyle brought his Porsche in after the two Nissans made their pit stops. Balto started getting ready to hop in about three laps before Kyle came in. "Good luck, Balto," said Jenna just before he got ready to put his helmet on. "Thanks, Jenna," Balto said in reply. Even though Kyle would be heading in shortly, Balto and Jenna still managed to sneak in a kiss. Jenna then gave Balto a "go get 'em" pat on the helmet after he put it on. As soon as Kyle brought their 962 into the pits, Kyle began unbuckling his belts and eventually climbed out once he brought the car to a complete stop. Kyle's first task was to help Balto get into the seat, which he accomplished without problems. The refueling and tire changing processes went without fault as well. Still, just as Balto accelerated out of the pit lane onto the racetrack, both Nissans just barely beat him to it. At least now he was in position to pounce. It got even better when a full course caution came out soon afterward for debris on the track, as one of the Lights cars had shed its rear wing right in the middle of the start/finish straight. After the wing was cleared away, the race went back to green. "Keep the pressure on them, Balto," Stan called into the microphone on his radio headset. For the first few laps after the restart, Balto concentrated on not making a mistake and getting the tires up to working temperature. Once he did, he started to make a run for the lead. After relentlessly harrying the #84 Nissan, in the hands of Chip Robinson, Balto managed to execute a successful overtaking maneuver on Chip under braking for Climbing Turn that led into the Turn 5 chicane. It's not an easy place to pass, but it is possible to pass there. "And Balto Wolf has just moved into the #2 spot, right behind Geoff Brabham," the track announcer called over the PA system. "I'm right behind the leader," Balto radioed to his pits. "Good work, Balto," Stan answered back. Balto had a little bit harder time getting past Brabham. For several laps, he stalked the Nissan, looking for a chance to make a pass. His best chance was going to be under braking for Big Bend at the end of the start/finish straight. Finally, as they went to start lap 142, Balto got a good run coming out of Diving Turn, which led onto the start/finish straight. He stayed in the slipstream just long enough for him to get a good tow coming down the main straight. He such a good run that he had to pull out early in order to avoid running into the back of Brabham. Geoff, however, wasn't gonna easily surrender the lead. As Balto cut to inside of the track going down the main straight, Geoff moved over in an attempt to block him. Balto countered by going even further down the inside, close to the pit wall. Although he was in an ideal position to make a successful overtaking move, he wasn't quite in an ideal position to get a good line going through Big Bend. But that didn't matter to him. As Balto and Geoff approached Big Bend, Balto almost got pushed onto the grass. He tried to move the car to the left, but Brabham was still there. The Porsche's left front clipped the Nissan's right rear, pitching Brabhan into a spin. With neither one of them willing to give an inch, contact and a spin were inevitable. "Oh, we've got trouble at Big Bend as Geoff Brabham is into a spin!" the track announcer called out. In the midst of that, Geoff pulled the car out of the spin, kept the car from stalling, and drove the grass to get back on the track. "What a save!" the announcer called out. "Geoff pulls

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