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Blan 2020 was a weird year in motorsports. Blanchet Motorsports had finished the abbreviated Canadian Touring Car Championship season with a mid-pack finish and feeling the need for speed they decided to go endurance racing by entering the 66th running of BEMC’s 3-Hour Late Summer Trophy Race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Partnering longtime Blanchet Motorsports driver Damon Sharpe was PWC Touring Champion, Michael Di Meo who last raced with the team in 2013. Considering that was where he took his first sports car win we are excited having Michael back with us. All the good vibes the team felt going into the race came to nought when Sharpe was involved in a huge accident at that started at Turn 8 and finished at Turn 9 during Friday practice. Heavy 36
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front end damage pretty well ruled the car out for the weekend but the team was more worried about Damon who required a trip to the Lakeridge Health in nearby Bowmanville. Sharpe was stabilized on arrival and the Lakeridge team liaised with one from St. Mike’s in Toronto. His injuries were pretty severe which was only to be expected considering the accident started at around 220 kph and finished at 0 kph. As they poked and prodded Damon the list of injuries grew, five broken ribs on his left side, with a wayward rib or two tearing into his left lung and collapsing it and finally a fractured T11 vertebrae. “Anyone who has broken a rib will tell you it is no fun” Sharpe said, “ I had five of them! I’m not a guy that likes Opioids to kill the pain so the first while in hospital was interesting to say the
