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<body> <Table Width="550" border="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" cellpadding="0"><TR><TD Width="35"><IMG SRC="//www.totalmotorsport.com/images/spacer.gif" WIDTH="35" HEIGHT="1"></td><td> <CENTER><Table border="0" width="100%"> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="5">GRAND AMERICAN ROAD RACING ASSOCIATION</FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="left"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="2">21/06/2004</FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="4">Sheehan Goes From 27th To 1st </FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><B><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="3">Retires After Re-Start Incident</FONT></B></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="center"><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="1">  </FONT></TD></TR> <TR><TD width="100%" align="left"><FONT FACE="Tahoma" SIZE="2"><B>Sheehan Goes From 27th To 1st </B><BR> <BR> <B>Retires After Re-Start Incident</B><BR> <BR> Gary Sheehan came into the week hopeful of following up on his lap-record-setting debut in last month’s Mont-Tremblant race, with a strong result in Saturday’s Glen 250. In the early laps of the race it looked as though this could indeed be the case, as Sheehan quickly found himself leading the race despite a starting position deep in the field.<BR> <BR> Having endured mechanical problems throughout earlier practice and qualifying, the former US Touring Car Championship driver started the No.4 Audi S4 of Istook-Aines Motorsports in 27th position, near the rear of the twenty-nine-car GS grid, (54 cars in all including ST class). Undaunted by such a poor starting position, Sheehan in what might be described as an extended hole-shot cleanly knifed his way through the pack and into the race lead by lap eleven, despite full-course yellows on laps seven and eight. It was quite a charge, and began right from the gun: By lap two he was in 18th place; 15th on lap three; 8th on lap six; 3rd on lap ten, and into the race lead by lap eleven. It was not to last.<BR> <BR> A second full-course yellow was displayed on lap eleven, lasting three laps. On the lap thirteen re-start, the third-place No.09 BMW M3 driven by Jep Thornton, took a run at the leading Sheehan, pulling along side heading into the “Heel of the Boot”. The battle for the position continued through the apex, both drivers racing cleanly and without contact, side by side. Coming out of the turn however, a perhaps overanxious Thornton, with a nose ahead on the inside, attempted to secure the pass by tracking hard to the outside of the turn’s exit and into Sheehan’s right front. The two cars made heavy contact, both spinning off course at high speed, through the foam safety barrier (which spectacularly “exploded”), and into the guardrail. It was a hard hit, but fortunately neither driver was injured. Both cars were badly damaged and unable to continue. A review of the incident by race officials, using footage from various cameras and angles, cleared Sheehan of any wrongdoing.<BR> <BR> “Of course I’m very disappointed”, Sheehan said. “I had very high expectations for the race after sorting out the mechanical issues we had during qualifying. The car was handling so well right from the start, especially under braking, and I was surprised how quickly we were able to move up through the field.” When asked about the re-start incident with Thornton, Sheehan said, “I thought we were going to get through there cleanly. I gave him a lot of room; he had a nose on me on the inside, and it looked like he would just continue on the inside line as we exited the turn. I don’t know if he thought he was past me, but he came across me hard and that was it. I’m just glad we are both ok. I feel bad for the team, as the car is in bad shape. We’ll just have to shake it off and move on.”<BR> <BR> Sheehan’s co-driver Anders Hainer unfortunately did not get a stint in the car due to the early retirement. The caution-filled race was eventually won by the No.44 Porsche 996 driven by Craig Stanton and David Murray.<BR> <BR> </FONT></TD></TR> </TABLE><BR> </CENTER> <BR><CENTER><font size="1" color="#808080" face="Tahoma">Copyright ©2000-©2023 TotalMotorSport</font></CENTER> </td> </tr> </table> </body>