DERHAAG MOTORSPORTS RETURNS TO DAYTONA WITH A VENGEANCE IN GRAND AMERICAN ROLEX SPORTS CAR SERIES

Courtesy Christy Moynihan, Derhaag Motorsports

SHAKOPEE, MN (December 29, 2005) -–Derhaag Motorsports has announced its full time entry into the Daytona Prototype category of the Grand American Rolex Sports Car Series Association. No stranger to the series, having qualified on the GTS pole for the 2003 Rolex 24 at Daytona, the team has signed top drivers Chris Bingham and Randy Ruhlman to drive the #40 Preformed Line Products Pontiac Riley. The team has added racecar engineer Buddy Fey and has slated top Chevrolet factory driver Ron Fellows to complete the driver lineup for the longer races.

"I am thrilled to have the whole team returning this year, with some excellent additions,” says team owner Jim Derhaag. “Last year, everything jelled. The crew worked hard, Randy won races; things just clicked. My team has raced in the Trans Am Series since 1982, and obviously, we are very saddened to see that Series go away. This move to Grand American with the Daytona Prototype is a milestone for us. The series is growing rapidly, and the knowledge and experience within Grand-Am is phenomenal. These cars have state-of-the-art technology and are driven by world-class drivers. We are excited to have such a great driver lineup for this year, with Randy and Chris as our full time drivers for 2006, and Ron coming in for the longer races. We are very excited about our future here!”

“We had a great year in 2005 in Trans-Am, but we've also been looking at Grand American for a while now," said Ruhlman, driver of the 2005 #49 Preformed Line Products Corvette for Derhaag Motorsports. "We were all set to run for the Trans-Am Championship this year, but when things collapsed at the last minute with Champ Car and Trans-Am, Jim Derhaag found a great opportunity for the team to move up to the Daytona Prototypes. The Rolex Series is a series that seems to be a natural for Derhaag Motorsports. They have the teamwork, exceptional organization, and a well-deserved reputation for putting together fast, reliable cars that give their drivers every chance of winning. That's exactly what it takes to succeed at these long races. This format will be a new experience for me and I'm excited to be teamed up with a driver of Chris' caliber.”

Joining Derhaag Motorsports after several successful seasons in Grand American is Chris Bingham, the 2001 and 2002 Rolex Series GTS Champion. “Following a turbulent season both owning and driving the #15 CB Motorsports Pontiac Riley and never quite reaching the levels of performance and results I felt we were capable of, this new opportunity is a welcome relief. I am in this series to race and to win and that is all,” said Bingham. “Owning the team last year distracted me from my goals and it became apparent I needed someone to handle the car and team and let me focus on the track. Jim and Derhaag Motorsports are the perfect fit for me, as they have such a strong reputation and pedigree. I have no doubt that 2006 will prove to be far more satisfying than last year. Driving with Randy and Ron next year will be a real treat and will undoubtedly help me push my game to a new level. Working with Jim, Buddy and the entire crew will be a privilege and I look forward to a successful and enjoyable 2006 season. I’d also like to thank KeyBank, McDonald Financial Group, Centurion Financial Group, Park Place Ltd, and Gatorz eyewear for their support this coming year.”

Bingham, of Bellevue, Washington, is a professional racing driver with an impressive resume and years of experience. He has competed in the Busch Grand National Series, open wheel racing in Indy Lights as well as IRL and has extensive endurance racing experience. As a two-time Rolex Sports Car Series GTS champion, Bingham was nominated as one of the "Best Road Racers of the Year" in 2002. He made his return to full time Rolex Series racing in 2004, piloting the #15 CB Motorsports car, before joining the Derhaag Motorsports team for 2006.

Ruhlman was the 2005 Trans-Am winner of the Long Beach Grand Prix and Cleveland Grand Prix races, was named the 2005 BBS "Most Improved Driver of the Year", and was runner up for the 2005 Trans-Am Drivers' Championship. Ruhlman, hailing from Greensboro, North Carolina, has extensive racing experience, predominantly in road racing in the Trans-Am Series, as well as in IMSA, ASA and the NASCAR short track series.

Fellows, a veteran racer of many series, including NASCAR Nextel Cup, American Le Mans and Trans-Am, is a factory driver for Chevrolet and no stranger to 24-hour endurance racing. Fellows was an overall winner in the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2001 with the factory Corvette team, as well as winning at Le Mans in GTS in 2001 and 2002. Fellows brings vast experience to the team for the longer venues and will be joining the effort for those races during the season, the first being the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

The driver lineup will be complemented by the addition of new team engineer, Buddy Fey. Fey brings to the team a wealth of knowledge and racing experience, as well as an unsurpassed expertise in these technically demanding Daytona Prototype cars.

