Upon the
fall of the Green Flag there were immediate problems as
several competitors began sliding sideways bouncing off
of each other and the wall. Steiner who was at the
front of the pack managed to escape the carnage behind
him, keeping his car in enough control to continue the
race. The Kinetic crew immediately instructed Smith
to back off the throttle and ease back in order to let
the incidents occurring ahead of him come to a complete
stop. Smith was then able to navigate down the front
stretch and resume under the first caution of the event.
Steiner who was making his official debut under the Kinetic
Motorsports banner qualified 5th for the event in his No.
15 Porsche 997. Regardless of the difficult conditions,
he was able to gain a position in the field and took the
4th spot. While running in the same position, his
Porsche began to hydroplane due to the incredible amount
of water. Fortunately, he was able to make the save
without losing position and go on to take the Checkered
Flag in the same spot.
“It was very dangerous out there,” said Steiner. “There
was way too much rain. At the start Wayland went
into the wall and hit Melanie resulting in a double yellow. I
had one big moment on the front stretch as there was so
much water. I was completely sideways but got it
back. I said to myself let’s just finish the
race and not worry about position so much. The most
important thing was to keep the car in one piece which
I was able to do. I am more than happy with 4th in
these conditions as this was a survival deal. Thanks
to the whole team for their support. The guys did
a fantastic job. Everything is top notch and everyone
here at Kinetic works together which makes it so much fun
for me!”
Smith, who also managed to stay incident free throughout
the duration of the event, gained several positions during
the race even though the field only completed a few laps
under Green Flag conditions. He piloted the No. 38
Kinetic Motorsports Porsche 997 from a 25th spot in the
field crossing the finish line in the 18th position.
“I think I aged 10 years during this race,” said
Smith. “The shear amount of water on the track
made it extremely difficult to strive for position. I
was able to gain several positions during the event so
I am pleased with that. To be able to leave today
with my car intact is amazing considering what happened
to many fellow competitors. Thanks to the guys for
all of their hard work and I know we are looking forward
to the next and hopefully drier event at Miller!”
Kinetic Motorsports’ General Manager, Ed Hall summed
up the event for Kinetic one of a select few teams to be
leaving the track today unscathed.
“At the Green Flag as many as 12 cars were spinning,” said
Hall. “There was standing water all over the
track making it almost impossible to get any traction when
trying to accelerate. The weather was so bad, timing
and scoring locked up here in the pits. We told Russell
to slow down and let the wrecks stop instead of trying
to navigate through the mess of cars and parts. Dino
had an incredible save on the front straight as he hydroplaned. He
kept his head in it and was able to keep going without
losing position. We are fortunate to leave today
with our cars in one piece and with two top-20 finishes. The
guys did a great job and the cars ran well. The next
race is at Miller and fortunately it doesn’t rain
too much out there.”
For more information about Kinetic Motorsports, please
visit www.kssmotorsports.com
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