A fantastic experience
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho (November 3, 2009) – The whole entire Team USA Scholarship experience was absolutely fantastic. I have never had as much fun racing as I did these last couple of weeks. Being able to go overseas and race for America with a fellow racer – and an amazing team – couldn’t have been more fun. The Scholarship has changed my view on where I want my career to end up. I am setting my goals very high and I want to make it to Formula 1. The racing in Europe is better, in my opinion. The people are so much more into it and that is what I want to be around.
Now, to explain about what happened in my main event race at the Walter Hayes Trophy. As most of you should know, I qualified on pole for my heat race – despite putting my car into the gravel trap five laps in! I was a bit dumbfounded that I held the pole after that, but I would definitely take it! For the Heat race, I had a couple of quick guys that I had to watch out for, but they took each other out on the first lap which made my race extremely easy. I just cruised around the entire race and waited for the checkered flag. This put me off pole, in second, for the Semi Final race the following day.
For the start of the Semi Final, the track was semi damp – or so we thought. We had a full rain setup on the car, which was the wrong choice at the moment. The track looked like it was soaked, but it was only wet in one section of the track. My other competitors thought the same thing on their setups, but I don’t think theirs was as extreme as mine. I got pushed back to third on the start, and had a good battle for second for the majority of the race, but eventually started falling back when my tires started to overheat. I finished third, which would put me in the sixth place grid position for the main event. The other Semi Final was quicker than our one because they had a dry track, which put them on the inside row.
The main event wasn’t what I wanted but it was still a good experience nonetheless. I fell back to seventh right away when my competitor behind me jumped the start. I held my position for a couple of laps, waiting for my tires to come in so that I could make my charge to the front. Unfortunately, I never got that chance when I had contact with the same guy that jumped that start at the beginning of the race. I went onto the back straightaway and had two cars right on my tail. One guy pulled out on the left to make a move on me, and the other person (Josef Newgarden) pulled out on the right at the same time. This left me in the middle of a three-wide situation, and it was very windy. I did not want to be in this position, but I unfortunately had no choice. I held my line the best I could in the middle, but the driver on the left kept moving closer and closer to me, leaving me little room. Into the braking zone, I let the driver on my inside go, and I tucked in behind him. Apparently, Matt Parr was going to follow him through on the inside pass, but there was no way I could have seen him. I was more worried about making it out of the three-wide situation, so I never had time to look in my mirrors for the other guy passing in from behind.
Ultimately, I ran over Matt’s tire and got sent very high into the air (photo, above right, courtesy of www.jeffbloxham.com). When the car landed back on the ground, a rear wishbone had bent. This was making the car understeer very badly through the right-hand corners. (By the way, there is only one left -hand corner on the whole track). I did as best as I could with what I was dealt, and still managed to finish in ninth position.
I was very disappointed with my end result, but I know things don’t always go the way you want them to in racing. Congrats go out to my team mate Connor De Phillippi for winning the race and becoming the youngest driver to ever win the Walter Hayes Trophy. I will keep my head high and go into the final Jim Russell race in a couple of weeks with my sights set on winning the championship.
I want to send a special thanks to Peter, Cliff and Michelle Dempsey. They are the nicest/coolest family I have ever met. Michelle was like my mother while I was over there. She would always make sure that I was fed and in tip top shape for the weekend. Peter is a great new friend and an awesome driver coach. He helped me out every time I went onto the track by telling me some tricks to try. (By the way, they all worked). Then there is Cliff. He is such an amazing team owner and an even more amazing person. I had so much fun joking around with the him and team. He was always fun to be around and I look forward to seeing him again.
Special thanks also go out to the entire Cliff Dempsey Racing team. Cliff, Michelle, Peter, Frankie, Francie, Dave Hart, Dave Collier, Andrew, Bob, Scott Malvern, Cormac O’Neill, Josef Newgarden, and everyone else that was associated with the team. (I hope I’m not missing anyone here!)
Last, but most certainly not least, I want to thank the Team USA Scholarship for allowing me to have such an amazing opportunity to go over to Europe and race. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without Jeremy Shaw and all of his supporters. Thank you for changing my mindset on where I want my career to end up. I will never forget this experience and it will always be one of the top stories of my career.
Brett Smrz
Ready to Race!
