I have just returned from the 12 hours of Sebring in Florida where I drove the Dyson racing LMP2 Lola. The 58^th running of America’s toughest endurance race was my first race outside of Europe and was certainly a challenging introduction to the American Le Mans Series!

The first race of any season is always exciting as everyone is keen to blow off the winter cobwebs and get racing again. The initial thing that struck me was the electric atmosphere leading up to the race and on race day. Over 160,000 enthusiastic fans were crammed into the infield, adding even more tension to the eagerly attended race start.

The race started really well for us as Chris Dyson flew past the muscle milk Porsche and into 2^nd place and set his sights on the Highcroft acura ahead. The Mazda Lola was working really well on the Dunlop tyres as Chris reeled off some great lap times. Unfortunately our excitement was short lived as about halfway into the first hour we hit a technical problem. We were forced back to the transporter to investigate the setback in more detail.  The experienced Dyson crew did a fantastic job and managed to fix our problems and retuned the isobutanol fuelled Mazda to the track.

We were however way down on the leading cars in the LMP2 class and it was clear that we were now racing for points. Chris finished his stint and then I got aboard to complete my first racing laps in the USA. My double stint was all about collecting as much information about the new Dunlop tyres and adapting to the track conditions. Regardless of this the car was working incredibly well and I was able to drive a consistent and trouble free stint. I then handed over to 2003 Le Mans winner Guy Smith who continued with a faultless run through the afternoon.

I got back into the car just after 6pm and drove another double stint around the bumpy ex military airfield, a physical challenge that I am glad I trained hard for! The car was still running perfectly, highlighting how competitive we really could have been. After my run into the night I handed over to Guy once again. After an incredible team effort we finished the race in third and collected some valuable championship points.

The team’s next race is at

Long Beach street

circuit in California. Unfortunately I wont be driving at this event as I am only driving in the three endurance races, but I will hopefully be there supporting the guys. I am next in the car at Mazda Speedway and I really can not wait! Wish me luck.