AUGUST 10, 2015 - DAKOTA IS SELECTED TO THE FIRST ROUND OF INTERVIEWS FOR THE TEAM USA SCHOLARSHIP.

Elkhart Lake, Wis. (August 7, 2015) – A dozen young American drivers representing a variety of junior categories have been chosen as candidates for this year’s prestigious Team USA Scholarships. The selection process will continue during this weekend’s IMSA Continental Tire Road Racing Showcase event at Road America where each of the contenders will have an opportunity to meet and by interviewed by influential personalities from the auto racing industry. Six finalists will progress to a shootout in early September at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana,Calif., hosted by Allen Berg Racing Schools and Cooper Tire.

Ultimately, two winners will be invited to represent the scholarship and their nation at the traditional end-of-season Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch and the Walter Hayes Trophy at Silverstone in England. Last year’s Walter Hayes event (named after the founder of Formula Ford which, in its 48th year, remains as the most productive feeder category of all) attracted almost 120 drivers from around the world. The Team USA Scholarship, which celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2015, is made possible by contributions from a broad spectrum of companies and individuals

AUGUST 10, 2015 - SKIP BARBER SUMMER SERIES AT MIAMI HOMESTEAD

Dakota scores two poles and two fastest laps at Miami Homestead to retrain his 3rd place in the drivers championship.

The schedule for Miami Homestead was compacted and hectic due to the requirement that Dakota had to leave early to make the trip the Road America for the Team USA interviews. Homestead presented some major challenges as it used 1/2 of the NASCAR oval which lead to the need for a drafting partner and a car with the horsepower to pull you around the high banked oval. Dakota would find himself qualifying and racing all in one day. Dakota was able to find clean air and put his car on pole for both races but quickly found himself running alone in the race which relegated him to a 4th place in both main events. Three (3) bonus points for both pole and fastest lap added 12 points to maintain his third place position in the drivers championship.

AUGUST 7, 2015 - DAKOTA IS NOMINATED TO THE FIRST ROUND OF THE TEAM USA SCHOLARSHIP

Dakota will travel to Road America to visit with teams from the IMSA Tudor series and be interviewed in the first round of the 2015 Team USA Scholarship

JULY 11, 2015 - SKIP BARBER SUMMER SERIES RACE AT ROAD AMERICA

Dakota finishes Road America with some challenging results but remains 3rd in the drivers championship.
Wednesday's Results: Road America presented more challenges than expected. With the layout being a major horsepower track, car performance was key to a strong result. Working with a draft partner was also key to remain in front. Dakota qualified P2 and started on the outside of row one. A poor start saw Dakota fall back a couple of spots at the start of the race and he was quickly dropped by the main group. The car seemed to struggle with overall power and the lack of a drafting partner resulted in a 5th place finish, the lowest finishing positon for the year.
 
Thursday's Results: For the second day in a row Dakota was able to take a struggling car and place it in P2 just in front of competitor Ben Waddel. At the drop of the green flag Dakota slotted into P3 after turn 3. The race remained in that order with Ben Waddel moving into P2. Dakota and Ben tried to draft their way up to Tim Reiger in P1 but the two of them together could not catch Timo. Dakota's car was struggling up the hill leading to the start finish line and Ben had to wait for Dakota's car to regroup each lap. The strategy proved to be an impossible attempt and Dakota crossed the line in P3 maintaining an impressive 5 podiums in 6 races. The competition moves to Miami Homestead in August to race under the lights in August.

JUNE 23, 2015 - SKIP BARBER SUMMER SERIES RACE AT LIME ROCK

Dakota Dominates with Two Poles, Two Wins, and Fastest Lap at Lime Rock.
Saturday's Update: Round 2 of the Skip Barber Formula 2000 Summer Series headed to the challenging 1 mile course at Lime Rock. Dakota came into Lime Rock 9 points down on the drivers’ championship. Excited to be at a track that requires technical race craft, Dakota trained hard putting in 20+ hours of simulation and data analysis. Saturday’s qualifying was dominated by Dakota who put his Skip Barber Formula 2000 on the pole for the 3rd straight time this season. Race 1 was a fierce battle with lead changes that put Dakota as far back as 4th at times. In the middle of the race Dakota retook the lead and held off a charging P2 by defending his line on the white flag lap into turn 1 which ended with P2 running off track giving Dakota a solid 1st place finish, his 1st of the season.
 
Sunday's Update: Qualifying for day 2 was actually conducted on Saturday after race 1. Still recovering from the morning’s hard fought win, Dakota had to jump back into the car and qualify for Sunday. Within a few laps Dakota had secured yet another pole position extending his streak to 4 straight. At the drop of the green flag in race 2, Dakota took a solid lead right from the start and led every lap of the race bringing home his 2nd win at Lime Rock as well as fastest lap. At the conclusion of the weekend’s races Dakota had gathered up an additional 9 points from 2 pole positions and a fastest lap reducing his gap in the drivers’ championship to 6 points. The 2015 Summer Series is gearing up to be one of the most competitive seasons in many years. The series now moves to the historic Road America Raceway in Wisconsin on July 8th and 9th.