Silverstone, England (October 30, 2009) – Today was the last day of practice for all of us. We have to do our qualifying laps tomorrow, as well as a Heat race. I think I have the pace to win the main event right now, but it isn’t showing on the timing charts. We are running on some very old tires right now, and I am struggling to hold the mid-corner speed that the fast guys are carrying. Connor seems to be having the same problem as I am at the moment, so it makes me feel a bit better, because he is on old tires as well.
All I can do right now is to keep hitting my marks and wait for all of the fast-lap bull-crap to stop! The races are much different than qualifying or practice, and the races are my strong point. I am confident that I will get my quick lap in qualifying tomorrow.
I have about three fast guys in my group, so it should be a bit easier to stay up front. I don’t know what the system is for the races, because there are six different heat races this weekend, rather than four like at the Formula Ford Festival.
Anyway, I will probably play some poker with the team tonight, and hopefully win some cash to make me feel better! I’m off now to get my car teched for the weekend. Talk to you later!
Brett Smrz
First time at Silverstone
Silverstone, England (October 29, 2009) – Silverstone is not only a historical track but an amazing track. Being able to drive at Silverstone was very cool today. Turn One, called Copse Corner, is such a fast corner, and the runoff for the Formula 1 drivers leaves a bit of room for the Fords to run off too (although it is illegal to do so lap after lap!).
The draft in these cars at Silverstone is much bigger than it was at Brands Hatch. We will have to put our Skip Barber drafting tactics into play! There are more opportunities to pass on this track, so the races will be a bit more exciting in the front of the pack.
Testing went well today. My car was setup very loose, but I like the car to slide a lot. I actually set my fastest time of the day in my first session this morning, and then was having some trouble with people dropping oil on the track. The oil on my loose car wasn’t a great combination, and I was having trouble keeping the car on the proper racing line.
I ended the day with some quick lap times. I was three-tenths off at the end of the day, but there is a trick on the track that I didn’t use that session. (It gains quite a bit of time.) All in all, I am running about the same lap times as the leaders.
Keep updated tomorrow for the “Official” practice day for the Walter Hayes Trophy Race.
Brett Smrz
Visiting McLaren - Wow!
Oxford, England (October 26, 2009) – What a day! We spent much of the day visiting the McLaren Technology Centre, which was absolutely amazing. The building is made of glass. Literally, everything is made of glass! What we didn’t realize until later is that there is even a small lake right outside of the building, which made it look like it is floating on the water. Jakob Andreason, who is one of Lewis Hamilton’s race engineers, gave us a tour of the entire factory, and told us everything about everything!
We got to see all of their different stations; such as their brake testing station, the station where they build the parts, and the station where they design the parts on the computer! The Formula 1 cars are amazingly high-tech when you look at them up close. There are little curves on the bodywork that you would never see on TV, and that you wouldn’t think would help on the car. The thing is, every little thing they do to the car gains them time on the track! They run their wind tunnel 24 hours a day, seven days a week! They are non-stop testing their cars to improve them and get one step ahead of their competitors.
We got to see the room where they can communicate with the team from their factory, no matter where the team is. I thought that was very interesting, just to see how high tech technology is these days. They can talk to the driver from that room, which is absolutely insane! The team even has a photographer who takes photos of the car every lap to make sure there is nothing damaged. The photos get transmitted to McLaren’s television screens, and there is only a 10-second delay.
They have a racing simulator inside the building, which we unfortunately didn’t get to see – because Heikki Kovalainen was doing his preparation for this weekend’s race in Abu Dhabi! Jakob told us all about it though, and I wish I can see it some day down the road. It uses an old Formula 1 chassis that is in a darkened room, and the screen comprises three projectors. The drivers wears a 3D helmet, which makes everything stand out a bit more. Apparently, they develop their setups for every track on the racing simulator, and the setup is usually almost dead-on every time. The drivers get to test on the simulator one time before every race event. If they can develop their setups through the simulator, it must be very realistic...
After we visited McLaren, we traveled just a few miles to see West Surrey Racing’s shop. WSR runs a few BMWs in the British Touring Car Championship, and prior to that had a long and successful history in Formula 3. Their place was quite small compared to McLaren, but it was still very impressive! Dick Bennetts, who engineered F3 cars for people like Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen and Rubens Barricehello in the past, showed us all of their race cars, and all of their trophies and accomplishments (photo above right). All of us also had quite a long chat about old racing experiences before we left, which was also fun. The BTCC cars are very cool. They reminded me a lot of the Grand-Am Rolex cars back home, but the BTCC cars have a bit more under the hood. I wish we would have gotten to see one of their races while we were over here for the Team USA Scholarship!
