PLOVER, WI – Gabe Sommers racing had a busy Memorial Day weekend with a pair of starts in marquee Super Late Model events on Saturday and Monday. First up on the calendar was the Salute The Troops 100 at Jefferson Speedway with the ASA Midwest Tour.
A race that Gabe had historically run very well in, the crew was excited to get back to Jefferson and see what the No. 15 could do against the stars and cars of the ASA Midwest Tour. Two quick practice sessions kicked off the day’s festivities, with Gabe rounding out his track time with a fifth place effort of twenty five cars. Qualifying would quickly follow, with the No. 15 able to claim a 9th place spot on the leaderboard, just feeling slightly off, but with a positive mind on race pace.
Gabe would partake in the Odd Qualifier, rolling from fourth to second in the ten lap dash while gaining some valuable data for his team leading up to the feature. Due to an invert of nine, Gabe and the No. 15 would lead the field to green for the 100 lap feature. Making the most of the situation, he pulled away from the field by a couple car lengths before a caution slowed the field on the third circuit around the quarter mile bullring. Relining on the bottom of the front row, Sommers would lead the field back to green, but was unable to hold off a challenger heading into turn three, relinquishing the lead just before yet another caution came out, involving seven cars.
Heading back to green flag racing, Sommers would settle into second place, already feeling more on the snug side with heat cycles and wear combining with the platform of the setup. Keeping it green would have helped to mitigate the worsening feel of the car, but no such luck was to be had. Consistent cautions dotted the speedway, and with a tight racecar on his hands Gabe elected to stay bottom on restarts. Eventually he lost one more spot on restarts, sliding to third before getting a long run going. The No. 15 would stay there for almost forty laps, fending off challenges from multiple drivers before contact with just five laps to go sent Sommers down the running order once more, coming home after one hundred laps with a P4 finish.
After a semi successful Saturday night, GSR would turn their attention to Golden Sands Speedway for a Memorial Day special, the Dick Trickle 99. Happy to be back at his hometrack, Gabe quickly got back in his rhythm and scooted to the top of the charts in practice, almost a full tenth faster than the rest of the field. The trend continues into the scuff session, and qualifying was now next on the docket. Sommers would rattle off a 12.350 second lap, missing quick time by just 0.023.
With rain in the forecast, the program moved at a quick clip, and heat races were soon checked off the schedule with a third place effort for the No. 15 after starting from the outside of the second row. Gabe would roll off from the seventh spot in the feature, racing the track, weather, and his competitors simultaneously. With a tight field, passing was slow and wheel to wheel racing was on full display in the Dick Trickle 99. Sommers would climb up one position early, while fending off attackers from all corners as they themselves tried to move up the order. The No. 15 would comfortably manage a gap to the next car for the next ten laps before disaster took over on the 28th lap. Mechanical gremlins struck down the GSR team in the middle of their strides up the leaderboard, forcing Gabe to park the car prematurely. As luck would have it, rain ground the field to a halt just three laps later, forcing the end of the racing program. GSR would come home in the 12th position after the calamity.
As the team heads back to the shop to unpack and diagnose what went wrong on their No. 15 Ford, we will look ahead to the next event on the schedule, Dells Raceway Park’s version of the Trickle 99 with the Alive for 5 Super Late Model Series on June 1. Time Trials will begin at 4:30, with Racing to follow at 6, and the option to watch a live broadcast via Pit Row TV.