Invitation Only Test Proves to be a Stepping Stone for Owens HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (July 30, 2010) - Alli Owens has taken another stride in her career path towards racing’s top series. Owens completed a two-day test session with Roush Fenway Racing at Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway, turning fast laps at the one-mile oval and the short track among seven participants.

Owens, along with six other drivers, was invited to test with the Roush Fenway Racing R&D team on July 27 and 28 at Rockingham Speedway. The participants were tested on all aspects of a driver’s responsibilities, which included on-track and off-track undertakings.

A NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford Fusion housing a Nationwide Series engine was supplied by Roush Fenway Racing for the drivers to use throughout the session. Drivers Matt Kenseth and David Ragan, along with Roush Fenway Racing crew and management, were on-hand to help assess the up-and-coming talent. Drivers were gauged on their lap times, consistency, car handling diagnosis and team communication.

“It’s one thing to be invited to something like this, but another if you pay attention and take this opportunity as a tremendous learning experience,” Owens expressed.  ”It seemed like I learned a world of knowledge about NASCAR Sprint Cup racing.  I gave it 110% during the two days and I’m thankful for the opportunity.”

Owens showed her potential to reach the next level while piloting the Ford in a structured test session at the half-mile oval track known as Little Rock and the one-mile Rockingham Speedway.

In addition to driving duties, Owens and the other drivers were tested in a variety of media settings. They were scored on their ability to represent a sponsor and communicate their message.

“I am so impressed with the entire Roush Fenway Racing organization,” said Owens.  ”It was an honor to be invited and participate in the test. They are very careful in selecting who represents them, on and off the track, and I’m thrilled that I had the chance to work with them.

“I learned so much at the test.  The data acquisition was incredible.  It was amazing to see how detailed the information was and how the crew interpreted it.  The entire team was fantastic to work with. They were extremely professional and very talented.  I feel like I left the track a better driver than when I arrived, thanks to them.”  

Owens currently pilots the No. 15 ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet fielded by Venturini Motorsports in the ARCA Series. She raced Quarter Midgets, Mini Stock and Late Model series before graduating to the ARCA Sries in 2008.

(August 2, 2010) Liz Halliday enjoyed her first ever outing at the annual Silverstone Classic last weekend, where she competed with two historic Alfa Romeos to celebrate the iconic Italian manufacturer’s 100th anniversary.

The California-born dual-sportswoman raced a rare Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ Coda Tronca in the prestigious Royal Automobile Club Tourist Trophy and Italian Historic Car Cup and an Alfa Romeo GTA in the Under-2 Litre Touring Car (U2TC) event.

The cars, both run by preparation experts John Danby Racing, ran without problems in all three races and Halliday, who last raced an historic car more than ten years ago, thoroughly enjoyed her return to the discipline.

“It was a fantastic experience and completely different from the modern sportscar racing I’m used to,” Liz said. “The Silverstone Classic was brilliantly organised and there was a fantastic atmosphere in the paddock among all the drivers and the fans.

“There tends to be a big difference between the cars on the grid, so we weren’t that competitive in terms of overall results, but it was great fun racing the two Alfas.”

Halliday got the chance to bring home a trophy by virtue of the SZ winning the GT1 class of the Italian Historic Car Cup and admitted that the experience has left her wanting to experience more classic motorsport.

“I’d love to come back to the Silverstone Classic and the weekend has got me looking forward to the Goodwood Revival later in the year. I’m also going to race the GTA at the Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park and I’d like to do more events in the future too.

“I’d like to say a big thank you to all the guys at John Danby Racing. Until practice on Friday, the GTA hadn’t turned a wheel on road or track for about ten years, but it ran faultlessly on Saturday which shows what a great job they did preparing it for the race.

“I’d also like to thank a number of my sponsors and supporters – Immunall for helping to keep me alert and 100% through out the weekend, and Performance Drink for keeping me focused and at the top of my game for all three of the hour-long races! 

“Thank you also to FreeM for providing me with a fantastic new race suit, and who continue to make the best custom suit around!

“I also trialled a new cool vest this weekend – Body Chill – and I do highly recommend this to anyone who is racing in hot conditions. Even after just having the vest in the fridge it stayed cold for quite a while and was comfortable to wear under my suit. 

“My final thank you is to Cyclo-Ssage, who provided the hospitality area with their amazing portable pulse massage beds. I give them credit for keeping me pain free and physically 100% for all of my long races, and I think this is an essential item for any race teams and drivers who are serious about their results!”

