Last weekend's Baltimore Grand Prix was a big learning experience for me. Other than adjusting my car set up and driving style to fit the streets of Baltimore, I had to learn to manage my frustration. My Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda race car took to the bumpy streets pretty well but losing my front wing on the first turn of the first race and then tagging the wall in the second race was the frustrating part. But it's all good because I learned a lot.

In the first race I qualified 15th and finished 14th, but I didn't move up just one spot, I had to move up 15! At the start of the race, going into turn one I was hit by another car and lost my front wing. I had to go to the pits to get a new one put on and when I reentered the track I was at the back of the pack, 29th. A bit frustrating, but I took it in stride and made my best attempt the move up the field. It was a really good learning experience to pass 15 cars on my way to the 14th place finish.

In the second race we took the grid based on lap times, so I started 13th and ended the race 25th. I was running good in the start of the race and was up to 10th position but then I tagged the wall that ended my race. I made a mistake coming out the chicane, which leaves no room for error, and hit the wall over the railroad tracks. Again, frustrating because I was having a good race, but I learned a lot and will take this experience on and use it to become a better racer.

Before the racing started I had a wonderful opportunity to make a sponsor appearance for Coloplast at Baltimore's Inner Harbor. We had my racecar on display and I got to meet some very nice people and talk to them about my experiences and how I haven't let my spinal cord injury change my dreams. I hope sharing my story positively effects or helps other people who are facing health challenges.

I also did several interviews with local media. I really enjoy doing these interviews.  

Here's the link to The Baltimore Sun piece:

Baltimore Sun 

This is from WBAL TV11:

WBAL TV NBC 

Now I move on to Virginia International Raceway. I just returned home from testing there this past weekend and our last two races of the season will be there this coming weekend. I'm glad I had a chance to test there as I got a lot of stuff figured out on the car. I used a similar set up to Road America since it is a similar track to VIR and was able to use some data as well, so I'm ahead of the game. I was able to get comfortable in the car on the 4.2 mile track. I actually have raced at VIR in three different disciplines, motorcycles, karts and Skip Barber formula cars, so I'm looking forward to this challenging track with super high speed corners and low speed finesse turns in the USF2000 car.
 
The last race weekend of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda is this weekend at Virginia International Raceway - 14-15 September.

Please follow me on Facebook@michaeljohnsonracing, Twitter @racer54iscool , Instagram @johnsonracing54 and my website MichaelJohnsonRacing.com. Your support means a lot to me!

I'll report back again after VIR, until then, keep smiling and be happy!!

All the best,
Michael