I want to thank Jeremy Shaw, and the Team USA Scholarship for allowing me to be in Europe and to tour all of these fantastic places. Also, I would like to thank the Team USA Scholarship supporters, as I wouldn’t have been here if it wasn’t for your backing.
Brett Smrz
Shootout time
Oxford, England (October 21, 2009) – Yesterday, we competed in the Grand Prix Shootout. It was a pretty good experience to go and compete against other drivers from different countries in the same shootout. Every other shootout I have ever done is with just Americans.
The Grand Prix Shootout is a program [photo right of Brett, Rob Wilson, Connor and David Fleming courtesy of www.sutton-images.com] which is aimed at finding one driver to take all the way to F1. Whoever wins the shootout will win a fully paid Formula BMW season for 2010. If you do well enough, they will put you into Formula 3 car in 2011. If you do well enough in Formula 3, they will eventually get you moved into Formula 1.
Both Connor and I reckoned we stood out very well. We were driving an Abarth 500, which is pretty similar to what I am used to driving in the Mazda MX-5 Cup. The only thing Connor and I had to get used to was the right-hand drive car. That didn’t take us very long though, and we got up to speed within the first two sessions.
The instructor said he was very impressed with my driving, and liked my improving throughout the morning. After spending some time in the car with Denny (the instructor), Rob Wilson hopped in for a few laps. Rob was a very nice gentleman, and a very experienced racer. I did about four laps with Rob, and he seemed happy with what he saw.
Once we were done with the driving, we had to do an interview with a cameraman. The Europeans have been saying such great things when it comes to Americans and their abilities to present themselves well. We watched one of the drivers get interviewed in front of us, and he wasn’t very good. That made us feel pretty good, because we knew we would get up there and do great. When it was my turn, I was in a very enthusiastic mood. I had tons of energy when I was doing the interview, which is actually very good!
All in all, I think Connor and I did very well. We should make it to the last round to test in the Formula BMW. By the way, the track was very fun. It was a bit open, but they put cones out to make it much tighter. If they were doing the actual track, it seems like it would just be flat out everywhere.
After the shootout, we went out to dinner with Josef Newgarden and Phillip Major. We went to Nandos, which is a chicken restaurant. We had tons of fun eating out and walking around the city. We all get along very well, which makes this trip so much fun!
On that note, I would like to thank Jeremy Shaw, the Team USA Scholarship, and all of its sponsors and supporters. I wouldn’t have this opportunity to be in England if it weren’t for all of them. Thanks everyone!
Brett Smrz
Last chance hero
Brands Hatch, England (October 18, 2009) – What a day! I started in the second position for my Semi Final race. I had a bit of a bad start and Connor got by me. I tucked in behind him, but in Turn Two I put a tire in the grass and did a full 360 on the exit. I put the gearbox into neutral and kept the car running, but by then I was in ninth position and I started having a misfire on the straightaway. I tried a pass for eighth place a couple laps later, but the driver turned into me and spun me around. I came into the pits from there, and my race was over.
After that performance, I had to start the Last Chance race. I was a bit worried, because I would be starting from 17th position and they only take four drivers from the qualifier, so I had to make up 13 positions in just five laps. I got a great start and a good first lap, and was in seventh by the end of lap one. I kept working my way forward, eventually getting into the fourth place, and then on the last corner I did an over-under maneuver and finished up in third!
That meant that I would be starting in the 27th position for the main event. I was very focused going into the race, and set my goal at a top-five finish. I got a very good start off the line and picked up about five positions through the first couple of turns. I kept working my way through the traffic and still saw a bunch of drivers that I could get by. I saw my pit board, and it was saying I was in 11th place. I kept my head down, and eventually made my way into fifth. Then there was a full-course caution, which caught me back up with the leaders. On the restart, I gained one more position, which put me in fourth, which is where I finished.
I was ecstatic! Coming through the field like I did was quite hard. It was one of the best drives of my career, and it was the right race to do it at.
I can’t thank the Cliff Dempsey Racing team enough. They kept my head in the right spot the entire weekend, and kept my car running quick as well. Dave Hart is the best mechanic I could ask for. He is always smiling, and giving me great signals while I am driving.
Thanks go out to Jeremy Shaw, the Team USA Scholarship and all of its sponsors and supporters. I wouldn’t have been able to have the opportunity to race this weekend without their support.