At the weekend, Halliday returned to her other sporting career as she competed with a number of her horses at the Little Mattingley and Wilton Horse Trials.

For more information on Liz Halliday, please visit www.lizhalliday.com.

ENDS.  

LIZ HALLIDAY MEDIA ENQUIRIES to Andy Wilkinson at Pole Ltd:
Email:  andy@pole.uk.com   
Tel: +44 (0)20 8605 9797
Web:  www.pole.uk.com

(July 5, 2010) Megan Reitenour started her Fourth of July holiday weekend with a bang, winning the Firecracker 150 at Tri-County Motor Speedway on Friday night. Reitenour led 78 laps en route to her first career late model win.

“I just want to thank my team, our sponsor, AirTight Mechanical, and everyone involved with Revolution Racing and the Drive for Diversity program for making this possible,” said Reitenour. “It’s been a long time coming and I’m glad I finally got that win.”

Reitenour qualified second for the Firecracker 150 in the No. 5 AirTight Late Model, but dropped to third early in the race. She settled into third, exercising patience early in the 150 lap race. At lap 72, her patience paid off when the race leaders made contact and spun out, leaving Reitenour to inherit the lead.

Reitenour took advantage of the situation, holding onto the lead at the restart and driving away from the field. The final caution of the race came out at lap 116, and Reitenour was again able to pull ahead on the restart. She continued to increase her lead and took the checkered flag with a straightaway lead over second-place finisher R.A. Brown.

“Megan did a great job tonight saving her stuff for the end,” said Danny Johnson, crew chief of the No. 5 car. “She knew she needed to be patient early on to be there at the end and she did an awesome job of that tonight. This was a great night for Revolution Racing and the No. 5 team.”

Reitenour, who earned rookie of the year honors at Tri-County Motor Speedway in 2009, has one win, two top fives and four top 10s in 11 races this season. She has been splitting her time this season between Tri-County Motor Speedway and Hickory Motor Speedway.

Reitenour’s next scheduled race is a 100-lap event at Hickory Motor Speedway on July 17.

June 6, 2010 ( Atlanta, GA ) Sheryl Greene, founder of the Helle’ Nice Foundation, announced today the posting of an E-Bay art auction to be held June 6-15, 2010, in an effort to raise funds in support of the Foundation’s efforts to place a marker on the gravesite of women racecar driver, Helle’ Nice. Sheryl’s goal is to raise $5,000 to fund the placard in a ceremony to be held September 4, 2010 in Helle’s hometown in France.

Visit the Art Auction

The Helle Nice Foundation, Inc was formed in mid 2008 to honor the female pioneers of auto racing, as well as to provide funding for young women to help offset the costs of getting started in a career in motorsports.The Helle Nice Foundation, Inc. is looking for donors and corporate sponsors with an interest in recognizing the women pioneers of racing, as well as promoting global gender equality in motorsports.The foundation is named for the French female racing legend, Helle Nice, who was the Fastest Woman in World in 1930, and holds records still standing today. Ms. Nice drove for Bugatti, as well as Renault. She died in 1984, in obscurity. Her memory was brought from the shadows in 2004, with an enlightening book entitled “The Bugatti Queen, In Search of a French Racing Legend”, by Miranda Seymour, (www.mirandaseymour.com) published by Simon and Schuster in the UK, and Random House in the US.The current and most timely project is to provide a grave marker for Ms. Nice. This year marks the 25th anniversary of her death, and it is the intention of the Foundation to officially mark her final resting place, in tribute to a woman who dedicated her adult life to auto racing, in a sport with very few women. The plan is to have the grave marker placed at her gravesite outside Paris, France, on the date of her death.The capitol campaign proposed project is to build the first sculpture park to honor the women pioneers in racing. This park will feature life size bronze sculptures of these women, with plaques noting their accomplishments and contributions to the sport. The proposed location of the park is yet to be determined, although location at a racetrack or motor museum would be deemed an appropriate venue.

For more information, please contact:
The Helle Nice Foundation, Inc.
Sheryl A. Greene
Email: hellenicefoundation@gmail.com
404-429-9600

For Immediate Release:

Munroe Falls, OH – Amy Ruman captured her first win of the season at the SCCA GT-1 National Race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this past weekend.

