Press Releases - CMR team looks to the future with Thomas Anderson

CMR team looks to the future with Thomas Anderson

The Chris Morris Racing teams garage was a quiet and somber place just a few weeks ago. At the end of Season 15, promising young driver Chris Morris wrecked on the first lap, damaging the car so much that it had to be towed off the track. Witness's were stunned, when the driver was pulled from the vehicle and waved to the crowed, seemingly unharmed. This was not the case ... Chris was in extreme pain and put on a brave face for the crowd, further medical examinations brought about his immediate retirement from racing.

Not able to walk away from the track, his goals and dreams unfinished, Chris went for the next route. Team Management. Finding a new driver on such short notice before the start of Season 16 was daunting, a few drivers were interviewed but nothing promising emerged. Chris turned to the one thing that stands behind us all, family!

Thomas Anderson, Chris's 18 year old nephew was an avid go-kart racer, spending weekends down at the local indoor Indy track. He involved himself in casual racing, nothing too formal, certainly not some semi pro organized league. He was only 18 after all and when one spends all his time in school or at the track, he never had money to pay for further pursuit of his passion.

The fruitful moment came at the yearly clan get together for Canadian Thanksgiving, as Chris sat between his sister and nephew. The two had been bickering, mainly over Thomas's choice of music, he was thinking more of keeping them separate and quiet to enjoy his dinner than anything else. When The Tragically Hip's song, Blow at High Dough was playing and the chorus line of "I ain't no movie star, but I can get behind anything" came over the speaker, Thomas leaned in the Chris and whispered "So can I." Chris paused as he was passing a platter of steaming carved turkey breast and looked at his grinning nephew, who had no idea of how this would become a life changing event for the two of them.

Throwing caution to the wind, and keeping it a secret from his sister, Chris spirited Thomas out to the local track and turned some test laps with his nephew behind the wheel of his F3. A gamble of enormous proportions, putting a young driver with no large car experience, his nephew and without his Aunt's approval non the less! After a few near disastrous laps, Thomas acquainted himself well with the car and performed admirably, turning in times that would have place him middle of the field for the race the previous weekend at Cayuga speedway.

Of course Thomas mother was furious when she found out, after much yelling and many promises to his sister (all legally written down) to look out of the young man, Chris was able to get Thomas's signature as the new driver for CMR.