Brett Smrz
Second in the Heat
Brands Hatch, England (October 17, 2009) - Today was the day that Connor and I had to step up our game. It was time for qualifying and the heat races. The weather was fairly nice in the morning, so we were looking to have some pretty decent times in the qualifying session.
My setup came in a little slow in qualifying, and I was P7 for quite a while. Sure enough though, the setup came in, and I dropped a half-second to put it on the pole. I held that lap for about 3-4 laps or so, and then Scott Malvern took the top spot from me by .030s.
I was happy with that, and was ready for the heat race. I got a very good start but got held on the outside of Turn One, so I came out of Turn One in third place. I was having some massive trouble getting around Josh Fisher, as he was taking a defensive line in every corner. I was much quicker than he was, but couldn’t find a way around.
I finally thought I had a shot at passing him on the outside of Paddock Hill Bend, but he turned to the left at me just when I was entering the corner. I almost drove off the track but held my position and stayed behind him. Next time we crossed start finish line, Fisher got a black-and-white [warning] flag and he started calming down after that. I got by him the next lap and held second for the rest of the race. There was actually a pretty big wreck behind me. Third and fourth place got together, and one of them flipped!
I am happy with my second-place finish and will be starting my semi final in second place tomorrow morning. Connor De Phillippi, my Team USA teammate, is starting right behind me in third. Hopefully we can team up on Rory Butcher, who won Connor’s race, and take the lead from him in the beginning of the race.
Connor and I are both quicker than the others at the moment but we have been getting held up by traffic. If we work together, I don’t see why we shouldn’t be able to get a bit of a lead in the Semi Final, which should put us in a good position for the Final.
I want to thank the entire Cliff Dempsey Racing team for all of their help and support today. Dave Hart has been doing a fantastic job in keeping my car in check all weekend.
Brett Smrz
Hi everyone!
Brands Hatch, England (October 15, 2009) – This has already been a very eventful week! On Sunday I started work on Wichita (The Movie) at 5:00 AM Eastern time in Boston before leaving for the airport at around 1:00 PM to begin my Team USA Scholarship experience in Europe. It was a bit sad saying goodbye to all of my friends. We had a bunch of fun working on the set together, and I look forward to working with them again soon.
For those that don’t know, in addition to pursuing my dream as a race car driver, I am a stunt man in the film business. My father, Gregg Smrz, is a stunt coordinator, and my uncle, Brian Smrz, is a 2nd Unit Director. I kind of fell into the business as well, and have been doing stunts since I was 9 years old. If you would like, you may go to www.imdb.com and type in my name to have a look at my resume.
On Wichita, I was doing some precision driving, which is my specialty in the stunt industry. We went to an empty parking lot and were learning how to throw e-brake slides in our spare time! It was quite a blast.
I checked in and went through security with my parents, and then I said my goodbyes. Although I love having my parents with me at the track, it should be a great experience traveling to a foreign country and doing some racing on my own.
I met up with Connor, my teammate, after I went through security, and we waited at our gate until the plane was ready to take off. We both wanted to try and get some sleep on the plane, but unfortunately we were both unsuccessful. The lights were very bright and the service down the aisle was non-stop!
We got to Ireland, collected our bags, and then met up with Cliff Dempsey who will be running our Formula Ford cars in England. He took us back to his house and we went to bed for a couple of hours. When I woke up, Mrs. Dempsey had already made us a full Irish breakfast, which is a nice change for me as I usually only eat cereal!
We went to the Dempseys’ race shop, just outside Dublin, so that we could get fitted to our race cars. I am going to be in the same car that Josef Newgarden had last year. I can already tell that Cliff is a very hard worker, and he will do anything he can to make Connor and I happy while we are over here. The fitting to the car was successful, so I look forward to the weekend ahead.
After dinner, we headed out onto a ferry to England. Cliff then drove the truck to Brands Hatch where we had everything prepped for the weekend. He drove until 4 AM to get us to the track on time. Very hard workers, the Irish are!
I would like to thank the Dempseys for everything they did, and are doing for us while we are here in the UK. Also everyone who has contributed to the Team USA Scholarship to make this possible for both Connor and me. The Dempsey racing team is fantastic, and they don’t stop working until everything is complete. I look forward to having a successful couple of weekends with them.
I will keep you updated with more information during my stay in Europe for the Team USA Scholarship.
Brett Smrz