After two wet qualifying sessions on Saturday, Ruman qualified the #23 McNichols Co./Goodyear/Cenweld Chevrolet Corvette in 3rd position in class, and 6th overall on the grid. Fortunately, the weather turned around and it was sunny and 80 degrees on Sunday for the 19 lap – 45.6 mile race.

Although Ruman started further back in the field than she had hoped, her sights were set on moving to the front quickly, and that she did. By turn seven on lap one, she was in 2nd place behind the pole sitter Ryan McManus. The two were nose to tail the first lap. On lap two she had a good run coming out of the key hole, which set her up for a pass on McManus at the end of the straightaway heading into turn seven. McManus settled in behind her and the two continued to run close together. On lap seven, McManus passed Ruman into turn seven but was a bit hot and Ruman immediately passed him back coming out of the turn going up the hill. The two worked through the traffic and their positions did not change for the remainder of the race as Ruman led laps 2-19 and took the checkered flag in first place with McManus finishing in 2nd and Dick Greer in 3rd. Ruman also locked in the fastest race lap at a 1:26.640, setting a new GT-1 track record at Mid-Ohio.

“I am really glad the #23 machine came out on top this weekend! I was disappointed after qualifying, but I knew it was the race that would count,” commented Ruman. “The team got the new 358 motor running well and the car felt good. Ryan (McManus) and I had a great race going, and I knew he would be tough to beat.”

The team will be fielding two cars in the upcoming SCCA National race this weekend at home town track Nelson’s Ledges Road Course, OH. Niki Ruman will be running in her first race of the season in Spec Racer and Amy will be running in GT-1.

Ruman’s sponsor, McNichols Co., is headquartered in Tampa, FL, and is the largest U.S. distributor of “Hole” products with service centers across North America. McNichols’ product selection is the most diverse in the industry. McNichols stocks perforated products, both metal and plastic. A toll free number 800-237-3820 connects you to the McNichols Co. distributor in your area and the company’s extensive website, www.mcnichols.com, has online customer service and online ordering.

For quick news and updates during race weekends, please follow Ruman Racing online:

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UPCOMING RACES:
May 29-30 – SCCA GT-1 and SRF National at Nelson’s Ledges Road Course, OH
June 19-20 – Trans-Am Round 4 at Road America, WI

Contact: Amy Ruman 330.813.2323 cell

After a busy weekend of traveling to and from New Jersey two times in 4 days and missing both practice runs on Saturday (due to a prior family commitment), Ruman qualified for the race in 6th place in the 17-car combined class grid, Trans-Am and Trans-am Vintage, for the 40-lap, 90-mile race on Sunday afternoon.

It was a sunny, but windy 60 degree race day.  Ruman took the green and was off to battle with Simon Gregg.  Ruman passed Gregg on lap 3 and started closing in on 4^th place car Daniel Ramoutarsingh.  On lap 13 Ruman got loose coming out of turn 4, and did a ½ spin allowing Joey Scarallo to get by.  Ruman went to work and closed the gap and the two battled it out.  Ruman passed Scarallo three laps later on lap 16, moving her back into 5^th place.  A full course caution came out on lap 25 for debris and bunched the field up.  After the lap 27 restart, Ruman felt she had a shot at fourth again, but was unable to pass Ramoutarsingh to get it done.  Drissi scored the NJMP win followed by RJ Lopez in 2^nd, Tony Ave in 3^rd, Daniel Ramoutarsingh in 4^th, and Ruman in 5^th.

“I am pleased with my finish this weekend,” stated Ruman.  “I knew it was going to be a bit hectic going into the weekend, but I knew I could handle it.  Since this was my first time at NJMP, I focused on quickly learning the track and car set-up. With such little track time, I think we did really well by starting the year off in the top five.  I liked running on the Thunderbolt course.”

This was Ruman’s fifth top five finish in her Trans-Am career.  The team is working diligently to prepare the car for some upcoming races at the end of May.  Ruman is currently in 5^th place in the SCCA Pro Racing Trans-Am Championship points standings.

For quick news and updates during race weekends, please follow Ruman Racing online

(30 April 2010) Sportscar racer Liz Halliday will make her long awaited return to racing when she appears on track at the Monza Coppa Intereuropa and the Silverstone Classic this summer at the wheel of a rare Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ Coda Tronca owned by her father, Don.
 
