E-CXC-iting Times!

Hello everyone, welcome to my driver blog where I’ll be talking about my experience with the Team USA Scholarship. To start off with, being selected as a Team USA Scholarship driver is a dream come true. Going through the selection process was an amazing experience. The interviews took place at Mid-Ohio during the IndyCar race week, when I was also able to test with Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing in the USF2000 car on Thursday and race in the F1600 Championship Series the weekend before and after. The interviews began with each candidate being selected one by one to sit in front of a panel of judges and asked a variety of different questions based on past racing experiences or accomplishments, to future plans and goals. After I finished the interview, I was very pleased with how I did and a little surprised by how quick it went. About a week later I heard from Jeremy Shaw that I passed the interviews and would continue the selection process by moving onto the shoot-out. I was very excited to be selected as a Team USA Scholarship finalist and to be able to move onto the driving portion of the selection process.

The shoot-out was held at Andersen RacePark. We were told that we would be driving a JAY Motorsports USF2000 car with no front and rear wings as well as the Spec Racer Ford around the tight course. The schedule consisted of a practice, qualifying and simulated race in the USF2000 car as well as a practice session in the Spec Racer Ford. I knew that I had to make the most of the first practice session so that I could build off of everything that I learned from qualifying and the race. Each session was better then the last and I felt very confident on how I performed over the few days despite not being able to see any lap times. Once I got home after the shoot-out I was very anxious to hear what the results were. A couple weeks later, I got a phone call from Jeremy telling me that I was selected as a Team USA driver! Words could not explain how happy and excited I was!

After being selected, I received an email from Jeremy telling me that I had the opportunity to drive the CXC full motion simulators in Los Angeles as preparation for England. A few weeks later I packed my bags and flew down there to drive the simulators for two days. When I arrived at the CXC factory I felt like a kid in a candy store. The first day I mainly got seat time in a Pro Mazda car at Brands Hatch and Silverstone. The second day was more planned with Joey and I going through a detailed schedule created by Kelly Jones at RaceCraft1. This involved a private practice session in the Pro Mazda car at Brands Hatch so that we could both just learn the tracks. Then an open practice session with other cars to get used to what it would be like with traffic around the track. After practice we headed straight into qualifying where I finished second. The race was very hectic where I got caught in a few crazy moments but still managed to finish third. We repeated the same process for Silverstone in both dry and wet conditions. After leaving the CXC factory I felt much more comfortable with my knowledge of the two tracks we will be racing at and better prepared.

I’m extremely excited to head over to England for the second time. Last year I had the opportunity to race with Cliff Dempsey Racing at Anglesey Circuit, one of the most beautiful tracks that I have ever raced at. I learned a lot about what it’s like to race in a different country, with different people and in different cars. Experience that is now very valuable. I’m also very excited to see Cliff and Michelle Dempsey again and the rest of the team. These last few weeks have been a crazy ride but I’m looking forward to spending my time in England doing what I love to do!

Thanks for reading!

Jake Eidson