Competition Tire Canada posts Goodyear Racing Tire Contingency for PMRA Teams

Bruce F. Mehlenbacher, Director of Operations

December 27, 2005, Niagara on the Lake, ON – Competition Tire Canada will be posting Goodyear Racing Tire contingency awards at each series event for 2006, the Pro Modified Racing Association (PMRA), www.ProModifiedRacing.com, is pleased to announce.

“The PMRA has proven itself to be a winner in a short time,” explained Craig Fairchild of Competition Tire. “We want to be a part of this, and we will pay a contingency award to the low qualifier and winner of each event if they are running Goodyear Racing Tires.”

Goodyear's racing heritage reaches back almost to the very first car race at the turn of the 20th century. In those early years auto makers were just beginning to see the wide-open possibilities of a sport called automobile racing. From then until now -- with one major interruption -- Goodyear's enthusiastic involvement with motorsports has grown as fast as the size of the crowds. The company produces more than one-half million tires a year for races of all kinds, all over the world.

“Goodyear has won more racing championships than any other tire company in the world,” stated Bruce F. Mehlenbacher, Director of Operations of the PMRA. “I have known the Fairchilds and Competition Tire for over 20 years and their company has a major history with motorsport. Having them involved in the PMRA series is very exciting news.”

Competition Tire Canada is one of Canada’s top auto racing suppliers. Based in the Niagara Peninsula, Competition Tire has been offering quality Goodyear products and service for over two decades in road course, oval track, and drag strip racing. For Information contact: 905.684.7418

At present, the PMRA has three events confirmed for the 2006 season, the KC Auto Parts Family Day Celebration at Toronto Motorsports Park in Cayuga, ON Saturday, June 24, and the Pro Modified Racing Association is pleased to be running inaugural events at St. Thomas Dragway in Sparta, ON August 5 and 6 and at the Grand Bend Motorplex, over the Labor Day weekend.

PMRA officials are in negotiations with several tracks at present for 2006, both eighth and quarter-mile tracks in Ontario, Quebec, Michigan, New York and Ohio with the plan of presenting a six -event drag racing series in 2006.

Ryan Litt Ready to Rumble

Courtesy Tommy Goudge, PR Manager

From Litt PR (December 27,2005) By Tommy Goudge - The 50th Annual “Rumble in Fort Wayne” indoor racing events are coming up on Thursday, December 29th and Friday December 30th, and once again Ryan Litt from Lyons, Ontario, Canada will be competing. Driving the same Eddie Griffith owned Ford Focus powered Beast chassis Midget car that he has driven in past indoor events, Ryan’s hopes are high for good finishes in each of the 2 nights.

Last year in this same event, Ryan ran very well and actually led more than 40 laps of the feature on the final night before traffic and brake problems slowed him down. NASCAR champion Tony Stewart will once again be returning to his roots and competing in this year’s edition of the historic indoor racing event, as will many other stars in the Midget racing world.

Where: Allen County Memorial Coliseum Expo Centre, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

What: Rumble Series “Rumble in Fort Wayne”, featuring the USAC National Midget Car Series.

When: Thursday December 29th and Friday December 30th.

Happy Holidays from Ryan Litt racing. Hope to see you in Fort Wayne! For more info, check out Ryan’s official website: www.RyanLitt.com.

World of Outlaws to Launch 2006 Season at Volusia Speedway Park's 35th Annual Winternationals

Norman, OK — Dec. 28, 2005 — By Chris Dolack, VP Public Relations Last season the World of Outlaws Sprint Series returned to Volusia Speedway Park for the first time since the early 1980s.

On Feb. 9, the Mean 15 will return to drop the green flag on the World of Outlaws 2006 race to the championship as part of the half-mile facility’s 35th Annual Winternationals.

Led by 2005 stars Craig Dollansky, Terry McCarl, Daryn Pittman, Donny Schatz and Brooke Tatnell, the Outlaws 2006 season promises to be one of the most competitive in history as it enters its 29th year of thrilling fans from coast to coast.

With Volusia only a little more than 30 minutes from Daytona Beach, Fla., and all of the racing action on Florida’s Atlantic coast, fans no doubt will be the biggest winners during Speed Weeks, especially considering the schedule of events.

The World of Outlaws Sprint Series highlights the first week of racing at the Volusia dirt track, but the action will be nearly non-stop for two weeks beginning Feb. 7 when the All Star Circuit of Champions sprint car series opens the event.

The All Stars will sanction races Feb. 7-8 and Feb. 11-12.

