Note: the screen shots for the Monza race are still in process. I hope to add them to this report shortly.
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Kaemmer never demonstrated the kind of domination here which has characterized many of the races in the series. Both Johns and Alison Hine qualified within three tenths of Kaemmer's pole time, and in the race, Johns remained glued to Kaemmer's gearbox for many laps.
Dave was able to edge away to about a six second lead midrace, but a miscue while overtaking a lapped car led to contact with the guardrail at Ascari, and after that, Kaemmer's Lotus seemed to lose its edge. Johns capitalized on Kaemmer's difficulties and closed the gap, and was only two seconds behind at the flag. "I ran out of time," said Tony. "Five more laps and I'd have had him."
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After triggering a wild crash on the run from the grid into Curve Grande on the first lap, Alison Hine made another of her habitual comeback drives. Restarting next to last after the carnage had been cleared, with the leaders long gone, Hine tigered her way back through the field, again passing everyone but Kaemmer and Johns to gain her first podium position in the series.
Despite their excellent handling, the Ferraris were outclassed here, at what is clearly a horsepower circuit. The screaming red cars of Randy Cassidy and Scott Sanford could manage only fourth and fifth at their home Grand Prix. Matt Marsala's Lotus took the final points-paying position.
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Dave Kaemmer again put his Lotus on the pole, with yet another unreal time of 1:28.65. However, this time he was not unchallenged. Alison Hine used the power of her Eagle's Weslake V-12 to good effect, putting in the second fastest time of the day, less than three tenths away from the Lotus.
This was the best grid position to date for the blue and white cars, and Hine was elated. "I knew we were going to be good here," she said. "This is a circuit which really suits the Eagle."
Tony Johns' Lotus took the outside position on the front row, over a second back from the Eagle, while Scott Sanford was the quickest Ferrari driver, setting a 1:30.50 to take fourth. Matt Marsala was delighted with his best qualifying result so far, his Lotus edging Randy Cassidy's Ferrari by two tenths for fifth. The Ferraris of Roy Fleck, Bill Betts, and Brian Berry followed, with Bill Warner's Eagle bringing up the rear.
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The Ferrari tumbled, while the Eagle, sans right front wheel, spun to the left and scraped along the fence before spinning back across the track into the path of the rest of the field. Without steering, Hine was helpless to avoid what followed.
Carnage ensued, as one car after another, moving fast and with nowhere to go, piled into the stricken pair. Cars, tires, and bits of fiberglass were everywhere as most of the rear of the grid became involved. Marsala and Warner had contact of their own farther back, and, while Marsala was able to get underway quickly, Warner's stricken Eagle came to rest some distance up the road against the guardrail at Curve Grande.
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After things got sorted out, the order was Kaemmer, Johns, Sanford, then a big gap to Berry, Fleck, Cassidy, Warner, Marsala, and then another gap to Hine and Betts, bringing up the rear. On the short chute between the first and second Lesmo, Cassidy moved alongside Fleck, and the two made contact at the entry of the second Lesmo. The Ferraris both spun and were quickly under way.
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On the second lap, Marsala got onto the grass in the braking area for the first Lesmo, and before he could gather it up, Cassidy, apparently momentarily distracted by the snaking Lotus, had followed him into the guardrail. Somehow the two became entangled, and Cassidy's Ferrari was launched high into the air. As the two slid to a stop along the rail, Hine nipped through into fifth. Marsala got under way before Cassidy, and when Randy made a brave attempt at diving under the Lotus at Parabolica, the Ferrari slid off into the sand.
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Hine's Eagle was flying by now, and on lap seven, when Sanford indulged in a quick spin at the second Lesmo, the blue and white car was suddenly on the tail of the howling red Ferrari. As the two moved up to lap the Eagle of Bill Warner, the latter's Weslake exploded in a burst of flame and smoke, showering the duelling pair with engine bits. Seconds later, at Parabolica, Sanford lost the Ferrari under braking, and tapped the inside guardrail, triggering a slow spin. Scott could only watch helplessly as Hine's Eagle shot past into third.
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Soon it was nail-biting time for the leaders as they began to lap the tail-enders, and on the 14th lap Kaemmer had a wild moment as he went wide lapping Warner's Eagle at Ascari and thumped the guardrail hard at 145 mph. After that, the handling of the Lotus was never quite the same, and slowly Johns began to close the gap.
Hine, too, ran afoul of a lapped car. On lap 13, as the flying Eagle came up to lap Fleck, the Ferrari moved to the inside. Hine dove down the outside to pass. Fleck apparently didn't see her, and moved left to get on line for the corner. As he did so, the two cars came together and both wound up in the sand. They were able to resume, but Hine lost considerable time reversing out of the sand and getting under way. She was now too far behind Johns to entertain any hope of catching the Lotus.
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Meanwhile, Cassidy had been slowly closing the gap to Sanford in fourth. The 13th lap was an eventful one, as Sanford touched the curb on the inside of the second Lesmo and spun. By the time he had recovered, Cassidy was through into fourth. The two Ferraris ran in close company for several laps, but Cassidy eventually pulled away.
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While the Ferraris were outclassed on this power circuit, the top three cars proved to be quite evenly matched in terms of speed. Kaemmer's fastest race lap was a 1:29.21, less than a tenth quicker than Hine's best time of 1:29.30 with the Eagle, which was in turn only marginally quicker than Tony Johns' best of 1:29.31 with his Lotus.
All in all, it was a satisfying race, with Kaemmer proving that he can perform under pressure, nursing a damaged car home to a close, hard-won victory while under relentless attack. Johns put in a fast, consistent, and mistake-free drive in one of his best runs to date, while Hine's speed after her first-lap incident left the Eagle team - and fans - again wondering about what might have been.
Next, we move on to the scenic hills of upstate New York, where the picturesque Watkins Glen circuit can be expected to produce a vintage autumn Grand Prix.
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4 D. Kaemmer LOT 1:29.21