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Grand Am
ROLEX 24: Todd Lamb’s Rookie Report
Ten years ago I was pursuing my dream in the automotive industry as a mechanical engineer working on safety equipment. Today, I'll race in my first I'm Rolex 24. Life is amazing.
Todd Lamb  | http://www.toddlamb.com  |  Posted January 30, 2010   Daytona Beach, FL
Todd Lamb (L) and Jordan Taylor (R). If you've ever wondered what it would be like to give up your day job to pursue a career as a professional racing driver, Todd Lamb is a shining example of just how far you can go. (Todd Lamb)
This is an exciting time in my life. Ten years ago I was pursuing my dream in the automotive industry as a mechanical engineer working on safety equipment. Five years ago I was pursuing my entrepreneurial dream as a successful magazine publisher. Now I’m pursuing the dream of every boy who ever laid his hands on a Hotwheels car – I drive racecars for a living.

While it may seem like an overnight success, the truth is that I took the long way to get here. I began racing karts when I was ten, sharing the track with some people who took a more direct path to the upper levels of racing: Andy Lally, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Sam Hornish, Sarah Fisher, and many others. I scraped together enough money to race in the Skip Barber school series for a few years but then “retired” from racing and engineering to start my publishing company. My racing career was put on hold due to a lack of both time and funding, but I lived vicariously through the kart racers that were making names for themselves in the big leagues.

It was during that time, publishing both a car magazine and a motorcycle magazine, that I was first introduced to the racing world of Mazda. As a media writer I was given the opportunity to race as a guest of Mazda in an MX-5 Cup race at Mosport. That was one of those defining moments in life that turned me back towards the pursuit of a racing career, and just as importantly, cultivated my relationship with Mazda.

And so it began again. In 2007 I did some research and found that in club racing in the Southeast, Spec Miata was the most popular and competitive class. It seemed like a great way to hone my rusty racing skills, so I had Jim Drago at East Street Auto build me a car and had OPM Autosports campaign it for me at tracks around Atlanta. We decided to run for a national championship that first year, and much to my surprise it was a goal we accomplished two years in a row.

As part of the MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development Ladder, I was invited to the MX-5 Cup Shootout. Both years I was oh so close to winning the shootout, which would have put me on the fast track by being rewarded with a ride in the Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup series. But as I said, I took the long way to get here. It was disappointing not to win the shootout, but it was again one of those defining moments that strengthened my resolve to be part of the Mazda family.

In 2009, while already committed to running a full season with Kinetic Motorsports in Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge with my friend and co-driver Glenn Bocchino, I had a discussion with Jason Hoover of Atlanta Motorsports Group about running with his team for the MX-5 Cup season. It sounded like a great opportunity to get back on the MAZDASPEED ladder, as the winner of the series was rewarded with a Mazda ride in a higher series. But there was one problem: the first race of the MX-5 Cup season at my home track of Road Atlanta conflicted with the Continental Challenge schedule. It was a race I would have to miss.

Fortunately, the MX-5 Cup rules included a provision for dropping a driver’s worst race from their points total, so I was able to recover in the points by winning 8 races in a row to secure the 2009 Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup championship - another defining moment. After a slight restructuring of the MAZDASPEED ladder, Mazda and I were able to make arrangements for me to make the natural progression in Grand Am competition from the GS class to Rolex GT.
Lamb will wield the #30 Racer's Edge Mazda RX-8 Rolex GT car in the Rolex 24 and all season. Follow his progress throughout the year in his columns on SPEEDtv.com. (John Dagys)

Which brings us to 2010: I am running the full season in Rolex GT with Racers Edge Motorsports, co-driving with Jordan Taylor. Jordan is the son of Wayne Taylor and, despite being just 18, is a very mature driver with a solid future ahead of him in racing. We worked well together in testing and it should be a great driver combination for the season.

Jordan and I are paired with Glenn Bocchino, John Edwards, and Jade Buford in today’s Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. It is my first time in the Rolex 24, but with the experience of Jon Mirachi and the rest of the Racers Edge crew we’re expecting a solid performance. Who knows, it may just be another defining moment for all of us.

You can follow our live progress at www.twitter.com/toddspeed

But enough about me – what I want to know is what YOU the fans want me to write about. I have some topics in mind, as an engineer, about discussing some of the technology behind the scenes – data analysis, suspension, cooling, etc. Tell me what you want to hear about, and I’ll see if I can make it happen. Email your suggestions to .

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEEDtv.com, SPEED, FOX, or NewsCorp.

Watch the 39th Annual Rolex 24 at Daytona on SPEED™!
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Todd Lamb

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