The World of Outlaws Sprint Series takes over Feb. 9-10 before the UMP super late models invade for races Feb. 13-15 and again on Feb. 17.

The UMP modifieds will be the busiest during the two weeks, running events nightly from Feb. 7 through Feb. 14.

The Advance Auto Parts Modified Super DIRT Series will run Feb. 15-18 and the World of Outlaws Late Model Series will highlight the second weekend of action with events on Feb. 16 and the finale on Feb. 18.

“No matter what type of cars you like to watch race, you’ll probably see them compete at Volusia in February,” said DIRT MotorSports Vice President and CFO Brian Carter.

“The action seems as if it’s non-stop night after night, day after day. For some it will be the first chance to really shake down their cars for the 2006 season, but for some of the sprint car drivers it will just be a continuation of everything they’ve been doing around the world during the winter.”

Several of the Outlaws national touring drivers already are making headlines as they gear up for 2006. In the past three days alone, Brooke Tatnell, Daryn Pittman and Donny Schatz have earned victories in Australia while Craig Dollansky drove to Victory Lane on Dec. 17 in New Zealand.

DIRT MotorSports and the World of Outlaws Sprint Series continue to shape the 2006 schedule and look forward to the series’ 29th year of bringing the best collection of sprint car racers from coast to coast for what will no doubt be one of the most competitive seasons in series history.

CAPITAL CITY SPEEDWAY: New website

Arnie Malcolm, the new (and past) promoter of Capital City Speedway (formerly Ottodrome), sent us a link to the track's new website.

The site contains news and information regarding the Ottawa-area oval, including a note that 'Motor Mouth' Brian Goudge is returning as the announcer.

"ANOTHER PIECE TO THE PUZZLE, BRIAN GOUDGE WILL RETURN AS TRACK ANNOUNCER IN 2006: Well there doesn't seem to be a day that goes by that another piece to the puzzle doesn't fall into place, and another big piece did just that this past week. A person who for years was considered the voice of Capital City Speedway, Brian Goudge will return in 2006 as the track's official announcer. Brian worked as the announcer for many years, while Dave Booth ran the track and all through the time that Penny Bell was involved. Brian was not at the track for the last four years, but is very excited about coming back to the track he calls home. Brian who lives in Kanata, has kept busy announcing though as he is the track announcer at Brockville Speedway, a dirt track just outside Brockville, Ontario. He has also for the past 8-10 years been the official announcer for the Great American Race, which is owned by stock car icon Jack Roush. "Motor "Mouth which is his signature, spend most of his life as a school teacher, but is now retired or at least that's what he says, although you would never know that if you where to check his calendar. We believe that Brian will play an important role in helping us rebuild this famous Ottawa land mark, and yes I'm sure we will get a mention or two at Brockville Speedway every Saturday night, plus many other functions that Goudge is involved in. Our main goal right now is to get the word out, that Capital City Speedway is open for business and ready to rock and we believe that besides being a great announcer, Brian is also a great communicator and promoter of the sport of stock car racing. There is no question that right now everyone is looking forward to opening night 2006, and none more than the tracks "new" old" announcer."

New England NASCAR drivers Lepage and LaJoie to pilot bobsleds in Lake Placid

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. – Northeast NASCAR fans will be especially happy to know that two native sons will join the action Jan. 5-7 when the Chevrolet Geoff Bodine Bobsled Challenge hits the ice at the Verizon Sports Complex in Lake Placid, N.Y.

     Kevin Lepage of Shelburne, Vt. and Randy LaJoie of Norwalk, Conn. have both committed to participating in the competition among 10 drivers that will raise money for the Bo-Dyn Bobsled Project. This research and development initiative, started in 1992 by Bodine, is striving to raise needed funds to keep the United States Men’s and Women’s Bobsled Teams at the forefront of international racing. And that includes the Winter Olympics.

      Lepage won over $1 million in 12 Cup starts in 2005. His top results were ninth in Daytona and 12th in Charlotte coming from start 43.

      LaJoie, two-time NASCAR Busch Series champion, was sixth at Talladega, seventh in Milwaukee and eighth in Las Vegas.

      Lepage is hoping that many of his Vermont fans will make the journey to Lake Placid. He was in his home state recently for the holidays and made several local appearances.

      “It will be a great experience in the sense that I have never been to Lake Placid,” said Lepage. “But growing up in Vermont, I was always intrigued by the sport of bobsledding. Most importantly though, I’m looking forward to supporting Geoff and his design project for the U.S. team.”

       In 1997, LaJoie rode in a bobsled with 2002 Salt Lake City bronze medalist Brian Shimer. He recently recalled that ride in Utah with the five-time Olympian.