Halliday, the most successful female driver in American Le Mans Series history and the only woman to compete at the Le Mans 24 Hours in  2006 and 2007, hasn’t raced since appearing with Creation AIM at the Nurburgring 1000k LMS race, and the Petit Le Mans and Laguna Seca ALMS races at the end of the 2008 season.
 
Instead, the California-born, British-based dual sportswoman has concentrated her efforts on a burgeoning career as an international 3-day eventer which has seen her register a succession of strong results in top-level competition across Europe.
 
Halliday’s return to the race track marks a temporary departure from her sportscar racing experience as she races the rare Alfa Romeo for the first time.
 
The Coda Tronca, which has been prepared for Monza and Silverstone by race car specialist John Danby Racing, is a “cropped tail” version of the Giulietta SZ designed as an evolution of the original 1960 Round Tail version. It is one of just 29 of its type to be produced and is thought to be the last ever made. The car was built from a Chilean-owned pre-existing Giulietta SS by Alfa specialists Zagato and was completed in 1962. It has been restored to FIA Appendix K competition specification.
 
“It’s the car that my dad always wanted to race but sadly never had the chance to because of ill health, so I am very much doing these races for him,” Halliday explained.
 
“I’ve only ever driven it once and that was just up and down a disused airfield about 10 years ago, but the guys at John Danby Racing have been working hard on the car and I can’t wait to get behind the wheel on a real track.”
 
“I haven’t driven a historic car since I first began racing in a Datsun 510 in the late 1990s, but I had a few wins racing that, so while the Alfa might take a little getting used to, it will be fantastic to be in a historic car again.”
 
Halliday is already entered into the Coppa Intereuropa at Monza on 5-6 June and the Silverstone Classic on 23-25 July. She will test the car for the first time at the Silverstone Classic media day on 5 May.
 
“Monza is one of my Dad’s all time favourite circuits so it seems fitting that I will make my racing debut in his car at that track. The Silverstone Classic is an event that is growing all the time and brings together some of the best historic cars around, so it will be a great opportunity to show case the car at home in England.” said Halliday.

For more information on Liz Halliday, please visit www.lizhalliday.com.

(Alton, VA, April 26, 2010) The 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Series kicked off its season with its two opening rounds at the VIRginia International Raceway on April 23-25. Justine Jackson, rookie driver in the #40 Project Podium sponsored car had a great weekend finishing 21^st and 19^th in Races 1 and 2 respectively. But it wasn’t the results that made her weekend a great one.  

The 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Series marked the first time that Justine would race in a car having had 6 & ½ years of Karting experience. It all began on Thursday when Justine and her dad, Andrew arrived at the track early to get properly seated in her car and later on a track walk with driving instructors Jan Heylen, Andy Lee, Ryan Arciero and Mark Miller with on track action starting at 8 am Friday morning. In practice 1 Justine ended the session 14 seconds off of the pace but with further analysis of her data with the driving instructors and more seat time, by the end of race 2 Justine was 2.5 seconds off of the fastest lap of the race!

Race 1 was a good race for Justine. Despite running around the back, she was able to show why she loves to race and why she’s in this series having fought back and forth with guest driver Tony Swan and huge race veteran. Race 2 was a bit of a disappointment. Justine got off to a great start and picked up 2 places going into turn 1 but was unintentionally tapped on the rear bumper and spun. Returning to the track she spun again, forgetting that her tires had dirt on them. She would lose 23 seconds to those ahead. Despite a bad first lap Justine kept her head down and fought her way back up, making up those 23 seconds finishing a respectable 19^th place.

Justine had this to say:

“What a great weekend! Despite some disappointing results I had so much fun this weekend, the most I’ve had racing in a long time. My goal for the weekend was to get comfortable in the car and to gain as much seat time as possible and that’s exactly what I did. And it showed in my improvement in my lap times and confidence on track. It was so awesome getting to work with all the other drivers and the driving instructors who were so willing to help out! This race weekend was not only my first race in a car but my first race in the United States along with several other series. I was especially excited to see the Rolex Sports Car Series. I learnt so much throughout the weekend and there are so many great people involved in the series and I feel so blessed to be apart of it! A big thank you to my sponsors Project Podium and its partners, Jetcon Corporation, and the wonderful support of the Helle Nice Foundation. I could never have done this without my Heavenly Father and I’m so grateful for such a great opportunity. I’m really looking forward to Round 3 at The New Jersey Motorsports Park and I can’t wait to get on track and continue to learn more and move up in the pack!”