Thursday, November 06, 2008

With Grand-Am’s 2008 season now in the record books and 2009’s first race still months away, many people wonder what drivers do to fill the time in between. What most don’t realize is that before the dust from the finale race had time to settle, preparations for the 2009 season were underway.  While Grand-Am staff and race team personnel keep busy with all of the behind-the-scenes work necessary to keep the series running another year, drivers have their own agendas.  But although each of the Brumos drivers may have different plans, it seems they do have one thing in common - a full calendar!

During race season, #58 drivers David Donohue and Darren Law are rarely apart, having developed a strong friendship in their years driving as teammates.  The next few months will afford little time together, however. For David Donohue, the time before the new season provides his best opportunity to have surgery on a recurring shoulder problem. Having had one operation last year which failed to correct the injury, David will undergo a similar procedure in hopes of permanently repairing the problem.  Following a short family vacation and frenzied week of household projects, he underwent the surgery in mid-October. He now faces a six week recuperation period requiring total inactivity. Although this prevents his participation in the fall test days at Daytona, he expects to be back in top form for the Rolex 24. 

When asked abut plans for his time off, Darren Law laughed. “What time off?”, he asked. As a contender for the 2008 Porsche Cup, Darren didn’t slow down, still racing in his quest for points. He competed in the ALMS Petit Le Mans and Monterey finale races before traveling to Daytona for Brumos’ October testing.  Between his racing and some driver coaching duties, he has yet to enjoy any down time.  In fact, he feels his only chance to relax will likely be in December following Daytona test days.  His efforts have paid off, however, as he is currently shown in third place in the Porsche Cup standings, and still has a chance of moving up pending the final race results of the year.

As for the #59 drivers, Joao Barbosa is definitely not planning any extra travel. As a resident of Porto, Portugal, he spends much of his time during the season in airplanes and rental cars, with the extensive travel necessary to accommodate his busy schedule.  His off-time plan calls for some quality family time.  Being away so often this year, he finds the extra time with his family especially enjoyable.  Joao will still be packing his bags, however, as he returns for both the October and November test days at Daytona. He isn’t complaining, though, saying, “Testing is something I really enjoy, as it can better prepare me for 2009, and I think we have a really good shot at some great races again next year.”

J.C. France did convince his co-driver to postpone heading back to Portugal for a few days recently, as. J.C. took advantage of the off season time to treat some of his Brumos teammates to a deep sea fishing trip off the coast of St. Augustine.  The 2008 Trueman Sportsman Award winner was also in demand in other ways, having been invited to tape an interview with TruTV for an upcoming segment on one of their video reality shows. As for any other plans, J.C. has them on hold, waiting for the time he considers the true “off-season” - the weeks following the Rolex 24. “I’m not slowing down now”, he said. “We are preparing for what is really our Super Bowl or World Series event, the 24 Hours. We do things the opposite of most sports, by starting the season with our biggest event. For a lot of us, the 24 Hours feels more like the end of the season than the start of a new one.” In the weeks following that race, J.C. already has plans for heading out on his boat for an extended fishing trip.  For now, however, he is focused on preparing for the Rolex 24.

As the Brumos drivers are all taking different paths during this off-season, one thing is certain....their paths all lead back to Daytona for the kick-off of what should prove to be the most exciting season ever in Grand-Am’s Rolex Series history, and they are all ready to be in top contention for that long-awaited Brumos championship!

Posted on 11/06 at 12:24 PM

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