       “I wanted to get out halfway down,” admitted LaJoie. “It was a different speed than I had ever experienced. I’m really looking forward to driving the sleds and support Geoff and the whole American team. What Geoff has done is great.”

       One needs to look no further than the current World Cup results in the men’s and women’s divisions. Approximately one-third of the medals awarded to date have gone to Uncle Sam’s racers in the Bo-Dyn craft. These sleek, aerodynamic sleds are born at Chassis Dynamics in Connecticut under the watchful eye of Bob Cuneo.

       After a day of training on Jan. 6, the green light will be flashed on Jan. 7 as Lepage and LaJoie will go up against Geoff and Todd Bodine as well as Johnny Sauter, Boris Said, Steve Park, Dick Trickle, Joel Kauffmann and Stanton Barrett.

       Other drivers, such as Cup winner Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt, Jr., are hopeful their schedules will enable them to attend.

       The pilots will race twice on Jan. 7 – at 10 am and 2 pm – after qualification on the afternoon of Jan. 6.

        ESPN will televise a one-hour program on Jan. 29 at 5 pm (Eastern), while Speed Channel will provide two hours of coverage on Feb. 4 at 2 pm (Eastern).

        In addition to the on-ice action, the festivities will include a $100 a plate fundraiser at Nicola’s on Main in Lake Placid. Call 518-523-5853. There will be a silent auction featuring NASCAR memorabilia and Bodine bobsled event-related merchandise.

       While Chevrolet is the title sponsor, Whelen Engineering is the presenting sponsor and Columbia Sportswear is the Official Clothing Supplier for the Lake Placid event.

       For more information on this event including ticket purchases, please log on to www.bodinebobsled.com.

Competition Tire Canada posts Goodyear Racing Tire Contingency for PMRA Teams

Niagara on the Lake, ON – Competition Tire Canada will be posting Goodyear Racing Tire contingency awards at each series event for 2006, the Pro Modified Racing Association (PMRA), www.ProModifiedRacing.com, is pleased to announce.

“The PMRA has proven itself to be a winner in a short time,” explained Craig Fairchild of Competition Tire. “We want to be a part of this, and we will pay a contingency award to the low qualifier and winner of each event if they are running Goodyear Racing Tires.”

Goodyear's racing heritage reaches back almost to the very first car race at the turn of the 20th century. In those early years auto makers were just beginning to see the wide-open possibilities of a sport called automobile racing. From then until now -- with one major interruption -- Goodyear's enthusiastic involvement with motorsports has grown as fast as the size of the crowds. The company produces more than one-half million tires a year for races of all kinds, all over the world.

“Goodyear has won more racing championships than any other tire company in the world,” stated Bruce F. Mehlenbacher, Director of Operations of the PMRA. “I have known the Fairchilds and Competition Tire for over 20 years and their company has a major history with motorsport. Having them involved in the PMRA series is very exciting news.”

Competition Tire Canada is one of Canada’s top auto racing suppliers. Based in the Niagara Peninsula, Competition Tire has been offering quality Goodyear products and service for over two decades in road course, oval track, and drag strip racing.

For Information contact: 905.684.7418

At present, the PMRA has three events confirmed for the 2006 season, the KC Auto Parts Family Day Celebration at Toronto Motorsports Park in Cayuga, ON Saturday, June 24, and the Pro Modified Racing Association is pleased to be running inaugural events at St. Thomas Dragway in Sparta, ON August 5 and 6 and at the Grand Bend Motorplex, over the Labor Day weekend.

PMRA officials are in negotiations with several tracks at present for 2006, both eighth and quarter-mile tracks in Ontario, Quebec, Michigan, New York and Ohio with the plan of presenting a six -event drag racing series in 2006.

Started late in 2004 and entering its second year of operation, the PMRA ran five events in 2005 at four Ontario, Quebec, and New York locations, with a different winner at each track. The PMRA provides drag race fans the opportunity to see and hear popular Pro Modified racing in the class known as “the world’s fastest door slammers.”

The PMRA is a self-governing organization with its own set of technical and safety rules based on the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) Pro Modified division. Cars in the PMRA capture the true spirit of hot rodding, and the class offers a widely diverse group of racecars with different types of 2000-horsepower engines propelling the cars down the quarter-mile in the 6.20-second range at 230 mph.

For more information contact Bruce F. Mehlenbacher mehlenbacher@ProModifiedRacing.com

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, Happy Holidays

I want to wish everyone in the racing community a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, Happy Holidays.

Be Happy, be healthy, be safe. Enjoy this time with family and friends.

Greasemonkey.