Rolex Grand-Am series star and Muscle Milk extreme athlete, Memo
Gidley, headed into this past weekend’s two-day Jet Effect race with
three wins so far this year and standing in second place in the
championship points tally. However, after an overall win and nearly
dominating performance this past weekend in round #8 of the 2009 DJSA
Outlaw PWC Series Race, Memo now finds himself sitting with a
sixty-point lead with three rounds left to run.
August 20th, 2009 (Copperopolis, CA) – Rolex Grand-Am series star and Muscle Milk extreme athlete, Memo Gidley, headed into this past weekend’s two-day Jet Effect race with three wins so far this year and standing in second place in the championship points tally. However, after an overall win and nearly dominating performance this past weekend in round #8 of the 2009 DJSA Outlaw PWC Series Race, Memo now finds himself sitting with a sixty-point lead with three rounds left to run.
“It was a huge weekend for me and the championship points standings,” said Gidley. “I have had a great season so far, but have also missed a couple of races because of my conflicting schedule racing the #77 McDonald’s Daytona Prototype. I knew that getting a win this weekend, especially since this was a big Jet Effect weekend and paying double points, would really help me close that gap to first.”
This weekends Jet Effect weekend was a three race format for the day with points given for each finish and the best total giving the overall for the day. Although it appears a dominating weekend, Gidley did have problems.
Memo did win the first two races, and was on his way to winning the third race when a huge high speed crash sent a safety boat to his aid. “We just had the start and I was blasting down the straightaway for the first time when out of nowhere a wave launched me into the air,” said Gidley. “The launching wasn’t the problem, but the landing was! Seeing the wave last minute I pinned the throttle and was thinking to myself, I got this… I got this and then bam… I slammed into the ski and then the water at about fifty MPH!”
Gidley was so far away from his ski that the safety boat had to pick him up and take him back over to his drifting ride. “I was so disappointed at that point but more concerned with getting back on my ski to try to salvage a good finish,” said Gidley. “The good thing about the quick twenty second ride back over to my ski, I did have time to put back on my glove and boot that had been blown off in the crash!”
Gidley did stay on the lead lap and worked his way back up to sixth with enough points to take the overall. “I was completely surprised and so happy that I won the overall,” said Gidley. “I really do want to thank the great safety team that picked me out of the water, and my competitors that had the sense to not run over me while I was sitting there floating. It was an awesome weekend and I can’t wait for the next race!”
Memo Gidley currently drives for the #77 McDonald’s Daytona Prototype in the Rolex Grand-Am Series for Doran Racing. The next race is the Montreal 200 in Montreal, Canada, August 28-29th. You can catch all the action August 29th on SPEED Channel at 2pm.